Toronto's high-flying offence takes on a tough Montreal defence as both teams aim for first

Saturday's game between the Montreal Alouettes and the Toronto Argonauts (4 p.m. Eastern, TSN/ESPN3) could be crucial for both teams' playoff hopes, and its outcome may be decided by a strength-on-strength matchup. Both teams have won three straight games going into this and are at 6-8 on the year, and a win moving them into a tie for first with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, so how do we differentiate them?  Much of the attention so far has been on Montreal starting quarterback Jonathon Crompton, who had his position further confirmed with the Alouettes' release of Troy Smith this week, but it's the other side of the ball that may present an even more intriguing clash. In the Argonauts' corner, there's league passing leader Ricky Ray and a high-powered offence, but in Montreal's corner, there's a defence that's been critical to their recent success. THe outcome of that battle may go a long way towards deciding Saturday's game.

How good has Ray been this season? He leads the CFL with 3,861 passing yards, but perhaps even more impressively, has posted a 68.6 per cent completion rate. That's above everyone except Argonauts' backup Trevor Harris (who's completed 15 of the 20 passes he's thrown) and several players who have only thrown one pass on trick plays. Ray has ensured his offence doesn't waste downs, crucial in the Canadian game, and he's also kept the ball going to the right players, tossing a league-high 27 touchdowns (Bo Levi Mitchell is second with 17) against just 13 interceptions. He turned in a dominant performance last week, too, throwing for 431 yards and leading Toronto to an incredible fourth-quarter comeback against the Tiger-Cats. As Rachel Brady writes in The Globe and Mail, Ray will be an excellent candidate to claim his first-ever Most Outstanding Player award this year, and star receiver Chad Owens is particularly stumping for him:

The Alouettes' defence will pose a good test for Ray, though. They struggled early on this season, but have since rounded into form, and heading into this week, they were allowing just 23.0 points per game (fourth in the league, best in the East). In their last three games, they've allowed 15 points (to Calgary), seven points (to Ottawa) and nine points (to Saskatchewan). Their average of 238.6 passing yards allowed per game is also the best in the East and fourth-best overall. Ray's been difficult for anyone to stop this year, but if Montreal's defence can contain him, they might have a shot to win this one and keep their playoff push going. If he dominates again, though, that will be another feather in his cap as he moves towards that MOP title.