Minas Panagiotakis/CFL.ca
TORONTO — The Ottawa REDBLACKS have had their playoff hopes dashed.
The REDBLACKS’ 29-3 loss to the Montreal Alouettes on Thanksgiving Monday sealed their fate for the 2023 season and took them out of the hunt to be the CFL’s first-ever East Division crossover team.
Heading into Week 18, the Montreal Alouettes had a chance at locking up second place in the East Division. Their win over the REDBLACKS, paired with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats’ win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders means that both Eastern teams continue to battle for the right to host the Eastern Semi-Final on Nov. 4.
The Edmonton Elks, meanwhile, were eliminated from playoff contention with their 35-12 loss to the Toronto Argonauts on Friday.
Here are the Week 18 playoff scenarios that teams faced going into Thanksgiving Weekend presented by Purolator:
WEST DIVISION
- Saskatchewan WIN = No crossover potential for East Division fourth-place team; Edmonton and Ottawa eliminated from playoff contention.
- Edmonton LOSS = Edmonton eliminated from playoff contention.
EAST DIVISION
- Montreal WIN and Hamilton LOSS = Montreal will host the Eastern Semi-Final at Percival Molson Stadium on Saturday, November 4 at 3 p.m. ET.
- Ottawa LOSS = Ottawa eliminated from playoff contention.
PLAYOFF PICTURE
- Toronto clinched the East Division title for a third straight season in Week 15
- Winnipeg secured a playoff spot for a seventh consecutive year in Week 14
- BC clinched a post-season berth for a second straight year in Week 16
- Montreal booked a trip to the postseason for the fourth consecutive year in Week 17
- Hamilton clinched a playoff berth for a fifth straight season in Week 17.
CROSSOVER RULE
If the fourth-place team in division A – A4 – has more points than the third-place team in division B – B3 (they cannot be tied), A4 will cross over and take the place of B3 in terms of playoff seeding. A4 will then compete against B2 in the division B semi-final.
