Curling

Qualification for the Canada team at the World Men's Curling Championship will take place at the 2020 Tim Hortons Brier tournament.

The domestic event starts on Saturday in Kingston, Ontario, and the overall winners will feature for the Canadians in Scotland from March 28. A wild-card match will be completed on Friday for the final team slot at the Brier.

Kevin Koe is chasing his fifth national victory, with 16 teams divided into two pools. A round-robin format will see the top four from each pool go forward to the championship pool. This will then decide the final-four teams who will advance to the deciding play-offs on March 8.

               

Pool A (teams listed according to seeding, and listed in order of skipper, third, second, lead, alternate, coach/high performance consultant; hometown)

1. Northern Ontario, Brad Jacobs (Marc Kennedy, E.J. Harnden, Ryan Harnden, Lee Toner, Rick Lang; Sault Ste. Marie)
4. Alberta, Brendan Bottcher (Darren Moulding, Brad Thiessen, Karrick Martin, Patrick Janssen, Don Bartlett; Edmonton)
5. Newfoundland/Labrador, Brad Gushue (Mark Nichols, Brett Gallant, Geoff Walker, Jeff Thomas, Jules Owchar; St. John's)
8. Manitoba, Jason Gunnlaugson (Adam Casey [throws second], Alex Forrest [throws third], Connor Njegovan, Garry van den Berghe; Morris)
9. Nova Scotia, Jamie Murphy (Paul Flemming, Scott Saccary, Phil Crowell, Kevin Ouellette, Bruce Lohnes; Halifax)
12. Quebec, Alek Bedard (Louis Quevillon, Emile Asselin, Bradley Lequin, Daniel Bedard; Lacolle/Boucherville/Glenmore)
13. Prince Edward Island, Bryan Cochrane (Ian MacAulay, Morgan Currie, Mark O'Rourke, Ken Sullivan; Cornwall)
16. Nunavut, Jake Higgs (Dale Kohlenberg, Christian Smitheram, Ed MacDonald, Sheldon Wettig, Quentin Vanderschaaf; Iqaluit)

            

Pool B

2. Ontario, John Epping (Ryan Fry, Matthew Camm, Brent Laing, John Morris, Jim Wilson; Toronto)
3. Team Wild Card
6. Team Canada, Kevin Koe (B.J. Neufeld, Colton Flasch, Ben Hebert, Ted Appelman, John Dunn; Calgary)
7. Saskatchewan, Matt Dunstone (Braeden Moskowy, Catlin Schneider, Dustin Kidby, Adam Kingsbury; Regina)
10. British Columbia, Steve Laycock [throws third] (Jim Cotter [throws last], Andrew Nerpin, Rick Sawatsky, Brad Wood; Vernon/Kelowna)
11. New Brunswick, James Grattan (Paul Dobson, Andy McCann, Jamie Brannen, Chris Jeffrey; Oromocto)
14. Yukon, Thomas Scoffin (Trygg Jensen, Brett Winfield, Joe Wallingham, Wade Scoffin; Whitehorse)
15. Northwest Territories, Jamie Koe (David Aho, Shadrach Mcleod, Cole Parsons, Matthew Ng; Yellowknife)

             

The draw schedule is available here, per Curling Canada.

            

Koe would move clear of Randy Ferbey, Ernie Richardson and Kevin Martin with the most wins at the competition if he can skipper his team to glory.

The 45-year old first won the Brier in 2010, and he's continued to collect gold medals at regular intervals throughout the last decade.

A two-time world champion, Koe will believe he can make it a hat-trick of global gold victories if his team win another national crown.

Alberta's Brendan Bottcher could deny Koe if he helps his team to victory after claiming silver in the past two years.

Brad Gushue will make his 17th appearance at the event, and his strong pedigree saw him collect the title in 2017 and 2018.

The 39-year-old will join an elite band of three-time winners if he leads the Newfoundland/Labrador team to the top of the podium.

