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Brad Gushue improved to 3-0 at the Canadian curling trials with a 5-3 win over John Epping in Monday’s opening draw in Halifax.
Gushue’s team from St. John’s won the low-scoring contest by stealing a point in the third and sixth ends. Gushue’s rink also took care of the rock with the hammer by not giving up a steal to Epping’s Toronto-based team.
An angle tap in the eighth end allowed Gushue to score one and extend his lead to 5-2.
“That tap was a big one. If you give up a steal there, a little momentum shifts to John’s side,” Gushue told Devin Heroux of CBC Sports. “Put the broom in the right spot, guys swept it great and I threw pretty good.”
He mentioned a few more mistakes in Monday’s game compared to Sunday but noted the ice was a bit trickier.
Gushue added nerves and motivation are present and he’s happy with the team’s perfomance.
“It’s still early in the week but, obviously, being 3-0 is a good place, and I like how we’re throwing,” he said. “Big game tonight against [Winnipeg skip] Matt [Dunstone] and see if we can come out on top there.”
CBC Sports’ Devin Heroux previews the upcoming 2025 Canadian Curling Trials from Halifax.
Gushue, the 2006 Olympic champion, is hoping to represent Canada at the Winter Games once again in his final competitive season.
He also led Canada to bronze at the 2022 Olympics.
Dunstone also improved to 3-0 with a 7-3 win over Saskatoon’s Ryan Kleiter. Dunstone went up 5-1 after five ends and cruised to victory from there.
‘Can’t wait’ to play Gushue
He’s excited about the Gushue matchup, calling him the greatest Canadian curler all-time.
“I’m pumped, can’t wait,” Dunstone said. ” I hope it’s going to be one helluva battle.”
Dunstone pointed out his team picked up “a cheeky deuce” in the first end and wanted to control the scoreboard thereafter.
“Put a little pressure on [Kleiter’s rink] and I like where [our] team’s at right now,” he added. “
“They’ve been the best team in Canada this year — their runs at the [Grand Slams of Curling] and PointsBet [Invitational],” Gushue said of Dunstone and his teammates. “They’ve been playing incredibly well.
“We’re going to have to position our rocks [precisely] with the way Matt and Colton [Lott] can throw those big-weight hits.”
The winners of the men’s and women’s competitions at the curling trials will represent Canada at the 2026 Games in Milan and Cortina, Italy.
In other early draw results, Calgary’s Kevin Koe scored three in the ninth end in an 8-7 win over Winnipeg’s Jordon McDonald, and 2014 Olympic champion Brad Jacobs and his Calgary squad beat Saskatoon’s Mike McEwen 6-3.
Koe and Jacobs were tied for third at 2-1, while Epping and McEwen fell to 1-3, and Kleiter and McDonald dropped to 0-3.
A women’s draw was set for Monday afternoon, with another men’s draw capping play in the evening.
Kerri Einarson of Gimli, Man., entered the day leading the women’s standings at 3-0.
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