By Jonathan Brazeau
It's summertime, but here's one thought to help beat the heat: We’re only two more months away from the start of the Grand Slam of Curling season. Isn't that cool?
The GSOC Invitational is set for Oct. 13-18 at Victoria's Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre. The buzz is already building with the first 12 men’s teams and 12 women’s teams announced last week. Four spots are still up for grabs in both divisions, which will be determined through the new GSOC Satellite Events series.
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Now that we have a partial list of teams for the GSOC Invitational, it’s time to play matchmaker. Here are our most wanted matches in Eight Ends.
We’ll add one restriction: A team can be picked only once.
First End: Team Hardie vs. Team Mouat
The start of a new Olympic cycle always brings a flurry of team changes with familiar faces in new places, and the Scottish shuffle was the biggie.
After nine seasons with Bruce Mouat and winning just about everything in the sport, Grant Hardie has moved on for a new challenge, linking up with Ross Whyte’s crew to throw third stones and skip. Heading in the other direction to join Mouat is former Team Whyte third Robin Brydone.
The past 10 Grand Slam of Curling events featured one of Mouat or Whyte in the men’s final, with the pair combining to win eight titles. Although they haven’t faced off in a Grand Slam final (yet), they met twice in the semifinal round last season, with Whyte winning both matches.
This could be the defining rivalry of the men's division for the next quadrennial.
Second End: Team Homan vs. Team Einarson
This one should be self-explanatory, as the top two Canadian women's teams have combined to win the past seven Scotties Tournament of Hearts titles.
They met four times last season, with Rachel Homan winning the first two in the CO-OP Tour Challenge quarterfinals and the round-robin finale of the Olympic trials. The latter victory proved pivotal, as it helped Homan earn the bye to the best-of-three final and sent Kerri Einarson to the semifinal, where her team was eliminated with a loss to Christina Black.
Here's the interesting part: Einarson won their last two meetings in the HearingLife Canadian Open round robin and the Crown Royal Players' Championship semis.
Einarson has since overhauled her roster, splitting with third Val Sweeting and adding Jocelyn Peterman at lead, with Shannon Birchard and Karlee Burgess shifting up in the order. Meanwhile, Homan stood pat, running it back with the same lineup for next season. How will these teams stack up against each other now?
Third End: Team Jacobs vs. Team Eriksson
Who doesn’t want to see the reigning Olympic champs take on the reigning world champs? While Brad Jacobs will return with the same lineup next season, Niklas Edin has stepped back from the tour, with third Oskar Eriksson now calling the shots for the Swedish squad.
Yep, two gold medallists facing off, that’s the ticket. I'm sure there's another reason why everyone wants to see this matchup, but I can't quite put my finger on it.
Fourth End: Team Pätz vs. Team X. Schwaller
When Xenia Schwaller defeated Silvana Tirinzoni in the Swiss Curling Championships best-of-three final last season, and then went on to win gold at the World Women’s Curling Championship, it seemed like the torch had been passed ... or had it?
Although Tirinzoni has called it a career, vice skip Alina Pätz is back in charge with a new squad. Let’s not forget Pätz skipped Switzerland to gold at the women’s worlds in 2015 before joining up with Tirinzoni and winning four more titles. Have we entered the Schwaller era, or will Pätz reclaim the top spot?
Fifth End: Team Dunstone vs. Team Koe
Matt Dunstone and Kevin Koe's teams faced off three times in the Montana’s Brier last season. Koe won the first two, but Dunstone was victorious in the one that really mattered, winning the final to capture his first Canadian men’s curling championship. That was also Koe’s lone loss of the tournament, as the 51-year-old appeared to turn back the clock.
Revenge of the Skip? Koe now has a new third to start the season ... one far younger and more powerful? Well, Johnson Tao is a few years younger than former third Tyler Tardi, who left to skip his own squad, but we’ll have to see about being more powerful.
Koe had slipped in the standings and fallen out of the Grand Slams, but following his vintage performance at the Brier, it’ll be interesting to see if that continues.
Dunstone also underwent a lineup change that adds a different dynamic. Mark Nichols has joined at second to replace E.J. Harnden, who has stepped back from the sport.
Sixth End: Team MacMillan vs. Team Reese-Hansen
Two Victoria-based teams facing off against each other in Victoria? Yes, please.
The event will be the Grand Slam top-tier debut for Taylor Reese-Hansen, whose team competed in the HearingLife Canadian Open Tier 2 last season and won the title in Saskatoon. Reese-Hansen was also victorious in provincial playdowns to represent B.C. for the first time at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts. After a breakout season, can Reese-Hansen take the next step?
Kayla MacMillan made a splash during the off-season, landing Sweeting at third following her departure from Team Einarson, and that could help propel the team in the top flight.
Seventh End: Team Y. Schwaller vs. Team Ramsfjell
Yannick Schwaller and Magnus Ramsfjell’s teams were among the most improved over the past Olympic cycle. Schwaller reached three Grand Slam finals, with the third one being the charm as he won his first major title at the HearingLife Canadian Open in December. Ramsfjell also wound up in the winner’s circle at that event as the Tier 2 champ, celebrating side-by-side with Schwaller.
They most recently met for the bronze medal at the Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina, with Schwaller winning in a 9-1 rout to secure the final spot on the podium. Ramsfjell still earned style points as he finished the game with a slick spin-o-rama. Lead/vice skip Gaute Nepstad has stepped back, but Ramsfjell added former skip Steffen Walstad and Mathias Brænden to the mix to create a five-man roster that could help them level up.
Eighth End: Team Hasselborg vs. Team Wranå
Anna Hasselborg and her Swedish squad will be looking to repeat as Olympic champs, but one of their biggest hurdles on the road to the French Alps 2030 will be right in their own backyard.
Isabella Wranå went 3-0 against Hasselborg last season, with all three games taking place in the Grand Slam of Curling. Their third and final encounter happened at the Crown Royal Players' Championship and went the distance, with Wranå winning in a shootout. Wranå ended up qualifying for the playoffs at the event, while Hasselborg missed the cut. That tipped the scales in their domestic points race to represent Sweden at the women's worlds, where Wranå earned bronze.
Things should only heat up from here on, so let them cook.
Extra End: Team Waddell vs. anyone in a shootout
We were going to include "honourable mentions" here but opted for a swerve and play into the extra end theme. Kyle Waddell was a perfect 5-0 in draw-to-the-button shootouts last season. Four of those wins were considered "steals" — i.e., Waddell wouldn't have had the hammer if a normal extra end had been played instead.
Can anyone dethrone the shootout master, or will Waddell remain undefeated in the draw?
