National Preview

#BetweenTheSheets: The National Preview

The European (Dis-)Advantage?

Are the curling schedule gods plotting against Europe?

If curling were the game of Risk, Europe would be surrounded and at a massive disadvantage right now.

Only a mere days removed from the conclusion of the 2024 European Curling Championships in Finland, the next #GSOC event of the season is taking place in St. John's, NL.

And for 3 women's teams and 6 men's teams, this could be the most difficult event of the season.

Jetlag. What is that?

We have no time for jetlag. We have a slam to compete in.

It's a cruel, cruel winter.

Euro champions Team Muskatewitz from Germany and Team Tirinzoni from Switzerland have barely had time to dive into their massive blocks of cheese before having to hop on a plane and pass over the Atlantic Ocean to contest in the next slam.

Scotland's Team Mouat, Sweden's Team Hasselborg and Norway's Team Ramsfjell may not have even had time to admire their podium medals.

Italy's Team Constantini and Switzerland's Team Schwaller, while missing the podium in Finland, were still competing on the concluding weekend.

Do not forget Italy's Team Retornaz and Sweden's Team Edin, who also competed last week in Finland but just missed the playoffs.

Oh yes, for these 9 teams it may be a tough week of #GSOC action.

They just concluded a grueling 9-game RR. And 7 of them made the playoffs, meaning they each played an additional 2 games.

11 games in one week. 2 days off for travel. Back on the ice to compete.

Are these 9 European teams at a disadvantage this week on The Rock?

One would not be surprised to see a handful, or even majority, of these teams miss the playoffs this week. It would be understandable given the schedule.

Yes, these are world class elite athletes who travel week in, week out to compete but there is a different type of emotional ending when competing for your country at a continental championship vs. competing for yourself at a regular tour event.

For one, a tour event is usually only a few days. Not an entire week.

Secondly, the Euros was also an opportunity for those teams competing to qualify their nation for the world championships and keep those direct entry ticket possibilities alive for the 2026 Winter Olympics.

If you want a full update on where those fields stand and the Olympic qualification, check out the recent Power Rankings blog post HERE. 

Thirdly, there is usually a great dinner and social event scheduled at the conclusion of Euros for all the teams competing. This would have been held Saturday night.

If teams participated in the social (which they all do), it might have meant for a tough Sunday morning of packing and leaving while then heading over the pond to Canada.

Lots of travel. Lack of sleep. Tired competing bodies.

It all adds up to a major disadvantage this week for these teams.

But will the results follow this expectation?

To be fair, this same disadvantage came into play for those teams who competed at the Pan Continental Curling Championships.

The Canadian Open started the following week after PCCC wrapped up over the weekend.

But the comparisons end there since PCCC was in Lacombe, AB and the Canadian Open was in Nisku, AB. A mere hour or so drive does not equally compare to flying from Finland to Canada.

We did see Team Homan win PCCC and win the Canadian Open.

Team Gushue made the playoffs at PCCC and reached the Canadian Open final.

But we also saw Team Gim struggle right after the PCCC final loss, failing to qualify at the Canadian Open.

Will any of the Euro competing teams follow the path of Homan/Gushue and make a run to a slam final right after a deep continental championship run?

Or will some follow the path of Gim in making a deep continental championship run only to run out of steam on slam ice?

Maybe. Maybe not. We will have to see. #StayTuned

Lets head to The Rock for the Tour Kioti National Preview.

#TwineTimePreview

The Kioti National

St. John's, NL

2023 Champions: Team Gim (W) and Team Retornaz (M)

WOMEN

#Favs

Team Homan

As we ask with any preview post mentioning Team Homan, are you going to bet against them?

They recently won the Pan Continental Curling Championships as Team Canada and then continued their winning way at the Canadian Open.

The Canadian Open win also added to the record-extending slam victory list, now sitting at 16!

They have reached the final at all 5 events played this season and have won 4 titles. The only miss being the Tour Challenge Tier I, losing the final to main Canadian rival Team Einarson.

Since that loss, they are 16-0 with back-to-back major wins under the slider.

Good luck to Team Carey in the opener?!

Team Tirinzoni

Lets not just hand the title over to Team Homan though, ok?

What about the Euro champions from Switzerland? Do we underestimate Team Tirinzoni?

