#Brier2021 Power Rankings - Day 7

 #BetweenTheSheets: Welcome to Elimination Day

To survive the day will take a full TEAM effort

What did #MovingDay accomplish at the Brier?

Well a few teams will be packing up their luggage knowing Thursday is their final day inside the #IceBubble.

One team confirmed they are sticking around a few more days for sure.

The rest? Well outside of clinching spots in possible TB games, Moving Day just moved more teams into the logjam and made the Champ Pool possibilities more interesting.

And, really, isn't that EXACTLY what we wanted to happen on Moving Day?

The focus now shifts to the dreaded #EliminationDay.

For most teams it is simple: #WinAndIn.

For others, it will be a bit more complex: Win and Give Me Some Help.

Where do we stand? Well here is what we know:

WC2 is in the Championship Pool.

Newfoundland and Labrador, Northwest Territories, PEI, Yukon and Nunavut are all eliminated.

Canada, Manitoba, Northern Ontario, Ontario, Saskatchewan and WC3 all know, at the least, they have clinched a TB and cannot be OFFICIALLY eliminated on #EliminationDay.

Alberta and New Brunswick need wins or they face elimination.

British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Quebec and WC1 are all fighting for their lives on Thursday....with hopes of just making a TB. Yup, fighting JUST for a TB possibility. Still LOTS of work to do...and needing help along the way.

Of course there is the added pressure of, even if you make the Champ Pool, advancing with 3 or more losses will put your back right against the wall heading into those final games on Friday and Saturday.

A team entering the Champ Pool with 3 losses can, at best, only afford one loss and hope for a TB to keep playoff dreams alive.

Enter the Champ Pool with 4 losses, highly unlikely but mathematically still a possibility, and you need to win all 4 games AND hope for some help AND, possibly, win a TB game just to make the playoffs.

There will be lots of scoreboard and standings watching tomorrow, especially for Pool A teams as they hit the ice twice.

The #PowerRankings has analyzed the vice position and the skipper position the past two days but today, for the final look at the mountain for the opening RR, we look at the full team performance.

It will take a full team effort to cross the finish line and land yourself a spot in the #EliteEight.

Which teams are trending up and coming together as a complete team at the right time?

Which teams are losing their footing on the rocky mountain and are close to taking a tumble?

These rankings are through games completed as of Monday night.

#PowerRankings

1. #WC2 - Team Koe (87%, PR:1): Hmmm, so what happened? WC2 dominates one of the main pool challengers, Saskatchewan, in the morning game and then comes out completely flat in the night cap. Koe struggled. He was not the Koe we are used to seeing and Ontario capitalized. Maybe a bit of "long week syndrome" creeping in? End of the day, it was a loss and the team falls into the 1 loss category. They are still the only team to have officially reached the Champ Pool and still in control. But a bit more pressure heading into the game on Thursday now. And be weary, you are playing the team who earlier on Wednesday knocked off the same team who beat you at night. And Quebec is playing for their Champ Pool qualifier lives. The chances of Koe slipping up in back-to-back games is not likely but it will still take a full team effort to defeat a hard pressing Quebec team.  Up Next: QC

2. #WC3 - Team Howard/Middaugh (85%, 4): Another day, another last shot FTW, another victory for Wayne Middaugh and the boys. And this was a big one. The defeat of NB puts WC3 not only in control of advancing to the Champ Pool but in full control of finishing first. They have 1 loss. Their opponents on Thursday are two of the top teams also fighting for top spot in the pool. All eyes will be on WC3 tomorrow. Win both and they enter the Champ Pool with 1 loss and great shot at the playoffs. Lose both and you enter the Champ Pool on a downward spiral. Split and you could finish anywhere from first to fourth in the pool. The team is firing on all cylinders right now and if they continue to put up these consistent numbers, watch out!  Up Next: NOnt, MB

3. #FearTheMoose - Team Jacobs (85%, 7): People may say it wasn't pretty and it was the lowest scoring game in Brier #HIStory but, end of the day, it was a W in the standings for Team Jacobs and that is all they want. Win big? Win pretty? Win ugly? Just win, baby! The blog commented on this in previous #PowerRanking posts, if Jacobs and the boys find their way and get rolling, be worried. Anyone remember that little event called the 2014 Winter Olympics? Start slow, finish strong. The entire team is putting up better numbers each game and finding their rhythm. This team could still finish atop Pool A if results fall their way. Simple task for their one game tomorrow: Win and In!  Up Next: WC3, BYE

4. #BuffaloHunt - Team Gunnlaugson (85%, 2): Well that was a bit surprising. Not often we see a shutout at the Brier but it happened to Team Gunnlaugson in their 3-0 loss Wednesday afternoon to Team Jacobs. How big of a deal is the loss? Right now, not too big. The boys still control their fate. Win tomorrow and they win the pool. Win at least one and you are in the Champ Pool. The fact is Manitoba is still putting up strong team numbers. The front end is shining. Gunner can make the big shots when needed. And Casey is playing his Brier best. Nobody was going through this event undefeated. It also takes some sting off to see the other undefeated take a loss at night.  Up Next: BC, WC3

