Eight Ends is your supply for information, perception and evaluation from the Grand Slam of Curling. This version seems to be at takeaways from the HearingLife Tour Problem in Charlottetown. We don’t have any spare reporters on our staff.
FIRST END: 9 years in the past, Kerri Einarson competed within the inaugural Tour Problem occasion in Paradise, N.L., however not on the principle ice pad. Oh no. Einarson was on the Tier 2 aspect trying to earn an invite into the highest flight.
Einarson received that occasion — her first-ever title on tour no much less — and with authority as her staff rolled via the Tier 2 undefeated to kickstart an unimaginable journey.
The Gimli, Man., skip is now a six-time Grand Slam of Curling title winner after capturing the HearingLife Tour Problem Tier 1 ladies’s title Sunday with a 5-4 victory over Group Rachel Homan on the Bell Aliant Centre. As Group Christina Black turned the most recent Tier 2 ladies’s champion simply a few sheets over, it offered a becoming full-circle second for Einarson to mirror on the previous 9 years within the collection.
“It’s an incredible feeling,” Einarson mentioned. “I do know once I was developing into the Slams and having to win that Tier 2 simply to get into them. Now right here we’re profitable Tier 1. Our onerous work has actually paid off.”
SECOND END: The beginning of the season has been considered one of adversity for Group Einarson. Lead Briane Harris awaits a choice on her attraction for testing optimistic for a banned substance. Second Shannon Birchard has but to play this fall as she recovers from a knee harm.
Alternate Krysten Karwacki is filling in at lead within the meantime whereas tremendous spare Daybreak McEwen, considered one of many biggest front-end gamers of all time, got here on board at second for the HearingLife Tour Problem.
“It’s nice to have a win with them they usually’ve been tremendous spares for our staff,” Einarson mentioned. “We are able to’t thank them sufficient and really admire all that they’ve completed for our staff.”
Even the coach wanted a spare as Mike McEwen stepped in for Reid Carruthers in the course of the last.
“It was enjoyable. It was nice having him again right here,” mentioned Einarson, who added with amusing: “He would possibly stop after his large win there.”
Don’t fear, Carruthers needed to depart early and isn’t on the new seat. McEwen’s stint was only a one-and-done look.
THIRD END: Scotland’s Bruce Mouat entered an unique membership in January when he received the Co-op Canadian Open and accomplished a profession Grand Slam. Mouat turned simply the seventh skip to win all 4 of the majors within the collection becoming a member of Kevin Martin, Wayne Middaugh, Glenn Howard and Jeff Stoughton — a Mount Rushmore’s value of curling greats proper there — plus present skips Brad Gushue and Anna Hasselborg.
Mouat joined an much more unique membership along with his HearingLife Tour Problem males’s title victory as he has now received all 5 energetic occasions within the collection.
The seven-time Grand Slam champion Mouat accomplished the set after defeating the one different skip who had achieved that feat, Gushue. Mouat was already up by two when he scored 5 factors within the seventh finish to ice the sport.
“Considering again to my early days on this sport, dreaming about attempting to win considered one of these was one thing that appeared unimaginable,” Mouat mentioned. “To lastly get seven and to win each single considered one of them is a surreal second. It’s one thing very particular to all of us, all 4 of us.”
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FOURTH END: Einarson may very well be the subsequent member of each golf equipment because the Co-op Canadian Open is the final one for her to cross off the record. Guess what the subsequent Grand Slam of Curling occasion is on the schedule?
The Co-op Canadian Open runs Nov. 5-10 at Silent Ice Heart in Nisku, Alta.
“We’re actually wanting ahead to the subsequent occasion,” Einarson mentioned. “It was a fantastic confidence booster right here going ahead. We have now one other occasion earlier than that one, some coaching in between there, so we’ll see what lineup now we have for that one.”
FIFTH END: Homan entered the HearingLife Tour Problem undefeated at 12-0 to start out the season and solely misplaced twice in the course of the occasion to Italy’s Group Stefania Constantini and Einarson. Sound acquainted? That’s how the Ottawa-based staff started final 12 months en path to a season for the ages, ending with a 67-7 report and capturing Canadian and world championships plus two Grand Slam titles.
One main distinction this 12 months although is Homan picked up a number of extra wins in between these losses to achieve the ultimate versus lacking the playoffs final October.
Homan may very well be cooking one thing much more particular this season, if that’s even attainable.
It was additionally the seventh Grand Slam last between Homan and Einarson and we’ll possible see extra sooner or later. Homan holds a 4-3 benefit.
SIXTH END: Just one staff defeated Einarson and Homan this week. Constantini beat each in the course of the A Occasion of the triple knockout spherical and picked up a win over Group Tabitha Peterson to qualify for the playoffs undefeated at 3-0. Constantini’s run ended within the quarterfinals although with a 5-2 loss to Group Kaitlyn Lawes.
