Einarson embraces Team Canada status for ‘surreal’ Scotties By: Jason Bell Posted: 7:00 PM CST Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021 Last Modified: 10:48 AM CST Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021 Updates

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Calgary’s curling bubble will be bursting with Manitoba moxie as the hotly anticipated Scotties Tournament of Hearts begins Friday evening.

An unparalleled five teams from these parts will participate in the 18-team Scotties — undoubtedly, the most unorthodox Canadian women’s curling championship, past, present or future — staged inside spectator-free Markin MacPhail Centre at Canada Olympic Park.

Kerri Einarson’s Gimli squad finally gets the chance to wear Team Canada colours, returning to the Scotties as defending champion and top seed. Einarson is backed by third Val Sweeting, second Shannon Birchard, lead Briane Meilleur and fifth Krysten Karwacki, with Heather Nedohin aboard as coach.

Six-time Scotties champion and Olympic gold medallist Jennifer Jones of Winnipeg will represent Manitoba at the 10-day championship. As well, all three wild-card entries hail from our province: Tracy Fleury of East St. Paul, to be skipped by former Winnipegger Chelsea Carey (Wild Card No. 1), reigning world junior champion Mackenzie Zacharias of Altona (Wild Card No. 2), and Beth Peterson of Winnipeg (Wild Card No. 3).

Strict protocols will be in place in prevent the insidious COVID-19 virus from slipping into the building — a massive effort to keep competitors and officials safe.

Einarson’s hopes for a world title were dashed when the women’s worlds — scheduled for Prince George, B.C., last March — were called off with just couple of days’ notice. Since then, with a hectic 2020-21 bonspiel season scrapped owing to the pandemic, they enjoyed none of the usual cachet that comes with owning a Canadian crown.

“We got ripped off a bit, I would say. We never got to really embrace being Team Canada and all of the opportunities that come with it. That was unfortunate for us,” said Einarson, speaking earlier this week. “This is our chance to finally wear those jackets. Going into the Scotties as Team Canada, it’s going to feel so surreal.”

The dream team of former skips defeated Ontario’s Rachel Homan 8-7 in an extra end in Moose Jaw, Sask., nearly 52 weeks ago. Einarson botched a last-rock draw in the 10th to seal a win but made good on a second chance in the 11th.

The ability to dig deep and deliver under intense pressure should serve the team well.

“We were lucky to have another chance. I still re-live that, because one day I’ll have to make that kind of shot again. It’s something that will stick with me forever, and I’ll keep it in my back pocket,” she said. “Not bringing any negativity in your thoughts, that’s important. That was the key. Just going through the routine and staying positive.”

Curlers were required to quarantine for three days at home and be tested before heading to Calgary.

Einarson and three teammates received the ‘brain-tickler’ nasal-swab test early Tuesday morning in Winnipeg, and, after negative results were confirmed, hit the highway for the long drive west.

Curlers were tested again upon their arrival and then were sequestered in their own hotel rooms until team practice sessions Thursday afternoon.

More tests will be conducted next week as the round robin continues.

The athletes must wear masks outside hotel rooms until they set foot on the playing area. Teams are prohibited from dining outside their hotel rooms. They’ll use rental vehicles to go back and forth between the hotel and rink, which are basically just across the street from one another.

Team Canada plays the Zacharias team (Wild Card No. 2) on the opening draw Friday at 7:30 p.m. (CT).

“There’s always some nerves going into the Scotties but it’s good nerves, excited nerves,” Einarson said. “This will be a much different type of atmosphere out there but we’re definitely going to embrace it the time being out there together.”

While the 2021 women’s worlds, originally slated for Switzerland, have already been cancelled, there’s still plenty on the line for the team the Scotties survivor.

The champion qualify for the Olympic Trials, set for November in Saskatoon, books a spot at the 2022 Scotties in Thunder Bay and pockets a first-place cheque for $100,000.

Jones, now living near Barrie, Ont., is used to having family in the stands cheering her on, including her husband, Brent Laing, and the couple’s two young daughters, Isabella and Skyla. But she won’t have their company to provide a bit of a mental break during any down time during the 10-day championship.

On-ice competition will be just about the only thing that will feel normal for Scotties returnees such as the Einarson, Jones and Fleury crews.

“We’re just super excited. It’s obviously been challenging throughout the world, really serious things happening. We haven’t had a normal curling season without any opportunities to play, so I think we’re feeling really fortunate and privileged to have the chance to compete,” said Jones, skip of Team Manitoba.

“People always ask me about the longevity of me playing. I just love to curl. That’s always been the motivation for me. I always knew that but then it was taken away, and it really confirms that I just love being around my teammates competing.”

It’s a sweet 16th Scotties championship for Jones, who is flanked by third Kaitlyn Lawes, second Jocelyn Peterman, lead Lisa Weagle, fifth Raunora Westcott and coach Viktor Kjell. Longtime lead Dawn McEwen is pregnant and has opted to remain home.

Remarkably, Jones is tied with former teammate Jill Officer of Winnipeg along with Colleen Jones of Nova Scotia for most national titles (six).

“That’s truly hard to wrap my head around. When I first started out, I just wanted to get to one. And then we got to go to Brandon (2002 Scotties) and I just thought, ‘It’s all good. I’ve gotten to experience this.’ To say 16? It’s crazy,” she said.

Jones hits the ice Saturday at 9:30 a.m. against Quebec’s Laurie St. Georges.

Meanwhile, Fleury’s team settles in as the second seed. The Sudbury, Ont., skip will forgo the event to care for her seven-month-old daughter, Nina, who has a medical condition.

Carey hooks up with third Selena Njegovan, second Liz Fyfe, Kristin MacCuish, all Winnipeggers, fifth Clancy Grandy and coach Sherry Middaugh for the temporary assignment. The two-time Canadian champion (2016, 2019) has been throwing rocks for about a week — a luxury the majority of competitors in Calgary haven’t had — and she’s been in constant communication with the group.

“That’s been nice to rediscover what curling feelings like,” Carey said. “Even though I’m new to the team, I don’t really feel like we’re behind anyone else. The upsides are endless. The girls are obviously good curlers but they’re good people and it’s been a lot of fun chatting with them and figuring things out as we go.

“We’ve all watched game tape of each other, so I think it will be fairly seamless as far as the adjustment from a strategy standpoint and a team standpoint.”

Continuing on with the Fleury name, the team faces Lori Eddy of Nunavut on Saturday morning.

The teams in Calgary have been separated into two pools of nine, and seeded based on their final standing in the 2019-20 Canadian Team Ranking System.

They will play a full round robin within their respective pools, and then the top four teams in each advance to the Championship Pool, retain their records and cross over and play the four teams from the opposite pool.

The four-team Page playoff system has been dropped in favour of a three-team playoff. The first-place team after the Championship Pool goes straight to the gold-medal game (Sunday, Feb. 28, 7:30 p.m.), while the second- and third-place teams meet in the semifinal (Sunday, Feb. 28, 1:30 p.m.)

The Scotties leads off a half-dozen events inside the bubble, including the Brier Canadian men’s championship (March 5-14), national mixed doubles championship (March 18-26), world men’s championship (April 2-11) and a pair of Grand Slam of Curling events.

 

jason.bell@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @WFPJasonBell