Edmonton @ Calgary preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 19, 2017 ) Edmonton 28, Calgary 32

The Calgary Stampeders look to tighten their grip on first place in the West Division when they host the Edmonton Eskimos in the 59th edition of the Labour Day Classic on Monday. The Stampeders bounced back from their first loss of the season against Saskatchewan with a 39-26 victory against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in Week 11 and hope to open up a six-point cushion at the top of the standings by knocking off the Eskimos for the seventh straight time on Labour Day.

"I think we're in a good mood but sometimes I wonder that happy people aren't as hungry as you want them to be," Calgary head coach Dave Dickenson told reporters. "We're going to have to play with our eyes and execute at a high level so hopefully we're ready to do that." Edmonton lost some precious ground in the battle for the West Division title after blowing a 14-point halftime lead in the 25-24 setback against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in Week 11. The Eskimos have struggled mightily in the the Labour Day matchups with their arch rivals, dropping the last two meetings by an average margin of 21 points, and hope to stay in the race for first place by earning their first win in the holiday series since 2011. "It's as big of a game that there is all year," Edmonton head coach Jason Maas admitted to reporters. "I think we've fought through a lot of battles in 10 games and learned a lot of lessons so we will be ready to play Monday."

TV: 3 p.m. ET, TSN, ESPN Plus

ABOUT THE ESKIMOS (6-4): Mike Reilly was named one of the CFL's Players of the Month after passing for 1,233 yards and nine touchdowns to go along with three rushing TDs in August. Reilly threw for 250 yards and three touchdowns in the loss to Hamilton to move past Condredge Holloway for 18th place on the CFL's all-time passing list while D'haquille 'Duke' Williams made three catches for 116 yards and a TD to register his sixth 100-yard game of the season. Edmonton signed Arnaud Gascon-Nadon, who recorded three sacks in 17 games with the Ottawa Redblacks in 2017, to the practice squad in an attempt to bolster the defensive line while long snapper Tanner Doll was moved to the suspended list.

ABOUT THE STAMPEDERS (8-1): Calgary swept the CFL's weekly honours as quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell, wide receiver Kamar Jorden and defensive end Ja'Gared Davis were all named top performers for their exploits in the win against the Blue Bombers. Mitchell threw for a career-high 452 yards and three touchdowns while Jorden set a new franchise record with 249 receiving yards to go along with 10 catches and a touchdown, and Davis intercepted two passes, including one for a pick six. Defensive coordinator DeVone Claybrooks is back with the team after he was hospitalized for several days due to a diabetic reaction.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Calgary has won 10 of the last 12 Labour Day meetings with Edmonton.

2. Reilly leads the league in touchdown passes (22) and rushing TDs (eight).

3. Williams tops the CFL with 947 receiving yards while Jorden is second with 895 coming into Week 12.

PREDICTION: Stampeders 32, Eskimos 25