The airline (Air Canada) said it also saw "attractive opportunities … to work with its Star Alliance partners Air New Zealand, United Airlines and US Airways".
No mention of a certain other Star Alliance carrier Singapore Airlines??? I may just be a tad pessimistic here but it sounds like a case of guilty by omission.
So Plan A didn't work for SQ ie flying in their own right SYD-LAX so what's plan B? Buy Air Canada then get the lucrative route by default, after all AC would surely be cheaper to buy than QF?
I'm sure Temasek Holdings aka SIN Govt/SQ has heard of the adage of more than one way to skin a cat (sorry Tipsy).
