The 27-year-old Henry, who was working his way back to the gridiron after a ruptured Achilles last season, was placed on the six-game injury list this morning due to a patellar-tendon injury and will likely require season-ending surgery.

Henry earned West-Division all-star honours in 2022 after leading the Stamps in both receiving yards with 1,023 and touchdown receptions with eight.

It will once again be a tough task to find a replacement for the talented wideout. The rest of the receiving room currently consists of the following pass catchers:

• Clark Barnes
• Reggie Begelton
• Erik Brooks
• Cam Echols
• Isaiah Epps
• Colton Hunchak
• Ishmael Hyman
• Rysen John
• Marken Michel
• Tyson Middlemost
• Tre Odoms-Dukes
• Jalen Philpot
• Cole Tucker

The club signed free agent Colton Hunchak this morning. He’s spent his entire career with the Stamps since being drafted by his hometown team in 2019.

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A Tough Day

Veteran receiver Reggie Begelton addressed the media to share his thoughts on Henry’s devastating injury.

“We lost a brother, a soldier, a teammate,” said Begelton.

“It’s never easy to see somebody who worked their tail off to come back from a serious injury (they suffered) last year and come back looking really bright, looking really good out there and wanting to prove himself once again, and he goes out like that. It’s real tough.

“It took a toll on the team yesterday. We were all in the locker-room and we felt for him, and it was a hard evening yesterday.”

Wrapping Up Preseason

The Stamps will travel to Winnipeg tomorrow afternoon for a final preseason battle with the Blue Bombers. It will be the last chance for the players to show off what they can do in hopes of earning a permanent spot on the team before roster cuts are made on Saturday.

General Manager and Head Coach Dave Dickenson provided some insight on who would be making the trip to the ‘Peg.

“We’re going to leave Tommy (Stevens) home, and Tommy’s going to be on our team,” said Dickenson.

“The other four (quarterbacks) are going to play. Tommy Stevens has shown he’s very good at short-yardage and I got faith he can also do other things.”

Dickenson also added the team will be leaving more vets on the defensive line at home in Calgary to give an opportunity for the newer players to edge each other out in game action.

“I think this game will really matter to who makes it. I think some guys have taken the lead, but we’ll see if they can keep that lead,” he said.

Then, it all goes down for real when Bo Levi Mitchell and Ticats visit next Friday, June 7, for the Stampeders home opener presented by Tim Hortons. GET YOUR TICKETS!

There were a few standout players over the weekend, including rookie running back B.J. Emmons who had two touchdowns. All five quarterbacks played in Saturday’s win against the Lions with Jake Maier and Matt Shiltz leading the way.

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Quarterback Thoughts

The battle for a job behind centre will come down to who slots in the third spot at the depth chart with Maier and Shiltz taking up the top two places. The rest of the QB stable consists of short-yardage expert Tommy Stevens, second-year pivot Logan Bonner and rookie Kyle Vantrease.

Head coach and GM Dave Dickenson spoke about the play of his pivots following the game.

“We got all five in and it was important for me to make sure they were meaningful reps for the one and the two,” explained Dickenson. “Really wanted to make sure Jake got into a flow and wanted Matt to get to know our offence and play the game and see how we call things. He did what we call a clutch period at the end of the half and he did a nice job communicating with the guys.

“I’m sure we can be better, I know that. It seemed like we were fairly good, it seemed like the guys were getting to the line of scrimmage and I thought we YAC’d it up well as a group; the receivers caught the ball well and made the extra yards.”

Jake Maier finds Marken Michel to create some on-field magic @calstampeders | #CFL

Watch on CFL+! pic.twitter.com/tuCZbmjxcn

— CFL (@CFL) May 25, 2024

Receiver Depth

The Stampeders went out and got more depth at wide receiver in the offseason and it showed in Saturday’s victory.

Nine different receivers caught a pass in the win despite projected starters Jalen Philpot and Malik Henry sitting out for precautionary reasons.

Dickenson explained why that depth was so important coming into this year.

“That’s the one position this year where we’ve seen the most injuries,” he said. “There were a few guys taking part, it wasn’t a fast-paced practice, but they were out there doing some things, guys that weren’t in the game. It’s more about concepts. Meaning if there are injuries can you figure out what we’re doing by the concept and some guys played out of position that they never even practiced in so they did a good job.

“It’s always nice to have the Tyson Middlemost’s of the group that have played in our system that have knowledge of multiple positions. I thought he stepped up and did a good job.”

Quick Notes

The Stamps are in Winnipeg to battle the Blue Bombers Friday in the exhibition finale.

The Season-opener takes place Friday, June 7 at McMahon Stadium. GET YOUR TICKETS!

“There’s a running gag going around that they brought the French Mafia here,” rookie defensive back Kaylyn St-Cyr said with a laugh.

“There are a few French people here, the staff, the players. Even though we’re a long way from home it feels good to still have that French connection.”

St-Cyr is joined by nine other French-speaking Quebecois, including fellow rookies Ben Labrosse (DB), Christy Nkanu (OL), Jason Janvier-Messier (DL), Paul-Antoine Ouellette (FB), Maxim Malenfant (RB), Christian Joachim (DB), and Alexandre Marcoux (OL), as well as veteran fullback William Langlais and running backs coach Andre Bolduc, making Cowtown feel a little more like home.