Alberta completed its dominant run at the Tim Hortons Brier with a 4-3 win in the final Sunday over the Wild Card team.

Skip Kevin Koe earned his fourth career title in this storied event, tying him for the most all-time with Kevin Martin, Randy Ferbey and Ernie Richardson.

The squad, which also featured B.J. Neufeld, Colton Flasch and Ben Hebert in the final, went 13-0 throughout the week in Brandon, Manitoba, while proving it was clearly the best in all of Canada.

Brendan Bottcher skipped the Wild Card squad to the final after losing to Koe's team in the Alberta competition, but he couldn't do enough to pull off one more upset.

The gold-medal match came down to one shot, as Koe used his last stone in the 10th end to score two points for Alberta:

WHAT. A. SHOT!!!!!!! @TeamKevinKoe #clutch #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/PE6UIRDC6g

— Curling Canada (@CurlingCanada) March 11, 2019

It’s remarkable. Heart-stopping.

Kevin Koe delivers a brilliant shot with 13 seconds left to win the Brier.

Curling magic. What else can you say? #cbccurl pic.twitter.com/hj3Qjnn4HM

— Devin Heroux (@Devin_Heroux) March 11, 2019

Prior to that, the battle was mostly a defensive one with points hard to come by as neither side left many openings.

After scoring one point in the second end, Koe continued to make things difficult on his opponent by leaving few opportunities for big ends:

A double by @TeamKevinKoe results in a throw through by @TeamBottcher. 1-0 Alberta after 3 ends #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/2Tb2G0LwpM

— Curling Canada (@CurlingCanada) March 11, 2019

Kevin Koe makes a nice runback with his last forcing Brendan Bottcher to blank the sixth. It's the fourth blank of the game. #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/NFTL3VqALh

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 11, 2019

Koe did it. He threw wicked weight.

Looks like another blank coming. #cbccurl

— Devin Heroux (@Devin_Heroux) March 11, 2019

Bottcher continually decided to keep the hammer instead of settling for one point.

Alberta was able to steal one point in the fourth, and the score remained 2-0 through the seventh end.

This was until the Wild Card team finally got the break it was looking for with a double in the eighth to tie the match:

Tie game! #Brier2019

WC makes the double to square the game at 2-2 after the 8th end. Alberta will have the hammer in the ninth. pic.twitter.com/eWzEQyaLYd

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 11, 2019

It was only the 16th time in 13 matches this tournament that Alberta had allowed more than one point in an end, per Curling Canada.

The underdogs then grabbed a steal in the ninth to take a 3-2 lead heading into the final frame.

However, the double in the last end was enough to decide the match and give Alberta another Brier championship.

Alberta had a 93 percent success rate in the match, with the skip shooting 93 percent himself. Bottcher hit only 86 percent, and that was effectively the difference in this battle.

Fans of the sport will now turn their attention to the Curling World Championships, which interestingly enough will take place in Alberta, Canada, at the end of March.

Saturday's action at the 2019 Tim Hortons Brier guaranteed that there will be a new champion.

Team Canada entered this year's tournament at Westoba Place in Brandon, Manitoba, with hopes of a three-peat. However, those dreams came crashing down in the afternoon's playoff draw.

Saturday night's draw saw the tournament's lone undefeated team plow through the No. 2 seed with relative ease.

Take a look at updated results and scheduling as well as a recap below.

     

Results

Draw 21

Wild Card def. Canada, 7-2

Draw 22

Alberta def. Northern Ontario, 9-4

     

Schedule

Northern Ontario will take on Team Wild Card in the semifinals at 2 p.m. ET on Sunday. Alberta earned a bye straight to the finals, where it will be waiting for its opponent at 8 p.m. ET.

     

Recap

Draw 21

Canada and Wild Card were locked in a back-and-forth low-scoring affair, ending the sixth end tied at two. Then Wild Card put up four in the eighth end, and Canada couldn't overcome.