T5. #TeamCanada - Team Gushue (88%, 6): When you outscore you opposition by a combined 19-7 in picking up two much needed Ws, what more can you say about how the team is performing? But don't get too caught up on the scorelines, especially the morning game. PEI tossed everything they had at Canada and was down 4-5 with hammer playing 9. Team Canada turned on the pressure in the final two ends, picking up steals in both, to win the game but it was not lopsided and it was a fight. A nice team W though to fight off an upset bid. They held momentum in the night cap in an always emotional game vs. your fellow provincial counterparts. They end with winless Nunavut so it is expected to see them reach the Champ Pool with a 6-2 record and on a winning streak. Never count out the defending champs.  Up Next: NU

T5. #CurlON - Team Epping (84%, 5): Epping pulled an Epping on Wednesday. As many may have predicted, the team went 1-1 on the day. As many probably were surprised to see, they knocked off previously undefeated WC2 at night after losing to "hanging on by a thread" Quebec in the morning. Win the game many expected you to lose. Lose the game many predicted you would win. Epping being Epping. Full credit to this team on the bounce back after the disappointing loss. And it was a HUGE win. You bring a top contender closer to the pack by handing them a loss. With only three playoff spots up for grabs, you watch the L column more than the W column right now. Ontario is set up for a Champ Pool spot, although they play a team with nothing to lose Thursday afternoon so don't look too far ahead. Biggest concern, how is Ryan Fry's shoulder? We saw some light training work being done on it after the game Wednesday night. Fry is curling great right now so hopefully it is minor and won't hinder his, or the team's, performance moving forward. Nobody wants to see injuries right now.  Up Next: PEI

7. #TeamGreen - Team Dunstone (85%, 3): Nice rebound game for Saskatchewan Wednesday night. The boys struggled in the morning draw, being swept to the carpet by WC2. As we saw previously though, the team has learned to park those losses and move forward. They came out loose and relaxed at night to knock off PEI and now are in great position for a Champ Pool spot. They do need to defeat a tricky NS squad who is also playing for a Champ Pool spot of course. It could become an elimination game on #EliminationDay. Team Dunstone is putting up strong numbers down the entire line though, one of the most consistent. Win and In. Easy peasy. Right?  Up Next: NS

8. #ABStrong - Team Bottcher (87%, 8): When teams make deep runs at sporting events we often ask if there was a moment during the event they look back on and say "this was the defining moment for us." For Alberta, it could have been their W Wednesday vs. NWT. Why? They were coming off a tough loss to Northern Ontario the previous night and started seeing more and more teams ahead of them in the standings. They were left looking up. And they were playing a team with nothing to lose, always a danger. In sports we sometimes refer to these games as "Trap Games". Get caught looking ahead and take an upset loss. Instead Team Bottcher put together a solid team win, rebounded from a tough loss and now are right back in the hunt for a top place finishing in the pool. Of course they need to be careful as they have two "trap games" on Thursday. Win and In, sure. Lose one and playoffs take a slight hit. Lose both and...well nobody wants to think that do they?   Up Next: YK, BC

9. #Labelleprovince - Team Fournier (84%, 12): How many of you wrote off this team after two straight losses to NS and SK? Come on, put those hands up. I know some, if not most, of you did. So what did Quebec do? In fine on-brand style, they fed the horses and knocked off a higher ranked team in Ontario on Wednesday afternoon. As skip Mike Fournier said after the win, "we are still in this." Yes you are. They will need to pull another major upset of course, and get some help, but they are still alive. Look at the numbers this team has put up thus far. Almost seems like they should be 5-2 rather than 4-3. It has been a great team effort all week for #Labelleprovince. They need one more to keep the horses running. It won't be easy but, on the flip side, you are drawing a Team Koe coming off a lopsided loss the night before while you had a bye.  Up Next: WC2

10. #TeamAcadia - Team Grattan (80%, 9): Moving Day was not kind of poor NB. They tried to fight back in their gave vs. WC3, scoring 3 in 10 to force the extra, but they ran out of steam. Now they face the possibility of finishing 5-3 in Pool A and still missing the Champ Pool without even playing a TB game. Yikes! The struggle in some games has been real and we have yet to see the entire team put together one great game where all 4 members are on top of their game. And perhaps that will end up being their downfall. But what a #TeamUpset flag waving it has been. They need to win their game vs. NWT to close out the RR at night...and hope for results to fall their way while watching the morning draw from their hotel rooms.  Up Next: BYE, NWT

11. #TeamBluenose - Team Murphy/McDonald (81%, 11): Step one. Complete. Nova Scotia is hanging on by a thread but they avoided the #MovingDay curse by defeating Nunavut Wednesday afternoon and still control their own fate, a bit. They are 4-3. Their opposition on Thursday is 5-2. You win and both are 5-3...and there could be others who join the 5-3 record logjam. The blog talked about this issue before: consistency, consistency, consistency. Putting together back-to-back high percentages as a full team has been their downfall a bit thus far. They cannot slip up tomorrow if they want to avoid becoming an #EliminationDay casualty.  Up Next: SK

