#BetweenTheSheets: Canadian Olympic Curling Trials Preview
The "City of Bridges" will connect Canada's best to Beijing, China
Oh Saskatoon. What memories I have of the "City of Bridges".
I spent my university days attending the University of Saskatchewan and cheering on the Huskies.
I enjoyed my college weekends at hot spot clubs like Champs and Whiskey Jacks and The Odeon.
And I attended my first Brier at Saskatchewan Place, now known as the SaskTel Centre.
Now I will write another chapter of firsts to my curling blog resume in attending the 2021 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials.
18 of the top men's and women's teams from across our great nation will collect in 'Toon Town looking to become the next #TeamCanada.
Who is there? Who will emerge victorious?
Time to go #BetweenTheSheets for a full preview. Consider this the warm up rock before the official first rock is thrown Saturday afternoon.
Similar to the US Curling Trials preview, before we talk about the future we must respect the past.
Get out your paper and pencils rock heads. We are going back to school for a little history lesson.
Today's subject matter: Canadian Olympic Curling Trials!
- 2021 marks the 8th anniversary of the Canadian Olympic Curling Trials. The first event was held in 1987 in Calgary, AB to determine the representative at the 1988 Winter Olympics, also held in Calgary. The 1987 trials were known as the Labatt National Curling Trials. The first winners were Team Ed Lukowich and Team Linda Moore.
- There were no trials held for the 1992 Winter Olympics. As the sport was still a demonstration sport, the winners of the 1991 Scotties (Team Julie Sutton) and 1991 Brier (Team Kevin Martin) were selected to represent Team Canada.
- Kevin Martin is the most successful skip at the Trials. He has won the trials twice (2001, 2009) plus was selected in 1991. Martin has also reached another trials final, losing to Mike Harris in 1997.
- No other skip, male or female, has won more than one Trials event. Martin is the only one to even reach back-to-back finals, losing in 1997 and winning in 2001.
- No team/skip has been able to successfully #DefendTheIce at the Trials. Can Team Koe and/or Team Homan break the curse in 2021?
- Shannon Kleibrink has the best record among female skips at the Trials. Kleibrink has played 3 Trials finals, becoming Team Canada in 2005 and losing the final in 1997 and 2009.
- Saskatoon becomes the second Saskatchewan city to host the Trials with Regina previously hosting in 2001. 8 different Trials events, 8 different host cities. Other host cities include: Calgary (1987), Brandon (1997), Halifax (2005), Edmonton (2009), Winnipeg (2013) and Ottawa (2017).
- Home province blessing or home province curse? In the history of the Trials, only 2 men's teams and 3 women's teams have won on home province ice. Lukowich (1987), Martin (2009), Cheryl Bernard (2009), Jennifer Jones (2013) and Rachel Homan (2017) benefited from home ice advantage.
- The past three women's Trials champions have been crowned on home ice. The streak will end in 2021 however as no women's teams from Saskatchewan qualified for the Trials.
- Alberta has been the most successful province at the Trials. On the men's side, Alberta has won 4 of the previous 7 Trials but always alternating years and never back-to-back. Blessing or curse for Alberta men's teams (Bottcher, Koe) in Saskatoon? On the women's side, Alberta has won 2 of 7.
- Alberta has also had 2 runner-up finishes for the men (Pat Ryan 1987, Martin 1997) and 3 runner-up finishes for the women (Kleibrink 1997 & 2009, Carey 2017).
- Only two other provinces have won a men's Trials: Ontario (Harris, Jacobs) and Newfoundland and Labrador (Gushue).
- For the women, 4 other provinces have won a Trials: British Columbia (Moore, Law), Saskatchewan (Schmirler), Manitoba (Jones) and Ontario (Homan).
- At the Olympics, Canadian men have landed on the podium 6 of the previous 7 appearances with 3 gold (2006, 2010, 2014), 2 silver (1998, 2002) and 1 bronze (1988). 2018 marked the first time Canada failed to win a medal (4th place).
