Playoff Preview: Can Calgary maintain their dominance, or is it Edmonton's time to shine?

Moving on with our Playoff Preview series, here's a breakdown of the crucial matchups in Sunday's West Final between the Calgary Stampeders and Edmonton Eskimos (4:30 p.m. Eastern, TSN/ESPN3). Also see our preview of the East Final.

Edmonton offence: Three star running backs: Quarterback Mike Reilly played a bit in relief of Matt Nichols in Edmonton's win over Saskatchewan last week, but still didn't look fully recovered from his foot injury, which explains why he didn't get the start. Reilly has reportedly healed more and will be starting this week (a late decision, but one that's been made. according to the Eskimos' depth chart), but there are still significant questions about just how healthy he is.

Fortunately, Edmonton has a great ground game. The Eskimos led the league this year with 363.8 yards of offence per game, and a lot of that was thanks to the CFL-best 6.4 yards they picked up per carry. They ran a lot, too; Edmonton's total of 136.6 rushing yards per game was second only to Calgary's 143.9. Several backs contributed to that offensive success, but John White has been the most prominent and has really taken over down the stretch. He was our top offensive player last week after picking up 134 yards on 19 carries (7.1 yards per carry). If he can maintain that production, that will take a lot of the heat off Reilly. However, the Edmonton offence didn't produce a point of its own against the Roughriders. They'll be hoping for better this week, especially against a Calgary team that's won 11 straight against the Eskimos, including all three matchups between the sides this year.

Edmonton defence: Five Canadian defensive backs: The Eskimos have stockpiled non-import players in the secondary over the last few years, and that paid off for them in spades Sunday, with Canadians Chris Rwabukamba, Ryan Hinds and Cauchy Muamba all recording interceptions. Edmonton's defence is pick-happy in general, notching a league-high 20 interceptions this regular season and adding five more against Saskatchewan's Kerry Joseph last week. The Eskimos' defence shines in other areas too, though; they gave up the fewest points (18.9), the lowest completion percentage (54.7 per cent), the least yards per pass (6.7), and the least passing yards per game (206.7) in the league, plus the second-lowest rushing yards per game (95.9). They'll be tough to beat Sunday.

Edmonton special teams: Three fake field goals: The Eskimos showed off a terrific return game last week, with Kendial Lawrence taking a punt back 84 yards for a crucial touchdown. Lawrence has been great all year in the return game, producing tons of highlights. The kicking and punting games are more iffy, though; Hugh O'Neill only averaged 40.4 yards on 10 punts last week (well below the 44.4 he posted this season), and he only made three of his five field goals. More may be needed from him if this one winds up being close.

Calgary offence: Five league-leading rushers: The most important offensive piece for the Stampeders Sunday may be 2013 CFL Most Outstanding Player Jon Cornish, the Canadian running back who managed to lead the league with 1,082 rushing yards this year despite only playing about half the games thanks to a series of injuries. Cornish has been phenomenally efficient, collecting 7.8 yards per run and lighting up the league this year, and the Eskimos are correctly focusing on him as the key here. Cornish's health may play a substantial role here; he's set to go, but has been recovering from a concussion he sustained against Winnipeg Nov. 1. If he can stay on the field, the Stampeders' offence will be a truly formidable unit.

The Stampeders will be a tough opponent even if Cornish can't play the whole game, though. Calgary finished first in the league in first downs (387) and second in offensive yards per game (363.2) this season, and a lot of that production came without Cornish. Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell had a great season, plays behind an offensive line that conceded a league-low 26 sacks (but didn't get a ton of all-star recognition for it), and has a plethora of receiving targets to work with, so the passing game can be quite effective, and the ground game can be good with the Stampeders' other options. If Cornish can stay healthy and maintain his typical efficiency, though, this unit will go from good to dominant.

Calgary defence: Five crucial pick-sixes: The Stampeders' defence doesn't get as much credit as their offence, and at first glance, there's some logic to that. They were right in the middle of the league in yards (325.3 per game, fifth) conceded this year. However, Calgary was better in the rate stats, allowing the second-lowest yards per rush (5.1) and tying for fourth in yards per pass (7.5). Moreover, the Stampeders are phenomenal at preventing those yards from turning into points; they gave up just 19.3 points per game this year, second-best in the CFL. There are lots of stars on this defence, from defensive back Jamar Wall (six interceptions, tied for the league lead) to linebacker Keon Raymond (46 tackles and five interceptions) to defensive end Shawn Lemon (13 sacks, tied for third in the league). We'll see how they do against Edmonton's offence Sunday.

Calgary special teams: Three punt-block touchdowns: The Stampeders' punting game has been consistently great this year, with Rob Maver posting a 45.4 yard average (tied for third in the league amongst regular punters). The kicking game has been more iffy, with Rene Paredes slumping after a stellar 2013 and making just 73.7 per cent of his field goals; however, he did still finish third in kicking points. The return game is also an area of concern; Jock Sanders is out thanks to injury, so it will likely be Raymond and Matt Walter taking back punts and kicks Sunday, and while they've shown some potential there, they don't have a ton of experience at it.

Add them up: Edmonton 11, Calgary 13. 

X-factor: The crowd: There's always a lot on the line in the Battle of Alberta, and there may be a good number of Edmonton fans making their way down for this one. It will be interesting to see how much of a home-field advantage the Stampeders wind up with.

Prediction: Calgary 28, Edmonton 24. The Eskimos' defence makes some great plays, but Calgary's too well-rounded in the end. Big games from Cornish and Mitchell help to seal this.

Thanks for reading! Also check out our preview of the East final.