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It has been a roller-coaster season for Luke Tasker and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. The defending East Division champions lost their first three games and seven of their opening nine. But a 6-2 record since Labour Day - buoyed by a perfect 5-0 mark at new Tim Hortons Field - has the Ticats in control of their own destiny heading into their regular-season finale against the Montreal Alouettes on Saturday. A win against the surging Alouettes (9-8) will secure the Ticats (8-9) a playoff spot. Should Hamilton win by eight or more points, it would finish atop the division standings and host the Eastern Final on Nov. 23. Watch all the action on TSN at 3:30pm et/12:30pm pt. Montreal beat Hamilton 38-31 in the first meeting between the teams on Sept. 7. Theres been a few games weve let slip away but were where we want to be right now, Tasker said. We control our own destiny to a certain extent. If we win that will be good enough to get into the playoffs. Thats assuming Toronto beats Ottawa on Friday night. A win by the expansion Redblacks would eliminate the Argonauts from playoff contention and secure Hamilton a post-season berth and leave the Ticats and Alouettes to play for first Saturday. Montreal has already clinched a playoff berth. It would cement first place with a win over Hamilton or a loss by seven points or less. Now, should both Toronto and Montreal win this weekend, the Als would finish first and Argos second based on having won the season series with Hamilton. The Ticats would miss the playoffs the result of the West Division crossover. The Alouettes are the CFLs hottest team, having won six straight and eight of their last nine games after a miserable 1-7 start. Quarterback Jonathan Crompton is an outstanding 8-1 since becoming Montreals starter despite completing just 59 per cent of his passes. He has yet to record a 300-yard passing game and has thrown almost as many interceptions (eight) as TDs (10). The only blemish on Cromptons record is a 33-16 road loss to Edmonton on Sept. 12. Despite the presence of big-play receivers Duron Carter (71 catches, 987 yards, six TDs) and S.J. Green (49 receptions, 732 yards, four TDs), Montreal is ranked last in passing percentage and second-last in passing and scoring. But the Als are second overall in time of possession (31 minutes 10 seconds), meaning they do a good job of controlling the ball when they have it. The only thing that matters is hes 8-1 and knows how to win, Ticats defensive back Craig Butler said. Before he came in they were kind of trying to find an identity. He manages the game well and knows who to get the ball to. Those guys (Carter and Green) are his playmakers ... when it comes down to crunch time theyre the guys they go to. With Crompton and company controlling the ball, it keeps a rugged Montreal defence fresh. Thats certainly been bad news for opponents as the Alouettes lead the CFL in forced turnovers (45), fumble recoveries (21) and fourth in points allowed (21.5 per game). The unit has been especially stingy over the six-game win streak, having surrendered just 74 points, an average of 12.3 per contest. They have a savvy defensive secondary, Tasker said. One thing they do really well is disrupt receivers in their routes. As receivers its important for us to have our eyes around the contours of the secondary, looking at whos dropping and where. Theyre also very good at getting their hands on you as you release into your route. Tasker said Montreal usually plays zone in passing situations, making it important for Ticats receivers to quickly find the gaps before the pass rush gets to the quarterback. Both Montreal and Hamilton have been good at pressuring the passer, having recorded 49 sacks apiece to stand tied for third overall. Thats the name of the game, Tasker said. If we can protect, things go a lot smoother for the passing game. Hamilton has allowed 63 sacks this season, second-most in the CFL, but also sports the leagues second-ranked aerial attack. And while quarterback Zach Collaros has completed over 65 per cent of his passes, he has also rushed for 293 yards (an average 5.7 yards per rush) with two TDs. Tasker, the son of former NFL special-teams guru Steve Tasker, is Hamiltons receiving leader with 67 catches for 876 yards and five TDs. The CFL sophomore figures to again be a focal point of the Ticats passing game with slotback Andy Fantuz (hamstring) missing a third straight game. As impressive as Montreals defence has been of late, Hamiltons unit has been just as solid at Tim Hortons Field. The Ticats have allowed just 61 total points there, an average of 12.2 a game. Safety Craig Butler gives Hamiltons rabid fans credit for the defences success at home, saying the unit feeds off their energy. Weve got some of the best fans in the league, its great to play behind them, Butler said. Theyre just as excited as we are ... theyre loud and having fun and we just try to take their energy and turn into ours. We feel comfortable and play confident there. We have fun with our crowd. Its a great atmosphere and I think any time you can hype up or build up energy thats going to get — especially the defensive side — going. Added Tasker: I guess its the level of comfort that comes when you are truly, truly at home ... weve played at Guelph and McMaster the last two years but when youre truly at home there is a difference. The fans and positive energy thats flowing, the noise that can get going when were on defence, it all comes together and adds to the feeling and positive energy thats in our favour. The wind can sometimes be a factor, potentially wreaking havoc with the passing and kicking games. Tasker said thats something both teams must account for. Sometimes people refer to it as two-quarter football, he said. When youre going into the wind you want to just have possession of the ball, you want to give them as little time as you can going with the wind. But at the very minimum, when it comes down to the end of the season you want to have control of your own destiny. Its where you want to be as a football player and football team. NMD Wholesale . On Wednesday night, they showed that stellar defence and a little small ball can get the job done too. With pinch-runner Kevin Pillar aboard after Dioner Navarro opened the bottom of the ninth with a single, Anthony Gose dropped down an excellent bunt along the first-base line. NMD Discount . Amaro broke the NCAA all-time record for receiving yards in a season for a tight end with 1,352 during his junior campaign, eclipsing the mark of 1,329 set by Rices James Casey in 2008. https://www.cheapnmdoutlet.com/. Pierre last November, only to watch St. Pierre leave the UFC octagon with his welterweight title belt and a split-decision victory. NMD Store . Helwani said that Weidman has been dealing with recurring swelling and pain in his knees related to torn meniscus he suffered as a teenager and the problems came to a head last week when he suffered prolonged swelling and pain in his left knee, resulting in the decision to undergo an arthroscopic scope procedure to clean up the tear in both knees. NMD Replica .com) - Hassan Whiteside scored 20 points with nine rebounds in the Miami Heats 83-75 win over the Boston Celtics on Sunday.ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Baltimore Orioles third baseman Manny Machado has been taken off the field on a stretcher after injuring his left leg running out an infield single. Machados leg buckled when he reached the first-base bag in the seventh inning of Mondays game at Tampa Bay. Machaado was in obvious pain while being treated on the infield dirt near first by team trainers and stadium medical officials.dddddddddddd Baltimore manager Buck Showalter patted Machado several times near the shoulder before the stretcher was moved from the playing field. ' ' '