- Canadian women have been equally as impressive, also landing on the podium 6 of the 7 appearances. Canadian women have also claimed 3 gold medals (1988, 1998, 2014), 1 silver (2010) and 2 bronze (2002, 2006). Similar to the men, 2018 marked the first time Canada failed to reach the podium AND the first time Canada failed to reach the playoffs (6th place).
If there happens to be a Jeopardy category on Canada Olympic Curling Trials, you should be set to sweep the category now. You're welcome!
Now lets focus on creating more #HIStory and #HERstory at the 2021 event.
The qualification for the 9 spots at these trials came down to results on the ice, whether at historical or from a specific event. As a reminder, this is how we got here:
- Team Epping and Team Homan qualified via their wins at the 2019 Canada Cup
- Team Gushue and Team Einarson qualified via their wins at the 2020 national championships (Brier, Scotties)
- Team Bottcher and Team Jones qualified due to placing 1st on the CTRS standings for the 2018/19 season
- Team Koe qualified by placing 2nd on the CTRS standings for the 2018/19 season
- Team Jacobs qualified via their 1st place finish on the CTRS standings for the 2019/20 season
- Team Fleury qualified by placing 2nd on the CTRS standings for the 2019/20 season
- Team McEwen, Team Dunstone, Team Scheidegger, Team Rocque and Team Walker all qualified via the Direct-Entry event in September
- Team Gunnlaugson, Team Horgan, Team McCarville and Team Harrison qualified via the Pre-Trials qualifier event in October
Welcome to the Survivor Series of Canadian curling!
The annual WWE event takes place every November to coincide with the American Thanksgiving holiday.
This curling event also happens to take place in November. Ironically enough, the 2021 event takes place on opening Sunday of #Trials2021. Coincidence?
At the PPV, teams of 4 face off with the last one standing becoming the Sole Survivor.
At the SaskTel Centre, teams of 4 will square off on the ice where the last team standing becomes the Sole Survivor...also known at #TeamCanada at the 2022 Winter Olympics.
All we need is each team competing to come up with a cool team name.
Remember the classics from the WWF Survivor Series days?
We had The Vipers vs. The Visionaries. The King's Court vs. The 4x4's. Roddie's Rowdies vs. Rude's Brood. The Dream Team vs. The Enforcers. Classic!
How cool would it be to have similar names for curling teams?
With no disrespect to the skips, just listing skip last names is kind of boring and stale.
Bring on the drama. Bring on the excitement.
Bring on the blog preview...with a respectful throwback to the #SurvivorSeries, my personal WWF/E PPV favourite.
Quick aside, if you have better Survivor Series themed team names, bring it on. Share your suggestions in the comments and/or on social media.
Why not have some fun?
Canada Olympic Curling Trials
Saskatoon, SK
2017 Winners: Team Koe & Team Homan
Format: 9 team RR with top 3 advancing to playoff. 1st place earning a bye to the final while 2 vs. 3 in the SF.
MEN
Teams: Team Bottcher, Team Dunstone, Team Epping, Team Gunnlaugson, Team Gushue, Team Horgan, Team Jacobs, Team Koe, Team McEwen
#Fav:
The Rock (Team Gushue) - I almost wanted to call this team #OranjeCrush as a throwback to the 2005 win. The team has done a great job commenting on those orange jerseys on social media leading into the event. But alas, I went with the simpler name referring to the home province.
Gushue should easily be considered the favourite here. Just look at the season they have had as a tune-up to this event. They won a tour title to kick off the season. They won a #GSOC event and reached the SF of the other. Overall they are 16-1 on the season and on a 6-game winning streak. They are also 8-1 this season vs. their competition.
Not to mention Brad Gushue and Mark Nichols have won this before. Gushue lost the SF back in 2017 so he will have redemption and revenge on his mind in 2021 as well.
#TeamUpset:
Team Upset (Team Horgan/Beuk) - Why not embrace the "upset" label everyone is already throwing around? If I am Team Horgan, I re-claim #TeamUpset as my mantra and use it as motivation. Are people expecting this team to win? To even make the playoffs? Probably not. So capitalize on it and ride the Upset Train all the way through The City of Bridges.