Remember they did make the final of the last slam, Canadian Open, losing to Homan.

While Homan's season stats are impressive, what about Tirinzoni's?

They have also reached 5 finals this season. They have 2 championship wins, including the Euro.

And outside of missing the playoffs at the Tour Challenge, their season record stands right up there with their main rivals.

Should we just expect another final between the top teams in the world?

And lets just comment how these teams are great rivals on the ice but great friends off the ice, as seen in the social media posts of both supporting one another.

This is the fun rivalry we never knew we needed in curling.

#TeamUpset

Team Black

The Tour Challenge Tier II champions will be on the slam ice looking to wave the #TeamUpset flag while also giving Atlantic Canada another team to cheer for.

Team Black's Tier II win allocated them a spot in a future #gsoc event, The Masters. Unfortunately The Masters happens to take place the same time as the Nova Scotia Scotties so Team Black will be using their Tier II win as entry into The National instead.

If you are underestimating this team against the slam field, they are probably quite happy you are doing so.

This team has been on fire all season, as seen by their Top 10 spot on the Power Rankings mountain.

Since the Tier II win, they have followed up with 3 straight tour final appearances and added 2 more titles under the slider.

Oh yes, they will arrive in St. John's with plenty of momentum and confidence.

And while many may have them flying under the radar, do not be surprised to see them pushing for a playoff spot by the end of the week.

#W2W4

Team Gim.

The champs are here and trying to #DefendTheIce.

Team Gim made #HERstory last season in becoming the first team from Korea to win a major.

And while they remain one of the best teams in the world, they are in a bit of an ice rut right now.

After losing the PCCC final to Canada's Team Homan, as the defending champions, they struggled the following week at the Canadian Open. They posted a 1-3 record and failed to qualify, a first this season.

How will they rebound this week, especially with the target on their backs as the defending champions?

Brittany Tran.

Speaking of a team needing a #SuperSpare, Team Einarson picked up Team Thevenot's Brittany Tran this week. As Shannon Birchard continues to recover from knee surgery, Tran will step into the lineup.

Einarson won the season opening Tour Challenge with Super Spares, can they continue the trend with Tran?

Kaitlyn Lawes.

Mom Power is strong with Lawes. Lawes just welcomed her second child into the world at the beginning of November and she is already back on the ice competing this week.

AMAZING!!

Will there be a bit of rust on the gripper? Perhaps in the opener, especially drawing Euro runner-up Team Hasselborg.

But what a welcome back game too, pairing up against a team with #MomPower of their own.

The sorority of curling moms is becoming heartwarming and motivational.

Welcome back to the ice, Kaitlyn!

Asian Domination?

Asia will be well represented on The Rock in the women's draw. There will be 3 teams from Korea (Gim, Team E. Kim, Team Ha) and 3 teams from Japan (Team Fujisawa, Team Tabata, Team Yoshimura).

How many of these strong Asian teams will advance to the playoffs? Could Asia control the playoff bracket?

Interesting to see Kim/Ha in the same pool. Similar with Fujisawa/Yoshimura.

The draw might be the hidden wildcard factor stopping 6 Asian teams from advancing to the playoffs.

#PopcornGames

Team Carey vs. Team Homan (Draw 4) - A Scotties final rematch always gets a mention, right?

Team Black vs. Team Einarson (Draw 4) - The upset special of opening day?

Team Black vs. Team Homan (Draw 6) - We always love a #Fav vs. #TeamUpset RR game, right?

Team Constantini vs. Team Wrana (Draw 7) - Constantini just missed the podium at Euros. Wrana missed Euros altogether. Both are going to want to put Euro memories in the rearview mirror here and have a great slam event. This game should affect playoff positions.

Team Einarson vs. Team E. Kim (Draw 15) - The final RR game for both should have huge playoff implications.

MEN

#Favs

Team Gushue

Anytime there is a major event in St. John's and Brad Gushue is competing, pencil him in as the #Fav.

He is going to have HUGE fan support behind him. And we saw what that can do when he won the Brier on home ice in 2017.

The podium slipup at the Pan Continental Curling Championships is a distant memory now.

They have reached the final at both previous slams, losing both to Scotland's Team Mouat. Is the third time the charm this season, in front of the home crowd?

