Despite the Canadian Olympic curling trials still being nearly five months away, fans of the sport are already salivating over the drama that’s set to unfold in late November inside the Scotiabank Centre in downtown Halifax.
Curling Canada has unveiled the trials draw schedule, and it’s laced with compelling matchups, including a final night round-robin showdown between Brad Gushue and Brad Jacobs — both are Olympic champions.
Gushue won the 2005 Canadian Olympic trials held at the venue formerly known as Halifax Metro Centre.
The event begins in the afternoon on Saturday, Nov. 22, with the women’s side of the draw first taking to the ice. Overwhelming favourite Rachel Homan, who has captured back-to-back Scotties and world championship titles, begins against Kate Cameron out of Manitoba.
Cameron has strengthened her team by adding four-time Scotties champion Briane Harris to her team at third. Harris parted ways with Team Einarson after serving a nearly year-long provisional suspension while she appealed a doping violation — she had tested positive for a banned substance. However, Harris was cleared to play after the ban was lifted by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in January.
Homan will take on Einarson in the final women’s round-robin game, in a matchup that could decide first place and a direct spot into the championship games.
Christina Black is making her trials debut after a strong season, having won the Grand Slam of Curling’s Tier 2 event as well as finishing third at the Scotties. She will be a hometown favourite in Halifax.
Marquee men’s matchups throughout the round robin include a rematch of last year’s Brier final between Jacobs and Dunstone in Draw 12, while Gushue will take on McEwen in a 2024 Brier final rematch in the same draw.
The eight women’s teams and eight men’s teams will play a seven-game round-robin with the top three teams advancing to the playoffs — the first-place team will go directly into the final, while the second-place and third-place teams will square off in the semifinal.
Here’s where it gets really juicy — for the first time in Canadian Olympic trials history, the final will feature a best-of-three format, meaning one of the two teams needs to win two games to be crowned champion. This is a move made by Curling Canada to ensure the best teams represent Canada at the Games in Milano-Cortina come February.
The fields on both sides are nearly set. Here’s a look at the already qualified women’s teams:
• Team Homan (Ontario)
• Team Einarson (Manitoba)
• Team Black (Nova Scotia)
• Team Cameron (Manitoba)
• Team Skrlik (Alberta)
• Team Brown (B.C.)
• Team Lawes (Manitoba)
And here’s a look at the already qualified men’s teams:
• Team Gushue (Newfoundland and Labrador)
• Team Jacobs (Alberta)
• Team McEwen (Saskatchewan)
• Team Dunstone (Manitoba)
• Team Epping (Ontario)
• Team Kleiter (Saskatchewan)
• Team Koe (Alberta)
There are still two spots up for grabs at the trials, which have yet to be determined. That will be sorted at a pre-trials event a month earlier in Wolfville, N.S., in late October. And it isn’t unprecedented for a winner of the pre-trials to go on and win the Olympic trials. Team Jacobs won the pre-trials event in 2013, then the trials, and then went on to win Olympic gold at the 2014 Games in Sochi.
Team McCarville has won the pre-trials on three separate occasions and will look to make it a fourth time. Team Purcell is riding a Brier playoff appearance into a home pre-trials where fan support will be on their side.
Team Carruthers withdrew from the pre-trials due to Reid Carruthers’ coaching commitments with Team Einarson. That opened a spot for Ontario’s Team King — Team King got the spot by being the top-ranked men’s team in the Canadian Team Ranking System yet to qualify.
The pre-trials format mirrors the trials format.
Only the women’s winner and the men’s winner will earn a ticket to the trials. Here’s a look at the eight women’s teams competing in the pre-trials:
• Team Peterson (Manitoba)
• Team MacMillan (B.C.)
• Team Inglis (Ontario)
• Team Sturmay (Alberta)
• Team Thevenot (Saskatchewan)
• Team McCarville (Northern Ontario)
• Team Plett (Alberta)
• Team Martin (Saskatchewan)
The men’s side includes:
• Team McDonald (Winnipeg)
• Team King (Ontario)
• Team Mooibroek (Ontario)
• Team Howard (Ontario)
• Team Calvert (Manitoba)
• Team Kean (Ontario)
• Team Purcell (Nova Scotia)
• Team Asselin (Quebec)
The event begins Monday, Oct. 20 and concludes on Sunday, Oct. 26.