The boys from Kingston, ON are having a breakout season. They have already played 5 tour events, qualifying in 4 and reaching 1 final and 1 SF. Of course they also earned their ticket in this field by claiming the final spot at the Pre-Trials event in Liverpool, N.S. They also own a respectable 4-3 record vs. the field this season, including a 2-0 record vs. provincial rival Team Epping.
#TheField:
Keep Rolling (Team Bottcher) - The defending Canadian champs have looked, dare we say, a bit average this season. Maybe the toll of a long season inside the #IceBubble is still lingering or maybe they are just saving their best to peak right now, either way the time to show up is NOW. It has not been a bad season for Team Bottcher. They reached the SF at a tour event early in the season and reached the SF and QF at both slam events. Consistency is the issue though. Looking like champs one game and underperforming in the next. They own a 1-2 record vs. the field....and, on the bright side, at least Bruce Mouat isn't here!
Million Dollar Team (Team Dunstone) - Get the reference? Money is green. Green is Sask. They are Team Sask. Plus the sheriff...and #DunnyIsMoney. So I went with a "Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase reference here. This is almost a make or break moment for this team in Saskatoon. They are the home province team. Everyone will be behind them. And with Sasky curling fans salivating for a championship, a Trials win will make up for all those Brier losses (from ALL Sask teams, not a dig at Dunny here) for the province in the past. The boys have qualified in all 3 tour events this season and are coming off a QF appearance at The National a few weeks ago. They are curling .500 against the field this season with a 5-5 record. They can beat any team in the field...but also can lose to any as well. The home province fans might be their "Million Dollar Belt" though this week.
CurlON (Team Epping) - When you are struggling with the season, which Team Epping is with an overall season record of 14-18, all you can do is just tell yourself to #CurlON and move forward. After Epping qualified in the first 3 events of the season, the team has had a slide backwards in their last 3 events, failing to qualify each time. The last 2 events were the #GSOC events and they come to Saskatoon on a 6-game losing streak. They are also 1-9 vs. the field this season. Stats are not on their side perhaps. But this is why we play the games. Ryan Fry could be the backbone to turning this around. He has won a Trials before (2013 with Team Jacobs). He knows the taste of victory. Can he help lead this team back to their winning ways? The addition of Glenn Howard at alternate was a smart move. Howard has Trials experience, including reaching the final in 2009.
Team Wildcard (Team Gunnlaugson) - Why come up with another name when "Gunner" sounds so good? With how analytical Jason Gunnlaugson is, perhaps we could have come up with something more educational or scientific as a theme, even a WWF The Genius theme, but alas. Instead I went with "Team Wildcard" because this is the role they are playing entering this event. Which team shows up? The one we saw at the Pre-Trails when they punched their ticket here or the one we saw at the Direct-Entry when they went 1-5? Similar to Epping, they are sub-.500 for the season with a record of 17-18. They have 2 QF showings for the season but also arrive here fresh off back-to-back misses at the slams. They also are a woeful 2-11 vs. the competition. They will need to turn that record around quick to have a chance. Take note of Gunner's experience at this event as well. He went winless in 2009 skipping his own team but was the alternate on Team Morris when they reached the final in 2013.
Moose Trax (Team Jacobs) - If Gushue is the #Fav, Jacobs is the #1 contender. The "other Brad" is also a previous Trials winner (2013) and remains the #1 team in the world, although Team Mouat is closing the gap quick. Jacobs is a remarkable 23-7 on the season, including reaching the final in their first 4 events and winning 1 title. There are concerns though. The failure to close it out in those championship finals is concerning. Plus the Northern Ontario boys went 1-3 at The National as a tune-up for this event. On the flip side, they are 8-3 vs. the field and should be right in the playoff mix next weekend.