12. #TeamPacific - Team Laycock (81%, 13): The win was nice but too little too late to start putting up points and chalking up the Ws on the standings board. Another Brier and another minor disappointment for the B.C. boys. So much talent, so much experience yet still struggling to find their way and win the big games. Officially they are still in this. They can help their own cause by winning both games on Thursday, playing a minor role of spoiler as well. But it won't be easy...and they would still need some help.  Up Next: MB, AB

13. #WC1 - Team McEwen (83%, 10): What can be said about WC1? Tough loss on Wednesday to Alberta dropped their record to 2-4 and they need a lot of help to stay in the #IceBubble. On paper they have two winnable games on Thursday but will it matter? They may have been the biggest casualty of #MovingDay. They had the opportunity to bring back a team above them in the standings and better position themselves for Champ Pool qualification. Unfortunately the game wasn't there, Alberta dominated and WC1 is left scratching their heads over what happened this week. End strong and finish 4-4 sounds nice but expectations were VERY high for this team heading into the Brier. This team was a dark horse playoff and podium threat. They were their own worst enemies. It will be interesting to see how they recover from this experience moving forward, inching towards a hopeful Olympic trials spot. But right now, the only word to sum up the week will be "disappointing".  Up Next: NWT, YK

14. #TheRock - Team Smith (72%, 14): Mixed bag of emotions for NL on Wednesday. On the plus side, they picked up their second win of the Brier. For Greg Smith, he betters his win total from 2018. On the down side, they were unable to mount a challenge vs. fellow Rock competitors Team Canada and their Brier experience comes to an end. #TheRock finish 2-6 and head home as they have the scheduled bye on the final day of competition. There will be lots of learnings, and positives, from the experience, especially for the rest of the team who made their debut appearance. Plus look at some of those highlight reel shots Smith made. And don't worry Greg Smith fans, he isn't leaving the #IceBubble yet. He will be competing in the mixed doubles championship, which gets underway next Thursday. Up Next: BYE

15. #PolarPower - Team Skauge (79%, 15):  The theme of the Brier for NWT is going to be how their games are a tale of two halves. For the majority of their games the team starts strong. They hang with their opposition. They score some multi-point ends. The #TeamUpset flag slowly rises from the bench. But then the latter half of the game a switch happens. The opposition steps up their game and NWT is unable to stay with them. They are just giving up those extra point ends at bad times or once too often in a game. Lots of experience on this team. Lots of upswing potential. But, part of them may wonder what could have been had they been able to, as a team, play a complete 10 end game.  Up Next: WC1, NB

16. #TheIslanders - Team MacKenzie (75%, 16): The blog said it before, lets say it again. You go Tyler Smith. Smith, in his rookie appearance, stepped into the house as skip for the second time this Brier on Wednesday. Who did he play? Just Brad Gushue. And who did he play the first time he skipped a game at the Brier? Just Kevin Koe. Talk about a Welcome Wagon. But how else can you challenge yourself, get better and build experience for future (yes, there will be future) appearances on the Brier ice? Love the team mentality here and leadership of Eddie MacKenzie. Did PEI expect to beat WC2 or Canada? Probably not. But boy did they give a scare to the champs Wednesday morning. Hmmm, can they do it again on Thursday and play spoiler to the big and mighty province of Ontario?   Up Next: ON

17. #PurplePower - Team Mikkelsen (68%, 17): Can Yukon play the role of ultimate spoiler on Thursday? After enjoying a day off in the hotel, maybe the team was able to hit the reset button and will come out swinging on Thursday. They take on one team looking strong for the Champ Pool with aspirations of finishing first still and another who has struggled mightily the past few games. Catch one team looking ahead or the other emotionally distraught over a tough week (and possible early elimination) and who knows what will happen?!   Up Next: AB, WC1

18. #TeamArctic - Team Mackey (62%, 18): So Wednesday was a tough day. In the two games played, Nunavut was outscored 23-3. Not an ideal day at the office. The 14-1 night loss to Nova Scotia, where they gave up 5 in the opening end and a steal of 4 in the second, doesn't look pretty on the score sheet. And yes, it was their lowest team outing, shooting only 55%. However, again a topic the blog discussed in a previous #PowerRankings post, lets go Brady St. Louis. St. Louis was handed the control of the team Wednesday night, his first game as skip on Brier ice. What a cool experience. It was humbling I am sure. But also rewarding and a learning experience. Props on the team as well for making the call to bump St. Louis into the skipper role for the game. We know this team has been playing around with the line ups throughout the week but Peter Mackey has always been in the house. Wednesday night he switched it up again and moved himself into the vice position. Lets hope we see Brady St. Louis back at a future Brier.  Up Next: CAN

#StayTuned

By the end of day Thursday we will have our #EliteEight confirmed....minus the potential for those TB games Friday morning of course. Oh those pesky TB. Lots still to be decided.

The Brier 2021 Midterm Grades with Special Guest Casey Scheidegger RETURNS Friday morning as well as Big Red comes back to assign grades to ALL 18 teams competing at the Brier.

Bring on Elimination Day!

Good luck and good curling....