On Saturday, June 25th, 2022, the Edmonton Elks will travel south to Calgary to play their division rivals the Calgary Stampeders.

The Elks will be scheduled for a difficult task in trying to dethrone their main foes.  Looking at the last 10 years, Edmonton has not been on the winning end on a consistent basis.  

By the Numbers 

09/11/2021 Calgary Stampeders 32 at Edmonton Elks 16            L

09/06/2021 Edmonton Elks 32 at Calgary Stampeders 20           W

09/07/2019 Calgary Stampeders 33 at Edmonton Eskimos 17    L

09/02/2019 Edmonton Eskimos 9 at Calgary Stampeders 25      L

08/03/2019 Edmonton Eskimos 18 at Calgary Stampeders 24    L

09/08/2018 Calgary Stampeders 42 at Edmonton Eskimos 48   W

09/03/2018 Edmonton Eskimos 20 at Calgary Stampeders 23   L

11/19/2017 Edmonton Eskimos 28 at Calgary Stampeders 32   L

10/28/2017 Calgary Stampeders 20 at Edmonton Eskimos 29   W

09/09/2017 Calgary Stampeders 25 at Edmonton Eskimos 22   L

09/04/2017 Edmonton Eskimos 18 at Calgary Stampeders 39   L

09/10/2016 Calgary Stampeders 34 at Edmonton Eskimos 28   L/OT

09/05/2016 Edmonton Eskimos 24 at Calgary Stampeders 45   L

11/22/2015 Calgary Stampeders 31 at Edmonton Eskimos 45  W

10/10/2015 Edmonton Eskimos 15 at Calgary Stampeders 11  W

09/12/2015 Calgary Stampeders 16 at Edmonton Eskimos 27  W

09/07/2015 Edmonton Eskimos 7 at Calgary Stampeders 16    L

11/23/2014 Edmonton Eskimos 18 at Calgary Stampeders 43  L

09/06/2014 Calgary Stampeders 41 at Edmonton Eskimos 34  L

09/01/2014 Edmonton Eskimos 13 at Calgary Stampeders 28  L

07/24/2014 Calgary Stampeders 26 at Edmonton Eskimos 22  L

10/18/2013 Calgary Stampeders 27 at Edmonton Eskimos 13  L

09/06/2013 Calgary Stampeders 22 at Edmonton Eskimos 12  L

09/02/2013 Edmonton Eskimos 34 at Calgary Stampeders 37  L

11/02/2012 Calgary Stampeders 30 at Edmonton Eskimos 27  L

09/28/2012 Edmonton Eskimos 15 at Calgary Stampeders 39  L

09/07/2012 Calgary Stampeders 20 at Edmonton Eskimos 18  L

09/03/2012 Edmonton Eskimos 30 at Calgary Stampeders 31  L

In the last 10 years, the Edmonton Eskimos / Elks have only beaten the Calgary Stampeders only on 6 occasions with a record of 6-28 including playoffs.

What is at Stake Here? 

There is no doubt that although losing last week 26-16 to the Saskatchewan Roughriders was a much-improved game than in week 1 vs BC Lions. Their winning has to come sooner rather than later.  Including the upcoming game vs Calgary, their next 8 games will not be in Edmonton’s favor with up-and-coming games as follows:  

Week 4:  Friday, July 1st, 2022 at Hamilton

Week 5:  Thursday, July 7th, 2022 vs. Calgary

Week 6:  Thursday, July 14th, 2022 at Montreal

Week 7:  Friday, July 22nd, 2022 vs. Winnipeg

Week 8:  Bye Week

Week 9:  Saturday, August 6th, 2022 at BC.

Football is always about one game at a time, and focusing on the task at hand.  However, there is no doubt that the more losses pile up when having issues with the offensive production, it’s inevitable that roster changes will come to fruition at a frequent pace due to a lack of the team’s production.  

When Will the Offense Break Out?

A key player in last week’s game vs the Saskatchewan Roughriders was no doubt, Kenny Lawler.  He was the go-to target when the offense was nowhere to be found in the 1^st half in which he finished the day with 12 receptions, 149 receiving yards, and 1 touchdown.

If the Elks are going to find any way to win vs a tough Calgary team, they will need more players to be involved in executing the offense.  For one, the running game has been close to non-existent in the 1^st 2 games of the season thus far.  Edmonton has got to engineer a strong running game from RB James Wilder Jr vs Calgary to try and wear down their defense.  WR Mike Jones, Emmanuel Arceneaux, and Derel Walker will have to be active in the passing game.  The Stampeder’s defense will be all too ready if the game becomes a 1-man target throughout the duration of the game in only using Kenny Lawler.  In an interesting move by Coach Chris Jones listed on the depth chart, will QB Kai Locksley who will be slotted in at SB.

Edmonton Depth Chart Vs Calgary

The Elks front 7 have got to find a way in stopping the run.  In week 1 vs BC, they allowed a total of 187 yards on the ground.  In week 2 vs Saskatchewan, they allowed a total of 184 yards on the ground.  At some point, this trend had got come to a halt.  Having said that, trying to stop Ka’deem Carey will be a much more difficult task for the Elks defense.

Can the Elks Win?

With the tend in the last 10 seasons no. However, that is the beauty of football. Anybody can beat anybody at any given time. The Elks should look at what happened yesterday in which Montreal at 0-2 hosted Saskatchewan at 2-0. Although both teams do have good squads on paper, Saskatchewan was completely outclassed by Montreal in all 3 phases of the game in a 37-13 Montreal victory. Montreal has had inconsistent play in their 1st 2 games, only to have a breakout game vs Saskatchewan. If Edmonton is looking for some hope, then look no further that what Montreal did on heart alone. 

Stay tuned with CFL News Hub for the 2022 season.