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Paul-Antoine Ouellette and Kaylyn St-Cyr during practice. (David Moll).

It’s going on to Day 16 of camp including the three rookie sessions from the second week of May, and St-Cyr is soaking up every moment.

“Honestly, the experience has been amazing,” he said with a wide grin. “We’ve been here for almost three weeks now, almost a month, and honestly, I can’t complain. Obviously, the level of competitiveness is one step higher, but we take it as a challenge.

“Of course, it’s hard but it feels good to be at that level of football.”

Although he was selected with the Stamps last pick in the 2024 CFL Draft (69^th overall), St-Cyr put together an impressive final season in U Sports.

The La Prairie, Que., native was a Quebec conference all-star for the Carabins in 2023 after making 15 tackles and adding one interception, four pass breakups, and five passes defended in six games.

He capped off the year by helping the Université de Montréal defeat the UBC Thunderbirds 16-9 in the Vanier Cup for the program’s second championship in its history.

Les Carabins recently unveiled their championship rings which St-Cyr and Ouellette were unable to collect due to training camp.

Ce soir, nous remettions une bague à nos champions de la Coupe Vanier pic.twitter.com/7gpoiJsb92

— Carabins (@Carabins) May 16, 2024

“I was sad to miss the ring ceremony but it’s for good reason,” he said. “Finishing my university career on that note, I couldn’t ask for something better.

“That’s the same energy that I’m trying to bring here with the Stampeders. I finished off a winning career (in university) and I want to continue that winning career here in Calgary.”

St-Cyr during poses for a photo during warmups of the intrasquad Red and White game. (Makayla Berze).

The 25-year-old will have a chance to put those words into action on Saturday afternoon for the Red and White’s first pre-season outing of the season when they take on the visiting BC Lions at home in McMahon Stadium.
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As game day approaches, St-Cyr is reminding himself to focus on his game.

“The main advice I got from other players is to just play my game. I’ve been playing football for 18 years now, so (the mindset is) don’t think too much, ball out, and go have some fun.

“And every play is not the last play. You always need to think about the next play. There will be some good plays and some bad plays but at the end of the day I’m grateful to be able to play football and enjoy my time here.”

It was a damp practice, but the Stampeders were full go on the McMahon turf as the position battles heated up.

Guess what day it was today pic.twitter.com/DgBPlRnVrD

— Calgary Stampeders (@calstampeders) May 22, 2024

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Stepping Up On The Defensive Line

The Stamps lost a couple defensive lineman to free agency over the offseason, including veteran Derek Wiggan who moved on to Montreal.

Mike Rose, who enters his seventh season with the Stamps, says he needs to further embrace a leadership role.

“It’s kind of like starting over,” Rose explained. “Derek Wiggan was the guy when I got here so now I have to take a different role and mentor some younger guys.”

Head coach and general manager Dave Dickenson reiterated the need for veteran guys on the line to step up.

“(Rose) has been a good player and a good leader,” said Dickenson. “I think he can up especially that second part since we did lose Derek Wiggan. Mike has to be that veteran voice but we have other guys, too. James (Vaughters) hasn’t been with us (Julian Howsware) hasn’t been with us as long but they’re veteran players, they’re hard workers, they’re tough guys.”

Defensive Back Battle

The defensive backfield will see some changes this year.

Demerio Houston came over from Winnipeg to play the corner opposite of Tre Roberson. As for where everyone else fits in, that’s still TBD.

Dickenson spoke about how he has liked his DB group so far.

“We’ve had more hands on balls and actually finished some interceptions,” explained Dickenson. “I think it’s a very competitive group. I’m anxious to see once the lights are on who shows up. DB’s have to have the quickest memories, meaningeveryone is going to get beat, but how confident are you in yourself; that play is over I’m going on to the next one and I’m confident I’m going to make it.

“Demerio has fit in well, bringing him in at the corner. Tre has accepted switching sides and he just seems to be stronger. I like what I’m seeing. Good battles, though there is a lot of good young talent and we’re happy with that group. We will see who does it when the lights come on.”

One player who has started making plays is 2024 draft selection Ben Labrosse, who had a knockdown yesterday in 12-on-12 drills and an interception today. Dickenson gave his impressions of the first-round pick.

“Any of the guys who go to the rookie mini-camps in the NFL, it’s definitely worth their time,” said Dickenson. “It does hurt him because they miss that foundation of rookie-camp (with the Stamps). Ben hadn’t really played anyway, he missed a full year of football, but he made a play today that was a great play and he is starting to, I think, feel more comfortable.

“He’s got a lot on his plate, let’s see where he takes it, but I like what I am seeing.”

Preparations kicked off on Tuesday for the Stampeders as they get set for their first preseason game of the season when they battle the visiting BC Lions on Saturday at 2 p.m. at McMahon Stadium.
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It will be the first real taste of opposition for Calgary who hosted their Red and White scrimmage game this past weekend.