Constantini wasn’t the one A-qualifier to fall within the quarters as South Korea’s Group Eun-ji Gim and Calgary’s Group Brad Jacobs had been additionally eradicated. Mouat was the one one of many 4 to win a playoff sport, by no means thoughts win the championship.
That appears to trace with the historic information for triple knockout occasions within the Grand Slam of Curling. Most males’s champions are A-qualifiers — Mouat turned the eighth via 11 occasions — whereas most ladies’s champions are B-qualifiers — Einarson turned the seventh via 11 occasions.
SEVENTH END: A well-known face was on the bench this week with Group Gushue. P.E.I.’s personal Adam Casey, who performed with the membership from 2011-14, returned to the fold as their fifth man in the course of the HearingLife Tour Problem.
Gushue mentioned Casey might be their fifth man for the Pan Continental Championships, Oct. 27 to Nov. 2 in Lacombe, Alta.
“He’s coming off of an arm harm, so he’s in all probability not the appropriate man to have leaping into the lineup as a result of I don’t know the way onerous he’s going to have the ability to sweep however actually by the Pan Continental, which is the entire concept in a month’s time, he’ll be absolutely recovered and able to go,” Gushue mentioned. “I do know him nicely. I actually take pleasure in Adam and like being round him. An excellent asset to have on the staff and positively at a P.E.I. Slam to have a P.E.I. boy on the bench doesn’t harm.”
Gushue navigated via the uneven waters of the C-side and had a jam-packed Saturday with wins over Group Niklas Edin, Group Ross Whyte and Group Matt Dunstone to achieve the ultimate.
The 15-time Grand Slam champion Gushue pulled off one of many prime pictures of the week with a double increase takeout to attain two (after a measure) within the eighth finish to edge Whyte within the quarterfinals.
Gushue mentioned they had been “somewhat little bit of smoke and mirrors” following the semifinals and wanted an off-day from Mouat within the championship sport. That didn’t come to be as Group Mouat shot 90 per cent (in comparison with Group Gushue at 78 per cent) with Mouat himself firing a game-high 96 per cent.
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EIGHTH END: Whereas Mike McEwen was within the winner’s circle teaching Group Einarson, his males’s staff got here up only a wee bit quick after getting into the occasion using a 13-game profitable streak and three title wins on tour. Group McEwen reached the semis however misplaced to eventual champion Mouat 6-2.
The Saskatoon squad made it to the semis final 12 months within the HearingLife Tour Problem … on the Tier 2 aspect that’s. McEwen has discovered factor with Colton Flasch plus Kevin and Dan Marsh in brief order as they appear like a legit Grand Slam title risk.
McEwen started the season in August abroad on the Euro Tremendous Sequence in Scotland. Regardless that they missed the playoffs, he mentioned it was undoubtedly a think about his staff’s breakout in September.
“All I can say is we performed extra golf video games than we did curling, in order that type of tells you ways the curling went,” McEwen mentioned with amusing. “We bumped into some Euro groups that thumped us. We type of obtained our legs late within the occasion, nevertheless it was too late. It simply goes to indicate you ways early some international locations are beginning and we had been type of behind the eight-ball. We knew that moving into that it might be robust.
“It was journey, however to take one thing away from it, it certain lit a fireplace underneath us. In early September, we went and skilled for 3 or 4 straight days in Edmonton earlier than we performed our second occasion. … I feel that have in Europe truly led to us having a extremely nice September though we stumbled and fell on our faces.”
EXTRA END: Group Black and Saskatoon’s Group Rylan Kleiter claimed the Tier 2 titles and obtained invites to the WFG Masters, Jan. 14-19, on the Sleeman Centre in Guelph, Ont.
Black, whose Halifax-based staff made it via the C-qualifiers, defeated Group Sayaka Yoshimura of Japan 7-3 within the ladies’s last and was buzzing after the title victory.
“Oh my gosh, I nonetheless type of can’t consider that that simply occurred,” Black mentioned. “We’ve had a wild trip the final, nicely, we’ve been right here all week and got here via the quarters. We actually obtained fortunate and stole three to win our quarterfinal sport or we might by no means be right here right now. My women, we performed so nice all week and actually gelled as a staff. It’s simply a lot enjoyable. I can’t consider we received.”
Kleiter went via the boys’s aspect undefeated however wanted to attract for the 6-5 win over Norway’s Group Magnus Ramsfjell in an additional finish.
“It’s superior,” Kleiter mentioned. “It’s nice. It’s good to see a few of our onerous work paying off there and simply trying to hold constructing for the remainder of the season.”
Kleiter might find yourself within the prime tier earlier than the WFG Masters. His staff moved up six spots to No. 16 with the victory.