Alberta Beef (Team Koe) - When you have the "meat" of Ben Hebert and John Morris, both with Olympic gold medals sitting on their shelves at home, with you and hail from Alberta, you own the team name of #AlbertaBeef. Koe will try to re-write the history books and become the first skip to #DefendTheIce at the Trials. And I would be weary to bet against them. The team sports a 22-10 record for the season, including back-to-back tour titles to kick off the season in September/October. They also reached the QF at The Masters and the SF at The National so tune-up events were successful. They are 8-5 vs. the field this season. Keep your eyes on them this week...and their time clock!
Team BFF (Team McEwen) - Best friends unite with a common goal of competing at the 2022 Winter Olympics. When this team formed a few years ago, that was the main reason. Everyone wants to win. Everyone wants to compete at the Olympics. Why not do it with guys who you consider your best friends on AND off the ice? But can being BFF's be enough to carry this team to Beijing? Consistency is a key factor for success and consistency is one of the issues plaguing this team over the past few seasons. Respectable season, going 22-14 and qualifying in 3 tour events. They looked great at the Direct-Entry when they punched their ticket here, posting a 5-1 RR record. But they failed to qualify at both slam events, walking away with an overall record of 4-6. They came close to qualifying but came up just short. Can they secure those big, much needed wins at the right time during a long RR? They own a positive 6-4 record vs. the field though so don't count them out. The knock on this team has been the same over the past few seasons. Do we have one too many cooks in the kitchen?
Projected Standings: 1. The Rock 2. Moose Trax 3. Million Dollar Team 4. Alberta Beef 5. Keep Rolling 6. Team Wildcard 7. Team Upset 8. Team BFF 9. CurlON
Canada Olympic Curling Trials Championship: The Rock (Team Gushue) def. Million Dollar Team (Team Dunstone)
WOMEN
Teams: Team Einarson, Team Fleury, Team Harrison, Team Homan, Team Jones, Team McCarville, Team Rocque, Team Scheidegger, Team Walker
#Fav:
Team Radar (Team Fleury) - As in "flying under the.."! People still consider this team a contender but not a #Fav. We saw it at both slam events. The blog even heard it from the skipper herself in a post-game interview at The National. And trust me, they are not complaining about it. They like it. And the more everyone keeps focusing on other "big name" teams in the field, the more Team Fleury keeps winning. Check out their overall record this season: 30-5!! 3 titles, including being able to #DefendTheIce at The Masters. They arrive fresh off another slam final at The National. The only "blemish" is a QF appearance at the Autumn Gold in October...and hardly a "blemish" at that. They are 9-1 vs. the field this season, including a 4-0 record vs. Team Einarson and 2-0 record vs. Team Jones. The Trials have produced some "surprise" winners in the past, why not expect another in 2021? Plus remember they are coached by Sherry Middaugh, who happened to reach a Trials final in 2013. And who happens to be their alternate? Chelsea Carey, who happened to reach the Trials final in 2017. Lots of experience on the bench. Lots of winning on the ice. Watch Out!
#TeamUpset:
Team Upset (Team Harrison) - Similar to Team Horgan above, the final team to earn a ticket into the field will fly the flag as #TeamUpset inside the SaskTel Centre. While many fans may not be as familiar with this team, they are relatively new and only have played 4 events this season, the names should not be unfamiliar. Jacqueline Harrison has played in numerous slams, including reaching the SF at the 2017 Champions Cup. Vice Alli Flaxey in a #GSOC champion, winning The Masters in 2016. Harrison competed at the Pre-Trials in 2017, missing the playoffs with a 2-4 record. This year Harrison would have a much better result at the Pre-Trials, posting an overall record of 7-2 to earn a spot in the field. They have only played 2 of the teams in the field this season though, going 0-3 with 2 losses to McCarville (both at the Pre-Trials) and 1 loss to Fleury (Oakville). Being a bit of the unknown in the field could be an advantage though.