Following Saturday’s test against the Leos, the Stamps wrap up exhibition play in Winnipeg next Friday.

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Quarterback Group

The Stamps still have six pivots in camp as they head towards the preseason. With no two-a-days this season, there have been less reps for the players, but head coach and general manager Dave Dickenson is happy with the learning his QB group has still been able to do despite some challenges.

“We have a lot of guys so we’re struggling to get everyone work,” said Dickenson. “I think what I do see is that all of our guys understand our system. There are so many different defensive looks they can go against so it’s really hard to not maybe have a scouting report on another team.

“At times I think we look really sharp, crisp on their decisions but then something on defence throws you out of the ordinary and you can tell (they are) spinning a little bit, not seeing what they are expecting and all of the sudden they’re holding the ball and taking sacks.”

Locked. pic.twitter.com/y547NX5CQ4

— Calgary Stampeders (@calstampeders) May 19, 2024

Receiver Recovery

There were some tough injuries for the Red and White last season, especially at wide receiver with the likes of Canadian Jalen Philpot missing the entire season and all-star wideout Malik Henry going down early due to a ruptured Achilles.

Dickenson talked about the progress they have made and how they look so far in camp.

“Today was excellent, (Jalen’s) best practice,” he said. “Maybe I’ll back off tomorrow though. He had a good day so let’s not maybe push it two days in a row. He did everything today and looked good.”

As for Henry, he’s similar to Philpot in terms of slowly ramping it up.

“He had another good full day as well, “continued Dickenson. “They’re being smart. Malik does a lot of different treatments to try to keep his body right. He looked fast today, didn’t obviously play a lot in our Red and White.

“We need those guys, our receiving core is starting to get a little bit of muscle injuries. We don’t have a ton of bodies, it seems like we’ve lost a few Canadians as well. We will see how we play out but I like where we’re at.”

Following some gloomy conditions and a slight weather delay, the sun shone down on the turf just in time for the Stamps to run through multiple game scenarios.

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The first session of the day was a scenario where there was 4:59 remaining in the half. Campbell Fair, who is in his second stint with the Red and White after being drafted by the club in 2023, hit a 51-yard field-goal during the opening session and longtime kicker Rene Paredes hit two from slightly closer.

Veteran defensive lineman James Vaughters looked good all afternoon long and picked up a safety during a scenario that had the Stampeders offence starting within their own five-yardline.

The defence flexed their muscles again when Canadian defensive back Malcolm Thompson got an interception in the endzone.

The lone touchdown of the day was a Matt Shiltz to Tre Odoms-Dukes connection from about 20-yards out.

With the Red and White game now wrapped up the Stampeders will look ahead to their first exhibition game of the season next Saturday at 2 p.m. when they host the visiting BC Lions at McMahon. GET YOUR TICKETS.

They Said

The doors open at 2:30 p.m. with free admission. Fans must access the stadium through Gates 2 and 3 on the east side of the stadium and seating is limited to the east-side stands. Concession stands on the east concourse will be open with food and beverage items available for purchase.

Though loosely termed a game, Sunday’s on-field activities actually consist of a series of game scenarios pitting the offence against the defence as well as special-teams situations.

In addition to the action between the white lines, there will be a live DJ on site to provide musical entertainment prior to the game and a post-game BBQ for Forever Red members following the contest. Ralph the Dog and members of the Outriders and Stamps Hype team will be on hand.

One of the long-standing traditions of the Red and White Game is the performance of O Canada by the rookie players and coaches before play begins.

With only one more practice before the Red and White Game on Sunday at McMahon Stadium, Jake Maier and Matt Shiltz took their play to another level.

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Quarterback Play

It started with a perfect pass on a corner route from Shiltz followed by what would have been a 20-plus yard scramble a couple of plays later.

Then, in the last session of the day, it was Maier threading the needle on multiple occasions to move the ball down the field.

“I did see some good things,” said general manager and head coach Dave Dickenson. “I feel like our defence is causing a little bit of havoc. We did an end-of-the-game scenario three times and all three groups were able to get into field-goal range but then the defence stiffened up and stopped them.

“I do think the quarterbacks are growing. We lowered the number by one and it wasn’t easy because Chris Reynolds had done some nice things, but we just have to understand that when you’re out there take advantage of reps and make it count.”

Shortened Roster

Thursday was the first practice since the Stampeders trimmed their roster by 10.

Reynolds – along with Canadian defensive lineman T.J. Rayam – were the most notable cuts, after both spent the entire season with the Stamps last year.

Dickenson says all of the decisions are hard.

“We preach that we’re competing and trying to give everyone an equal chance,” he explained. “There’s a lot of guys that are very close. We don’t know if we made the right decisions. We talked it out and there was evidence to support it and as a team there’s going to be a bunch more tough decisions coming up at the end of this month.

“It’s never easy, we get it, it doesn’t mean we don’t care about those guys. But it is just the reality of our business.”

Calgary now has 75 active players and 15 Canadian rookies that don’t count towards the limit at camp.

Notes

Fan Fest returns to McMahon Stadium on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The event is completely free for all attending. MORE INFO

The Red and White Game runs from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Sunday at McMahon and is free and open to the public.