The defending champs are on the ropes! @TeamBottcher score four in the 8th and lead @TeamGushue 6-2 with two ends to play. #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/hznqWDyeOk

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 9, 2019

Canadian skip Brad Gushue struggled and finished with just 81 percent accuracy—a team-low. After the loss, Gushue described his disappointment to the Canadian Press (h/t TSN.ca). "Really disappointing," he said. "Probably one of the top three or four worst breaks I've had in my career. It happens. I've had it happen to us and happen against us.

"It's kind of disappointing the run ended on those terms."

At last year's Brier, Gushue's Canadian squad earned its second consecutive championship over Alberta. Brendan Bottcher was Alberta's skip. One year later, as the skip for Wild Card, Bottcher got revenge.

Bottcher says being relaxed is a key heading into semi-final https://t.co/qQoEAAYexd

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 9, 2019

     

Draw 22

Alberta skip Kevin Koe is the engine behind the team's incredible 11-0 Brier run. On Saturday night, Koe led all curlers with a 94 percent accuracy rate. Alberta's defeat of Northern Ontario extended Koe's Brier winning streak over Northern Ontario skip Brad Jacobs to four (2010, '16, '17 and this year), per TSN Curling.

Alberta jumped out to an early 5-1 lead, and Northern Ontario never came closer than that. Contrary to Koe, Jacobs posted a dismal 56 percent accuracy rate.

BREAKING: Alberta's Kevin Koe (@TeamKevinKoe) will look to win his fourth career Canadian championship Sunday night after hammering Northern Ontario's @TeamBradJacobs, 9-4, in the 1 vs. 2 game.

NO will now play Wild Card's @TeamBottcher in Sunday's semi. #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/qg1GMdM1c1

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 10, 2019

The 2019 Tim Hortons Brier championship pool round concluded Friday night, and Draw 18 on Friday afternoon at Westoba Place in Brandon, Manitoba, clarified the teams contending for the playoffs earlier than anticipated. 

After the afternoon's action, the playoff field was already set. Alberta, Northern Ontario, Canada and Wild Card will move on.  

Team Alberta, however, has absolutely nothing to worry about as it won its 10th draw and remained the tournament's only undefeated team. The two next best teams faced off in a back-and-forth affair. Wild Card and Ontario's result sent one team to the playoff and the other team home.

Here's a look at Friday's results and recap as well as Saturday's scheduling.

     

Results

Draw 18 

Alberta def. Saskatchewan, 9-3

Wild Card def. Ontario, 6-4

Manitoba def. British Columbia, 9-7

Northern Ontario def. Canada, 7-6 

Draw 19 

Saskatchewan def. British Columbia, 6-5

Canada def. Wild Card, 8-5

Alberta def. Northern Ontario, 7-5

Manitoba def. Ontario, 8-4

Schedule

Draw 21 (3 p.m. ET)

Canada vs. Wild Card

Draw 22 (8 p.m. ET)

Alberta vs. Northern Ontario

Recap

Draw 18

Team Wild Card's (8-2) defeat of Ontario (6-4) sent itself through to the playoff while ending Ontario's Brier run. Wild Card jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first end, and all four members finished above 90 percent accuracy rates. Ontario tried to make up the deficit later on with an attempted triple but failed:

Ontario's attempt at a triple comes up short and give up a steal of one. They trail Wild Card 6-2. #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/91ARL6f2Te

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 8, 2019

Canada (8-2) and Northern Ontario (9-1), both owning an 8-1 record coming into Draw 18, needed an extra end to decide a winner after Canadian skip Brad Gushue scored one stone in the 10th end to tie it at six:

Extra fun in Brandon. The Battle of the Brads is headed to an extra. pic.twitter.com/XQ6g76t4ZL

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 8, 2019

However, the back-to-back reigning champions came up empty in the 11th end, and Northern Ontario hung on to secure a spot in the No. 1 vs. No. 2 playoff draw.