#TheField:
Team Maple Leaf (Team Einarson) - They are the defending Canadian champions but we cannot call them Team Canada at this event since that is the ultimate prize at the end of the house here. So lets go with an iconic symbol to represent how they enter this event...and the most recent team to wear the maple leaf on international ice. Similar to Team Bottcher, our current Canadian champs have looked a bit out of sorts this season. They are 18-11 overall with 1 tour finals appearance and 2 QF results. They have also failed to qualify in 2 events, including their most recent event at The National. On paper this team should be in the playoffs after the RR. Based on results this season, they could be in for a battle to get there...IF they get there. They are only 3-6 vs. the field this season, including those 4 losses to MB rival Team Fleury. Can they hold on to The Maple Leaf or is it slipping from their fingers?
Team Defender (Team Homan) - This team name hold a double meaning. They are the defending Canadian Olympic representatives who will try to become the first team to #DefendTheIce (alongside Team Koe). But they are also living in the "Defend" shadow of chatter behind their 6th place finish in Pyeongchang. Think they are coming into this event with a bit of a chip on the shoulder and looking to silence some doubters? Not to mention wanting Olympic revenge? Add it all up and this might be the most dangerous team in the field. An 18-9 record on the season, including back-to-back QF appearances at both #GSOC events, is a positive. But they have also not advanced past a QF this season and failed to qualify at the Autumn Gold. They are on the plus side of the stats vs. the field this season at least, sporting a 3-2 record. The blog theme holds true for Team Homan: Consistency, Consistency, Consistency. They can play strong and make the playoffs but then have faltered in those "big game" moments lately. We know they can turn it around...but will they?
The GOAT (Team Jones) - It is tough to argue against Jennifer Jones and her resume. She has won this event before (2013) and went on to win Olympic gold in 2014. A 6-time Scotties winner. A 2-time world champion. And 16 career #GSOC titles, including defunct slam events. Is she the Greatest of all Time? Quite possibly. One way to cement that title would be to win another Trials event and become the first female skip to represent Canada at 2 Olympic Games. Add in the factor of vice Kaitlyn Lawes being a 2-time Olympic gold medal winner (2013 with Team Jones, 2018 MD with John Morris) and the resumes start to be very daunting and hard to bet against. What will be interesting is to seeing how the team manages the 5-person rotation. Will Dawn McEwen play most of the games? When will Lisa Weagle step in? How do they make the decision of who plays when and against who? The 5-member team has found success this season, sporting a 25-12 record overall. They have qualified in 5 of 6 tour events, including reaching The Masters final. However, the one event they failed to qualify in was their last event, The National.
Fear The Moose (Team McCarville) - If there is any skip to fear when stepping on the ice, it might just be Krista McCarville. We know the resume. We know the routine. We may not see this team compete at many tour events during the season but when push comes to shove, this team can push with the best of them. This will also mark the 3rd straight Trials appearance for McCarville, having won bronze in 2013 and finishing 5th in 2017. This season we have only seen this team compete at 1 tour event (finishing 2-2 and failing to qualify) and the Pre-Trials, where they went 7-1. Not a lot of curling under the sliders so that could be a set back early but we know once Krista McCarville gets on a roll, she is hard to stop. The question is whether she can get on that roll early enough to stay in the playoff picture.
Rocque N Roll Express (Team Rocque) - Lets get this party started...and bring on those dance moves from the front end while it happens. Team Rocque may not be the favourite this week and may be considered more of a challenger than a contender but don't tell them that. This team seems to be having a ton of fun on the ice and sometimes having fun leads into winning rather than focusing on the other way around. Sure they are "only" 18-13 on the season. And yes they have only qualified in 2 of their 5 events this season. BUT, look what happens when they are on their game. They arrive in Saskatoon off a career best SF finish at The National and they looked very strong at the Direct-Entry, posting a 3-1 record to earn the second of three tickets being handed out. The main concern may be the 1-7 record vs. the field this season though. However, if you can Rocque On with the wins and Roll Off of those losses, anything can happen.
