The Financial Post reports in its Wednesday edition that Canada's biggest cable companies went all-in on hockey three years ago, buying the Maple Leafs, betting that selling Canadians more ways to watch their favourite sport would boost business. A Bloomberg dispatch to the Post reports that as the Maple Leafs collapse on the ice and in television ratings, the Raptors basketball team that came as part of the deal is proving to be a surprise windfall for BCE and Rogers Communications. Toronto-born rapper Drake, who sits courtside for Raptors home games, supplies the cool factor as "global ambassador." The Raptors are providing fans with its best performance since its creation two decades ago: first place in its division this year and its first playoff run since 2008 last year. Top players DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry have been voted all-stars the past two years. "The feeling right now is that the Raptors have arrived," says Dave Hopkinson, chief commercial officer of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, which owns the Leafs and the Raptors. The Raptors now have the fifth-best attendance in the 30-team league and are selling more new season tickets than any club except LeBron James's Cleveland Cavaliers.