Argos have a Ray of hope

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Montreal Alouettes' head coach Marc Trestman speaks to reporters at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal Saturday ahead of their CFL eastern final against the Toronto Argonauts which will take place in Montreal on Sunday. (GRAHAM HUGHES / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

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Toronto Argonauts' head coach Scott Milanovich will match wits this afternoon. (GRAHAM HUGHES / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

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Toronto quarterback Ricky Ray deals with reporters at Olympic Stadium in Montreal on Saturday. (GRAHAM HUGHES / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

MONTREAL -- There always seemed to be something on the line when the Montreal Alouettes and Toronto Argonauts met this season, and now they're locked in their biggest must-win game of the year.

The victor in the CFL East Division final at Olympic Stadium today earns a trip to the Grey Cup game.

"I don't get caught up with people talking about rivalries," Montreal quarterback Anthony Calvillo said Saturday. "It's going to be a tough game whether you like the other team or not."

The Alouettes won two of three meetings with Toronto this season to claim first place in the division, but that was before quarterback Ricky Ray and the Argonauts offence jelled for an impressive finish to the season.

Toronto won their first meeting of the year with Montreal 23-20 on July 27 with Ray behind centre, but he was hurt in the first quarter of their next match-up on Sept. 23, a 31-10 victory the Alouettes needed to avoid losing the season series to the Double Blue.

Jarious Jackson was in for the injured Ray as Montreal secured first place with a 24-12 win in Toronto on Oct. 14.

In three games since returning from injury, including a 42-26 victory over Ray's former team Edmonton in the East semifinal last Sunday, the veteran has completed 67 of 93 passes, a 72 per cent clip, for 922 yards and 10 touchdowns.

"Everyone's playing a lot better," said Ray, Toronto's prize pick-up in a trade last winter. "Offensively, guys are starting to understand what we're doing.

"This was all new for everybody. People understand their roles. Guys aren't thinking as much. We're just playing good football."

Ray has faced the Alouettes four times in the playoffs with Edmonton, winning Grey Cup games in 2003 and 2005, losing a Grey Cup at home soil 2002, and dropping a 36-26 decision in the East final at the Big O in 2008.

He knows it will be deafening in the domed stadium, where a crowd approaching 50,000 is expected.

"The biggest challenge for us is the crowd noise," Ray said. "We've just got to communicate really well. It's every road team's goal to get off to a good start and quiet the crowd."

These are teams that know one another better than most.

The Argos' first-year head coach Scott Milanovich was Montreal boss Marc Trestman's offensive co-ordinator last season. Defensive co-ordinator Chris Jones and offensive line coach Steve McAdoo also once coached in Montreal. Quarterbacks coach Jason Maas was once one of Calvillo's back-ups.

Among the Argonauts who once played for Montreal are star receiver and kick returner Chad Owens, safety Etienne Boulay and tackle Chris Van Zeyl.

"We had some success when I was with this (Montreal) organization, but our team is anxious and hungry to come out here and take that next step that we've been building toward all year," said Milanovich. "It's nice to be back, but it doesn't feel the same when you're on the other side."

Montreal has won six of 10 meetings with Toronto in division finals, including the last three.

The latest was in 2010, when the Alouettes crushed them 48-17.

Belli played for the Argos in that game. The Toronto native came out of retirement near the end of the season to help shore up the defensive line.

"My last professional game was here before I retired," he said. "I've got a sour taste in my mouth, losing against the Birds here.

"I can't wait to ruin their day."

For Milanovich, the key to victory is turnovers. The Argos led the CFL in give-away, take-away differential this season at plus-10, but Montreal was third at plus-7.

-- The Canadian Press

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition November 18, 2012 B4