They are regaining their confidence and establishing momentum once again. And they are still breaking in a new teammate remember.

Anything short of a deep playoff run, final or bust, will be considered a disappointment for Team Gushue.

#TeamUpset

Team Muskatewitz

How can the NEW #1 ranked team on the #PowerRankings, and newly crowned European champion, also be listed as a #TeamUpset?

This is a team curling at top elite level this season. And their run to the top of the podium in Finland was amazing.

But they have 2 things working against them this week:

1. The Euro Disadvantage as mentioned above
2. #GSOC Rookies

Both of these factors combine to make it a very tall task for the Germans to make the playoffs and have a deep run here.

And this is said with respect out of what this team can do.

We often see teams struggle in their slam debut appearance. And the draw gods did them no favours in drawing home fav Team Gushue in their opener alongside RR games against heavyweight hitters like Team Whyte and Team Schwaller.

But they are not complete #GSOC rookies. Remember they did compete in the Tour Challenge Tier II earlier this season. This will be their Tier I ice debut.

If this team has taught the curling fandom anything this season it is not underestimate them.

Maybe being #TeamUpset flag bearers, even after a Euro title win, is actually exactly where they want to be...and what they want their opposition to think of them.

#W2W4

Kyle Doering.

Yes, you should be watching to see how Mr. Doering fits in with his new team after Team Carruthers finally made the announcement this week. The "rumour" everyone saw coming.

Team Carruthers has had a roller coaster ride of a season with some up's and some down's. Can Doering be the missing piece to put together the complete puzzle?

Team Mouat.

How do they respond after the "shocking" Euro finals loss to Germany only a few days ago?

This is still the best team on the planet this season, regardless of what this blog's Power Rankings show this week. A 46-6 season record is eye-popping.

And yes, I get the irony of that statement.

They are UNDEFEATED on slam ice heading into this event, sporting a perfect 13-0 record and two titles. Can they go 3-for-3 and continue the slide towards the Golden Slam season?

Knee Injuries.

The DL bench is starting to fill up. We already have Shannon Birchard on the DL.

Now we welcome Swiss skip Yannick Schwaller and Scottish second Duncan McFadzean. Schwaller is recovering from a knee operation while McFadzean is recovering from a knee injury.

A Schwaller will still be on the team as Yannick's brother, Kim, will curl this week at second while Sven Michel takes over skipping duties.

With McFadzean on the bench, Team Whyte will welcome Craig Waddell into the lineup this week.

Team Retornaz / Team Edin.

Last year's finalists arrive in St. John's riding an emotion of slight disappointment after their Euro appearance.

Both teams, highly expected to compete for the championship, missed the playoffs with 6-3 records and watching weekend Euro curling from the sidelines. Something neither has been accustomed to do recently.

How do they respond to the Euro disappointment? Can they turn their season around with another strong performance on National ice?

Can either, or both, get back to the final?

#PopcornGames

Team Gushue vs. Team Muskatewitz (Draw 3) - Welcome to the #GSOC ice, Germany. Your debut game is against the #Fav...in front of HIS home fans. Yikes!

Team Edin vs. Team Shuster (Draw 10) - Olympic final rematches always get a mention, right?

Team Gushue vs. Team McEwen (Draw 12) - Brier final rematches always get a mention, right?

Team Edin vs. Team Mouat (Draw 14) - The final RR game for both could factor into the playoff picture.

#TwineTimePredictions

Qualifiers (W): Team Homan, Team E. Kim, Team Tirinzoni, Team Hasselborg, Team Black, Team Einarson, Team Gim, Team Fujisawa

Qualifiers (M): Team Mouat, Team Jacobs, Team Gushue, Team Whyte, Team Dunstone, Team McEwen, Team Retornaz, Team Muskatewitz

Kioti National Championship (W): Team Homan def. Team Tirinzoni

Kioti National Championship (M): Team Gushue def. Team Mouat

What say you rock heads? Agree? Disagree?

Share your thoughts and predictions in the comments below and/or on social media using #gsoc.

#StayTuned

The #PowerRankings will return next week. How will the #gsoc results shake up the Top 10?

For those competing in St. John's, good luck and good curling.

Remember, the 🏔 is always 👀