Oranje Crush (Team Scheidegger) - I didn't hand out the name to Team Gushue but I will to Team Scheidegger. And yes, I know it is a throwback reference as they have not worn the orange jerseys since the 2019 Scotties but they made orange look good. Time to bring back that #OranjeCrush mentality and ride the wave. Netherlands just clinched a spot in the 2022 World Cup so why not another Oranje Success Story? One of the more popular, and well-liked, teams on tour from fans, we still do not fully know what to expect from Team Scheidegger. COVID derailed the return to curl plans for skip Casey Scheidegger after giving berth to her second child. This season the team has played a few tour events and owning a record of 18-9. They will arrive in Saskatoon fresh off a tour title in Camrose at the beginning of November and do have 2 SF finishes as well on the season resume. They are also 3-3 vs. the field this season. The stats align to a projected win total of around 4.5. 6 wins is probably the minimum to stay in playoff contention. Can they at least accomplish a similar 2 to 1 record to stay in the hunt? The wildcard advantage for them may be on the bench with 1998 Olympic champ Joan McCusker. She has been watching most of these teams this season as a commentator with #GSOC. Has she picked up a few hints along the way to help her team out in Saskatoon?
Team Dark Horse (Team Walker) - When we look up the definition of a "Dark Horse" we find it to refer to "a usually little known contender that makes an unexpectedly good showing". Enter Team Walker at their breakout appearance at the 2021 Scotties. Sure we saw them at the 2020 Scotties but they failed to reach the Championship Pool and people were left wondering. Fast forward to the Olympic Trials and this "little known contender" of the past is quickly becoming a team of "good showing". They have modest results this season, posting an overall record of 18-16. They did reach a championship final in Edmonton back in September and have qualified in 3 other tour events, including most recently at The National. They qualified via the Direct-Entry but took the long road to get there, having to defeat Team Brown in a winner-takes-all Game 3 faceoff. The late ending game where those watching online also heard the now infamous winning remark from skip Laura Walker, "I'm so tired!" This is not only a Dark Horse contender but a team not afraid to grind out their games to pick up the wins. Look at what they did in Chestermere, winning 3 straight games after dropping their first 2. They are 3-5 vs. the field this season.
Projected Standings: 1. Team Radar 2. Team Maple Leaf 3. Fear The Moose 4. Team Defender 5. The GOAT 6. Oranje Crush 7. Team Dark Horse 8. Rocque N Roll Express 9. Team Upset
Canada Olympic Curling Trials Championship: Team Radar def. Team Maple Leaf
Yes, I recognize I picked both projected 1st place RR teams to win the finals. But why not? History certainly says it is a wise pick.
For the men, only once has a SF winner knocked off the 1st place team...and that was back in 1987 at the inaugural event when Lukowich defeated Pat Ryan.
For the women, only 2 SF winners have emerged victorious in the final. Kleibrink was the first in 2005, knocking off Steph Lawton in the SF and Kelley Scott in the final. Homan pulled the back-to-back playoff wins in 2017, knocking off Jones in the SF and a previously undefeated Chelsea Carey in the final.
1st place advantage? I would say so.
If you want to start sizing up how many wins your fav team needs to stay in playoff contention, the magic number should be 5.
5 wins should get you, at least, a TB if not a direct path to the SF. 4 wins might be one short. 6 wins should be playoff safe.
And to get that coveted 1st place advantage? You need to go undefeated or only take a single loss. And hope the team you lose to takes 2 losses themselves.
Back in 2009, Glenn Howard finished with 1 RR loss but was seeded second due to his one loss coming against Kevin Martin. Martin also finished with 1 loss in the RR but the H2H TB paved the path to the final.
What say you rock heads and stoners? Agree? Disagree?
Share your predictions in the comment section and/or via social media using the #Trials2021.
And don't forget, you can stay up to date with all the action online HERE.
#StayTuned
The blog will be in Saskatoon from the opening draw to the crowning moment when we find out who will become the newest members of #TeamCanada. Check out live 'round the rings coverage on twitter HERE.
The US Curling Trials are still underway in Omaha, NE. ICYMI, the blog preview post can be found HERE. Check out results and updated standings HERE.
Across the pond, the European Curling Championships hit the ice this weekend as well. The blog will have a FULL PREVIEW sliding into your house soon.
To those competing in Saskatoon, good luck and good curling!
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