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It's not a perfect 2009 CFL schedule for the Edmonton Eskimos - but it's a significant improvement from last season.
After being dealt a terrible hand by the league office last year, the Green and Gold's marketing and football operation departments are much happier with this season's edition.
Gone are the Thursday night home games at 8 p.m.
Edmonton Eskimos fans had to suffer through three of them last season.
This year's schedule doesn't have one late 8 p.m. start at Commonwealth Stadium.
"For us, it was a huge victory to have games moved to 7 p.m. That's a workable hour," said Dave Jamieson, Edmonton's director of marketing and communications.
Gone is the Halloween night home game.
The Esks surely missed thousands of dollars in revenue for being forced to play on that night last year.
And gone is the heavy dose of back-to-back games against the same opponent.
There were five cases of that in the 2008 regular-season, but just two this year.
But the most improved area of the schedule is in the spacing of games.
The Esks had seven tight turnarounds last year - meaning they played seven regular-season games when coming off five days of rest or less.
In the 2009 schedule released yesterday it became clear the club only has five games that fall into that category.
"That's huge," said Eskimos general manager Danny Maciocia.
"It is a good schedule. There is no perfect schedule, but this is definitely something we can work with."
Added Edmonton head coach Richie Hall: "The last six games of the (regular) season are Friday games. You always have seven days between games."
However, the schedule isn't drawing rave reviews from the entire fan base.
Some critics are livid at the Esks hosting five Thursday games this year. The club only has 10 home dates in a 20-game sked.
According to Jamieson, the Esks' first choice for home dates in the summer months is Friday.
Thursday games are the club's second preference.
But there are several factors that go into making a schedule.
"You don't want to be against Heritage Days because it limits park and ride (options)," said Jamieson, before explaining the club didn't want to be against the Edmonton Indy race and had to work around a concert planned for Commonwealth Stadium in July.
Having a single TV rights holder - TSN - also makes the schedule-maker's job difficult.
"The reality is there is going to be Thursday games because of having a different TV rights arrangement," continued Jamieson.
Finish lines ...
Unlike last year when the team spent nine days in Burlington for a two-game Ontario road trip, the club doesn't face any bizarre travel scenarios this season. However, there is the odd twist this summer of the Esks facing Calgary three times in a four-game stretch. The provincial rivals play Aug. 13, Sept. 7 and Sept. 11.