Meanwhile, hometown team Manitoba (5-5) scored two in both the eighth and ninth ends to force British Columbia (4-6) to concede, while Alberta (10-0) only needed eight ends to take care of Saskatchewan (4-6).

Draw 19 

Friday night's draw was low pressure since the four teams advancing to the playoff clinched in the afternoon. That said, Draw 19 provided a potential preview of what could be to come in the playoff.

Canada (9-2) rolled through Wild Card (8-3) in eight ends while Alberta (11-0) outlasted Northern Ontario (9-2). Canada and Wild Card will play again Saturday afternoon, and Northern Ontario will have one more crack at Alberta on Saturday night. 

The winner of Alberta-Northern Ontario will advance directly to the finals. The winner of Canada-Wild Card will play the loser of Alberta and Northern Ontario in the semifinals. 

After Canada's defeat of Wild Card, Canadian skip Brad Gushue will have the hammer for Saturday's draw.

Saskatchewan (5-6) ended its Brier run on a high note by breaking the tie with British Columbia in the 10th end. Manitoba (6-5) also finished its Brier run with a win but received additional love from its hometown fans on hand. 

Big cheer from the crowd as Manitoba picks up a win in its last Championship Round game and waves to the crowd! #homeprovince #Brier2019 @TeamRCarruthers pic.twitter.com/cPpGeG06qE

— Curling Canada (@CurlingCanada) March 9, 2019

The full schedule and standings for the Tim Hortons Brier are available on Curling.ca.

The championship pool round got underway Thursday in the 2019 Tim Hortons Brier at Westoba Place in Brandon, Manitoba.

What had been a 16-team field was whittled down to eight with the conclusion of the round-robin portion.

Those results carried on to the championship round, which was good news for Northern Ontario and Alberta, both of whom are a perfect 7-0. At 6-1, Team Canada and the Wild Card team are positioned well to earn a playoff berth.

Here's a look at Thursday's results and a brief overview of the action.

       

Thursday Results

Draw 15

Ontario def. Saskatchewan, 7-4

Alberta def. Wild Card, 7-6

Northern Ontario def. British Columbia, 11-5

Canada def. Manitoba, 6-3

     

Draw 16

Alberta def. Manitoba, 6-5

Ontario def. Northern Ontario, 7-6

Canada def. Saskatchewan, 8-4

Wild Card def. British Columbia, 8-3

      

Friday Schedule

Draw 17 (3 p.m. ET)

Northern Ontario vs. Canada

British Columbia vs. Manitoba

Ontario vs. Wild Card

Alberta vs. Saskatchewan

     

Draw 18 (8 p.m. ET)

British Columbia vs. Saskatchewan

Wild Card vs. Canada

Alberta vs. Northern Ontario

Manitoba vs. Ontario

     

Thursday Recap

Draw 15

Northern Ontario improved to 8-0 after rolling over British Columbia 11-5.

Skip Brad Jacobs and his squad had the victory wrapped up after the eighth end. Although British Columbia earned one point in the eighth, the mountain to tie the score was far too high to climb in the two remaining ends.

Like Northern Ontario, Alberta ran its record to 8-0 but required a lot more drama in order to secure the win.

Alberta trailed the Wild Card team 6-4 entering the 10th and final end after the Wild Card team notched three points over the previous two ends. Alberta had the hammer in the 10th end, which proved to be decisive.

Skip Kevin Koe placed his stone perfectly, knocking out Wild Card's only stone on the board and registering three points for Alberta.

The Brier in on now! In a span of seconds Ontario and Alberta pick up massive last shot wins. pic.twitter.com/TDF1Maf3DJ

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 7, 2019

Canada, the defending champion, opened the championship pool with a 6-3 victory over Manitoba.

"You don't get much margin for error when you're playing a well-oiled team like that," Manitoba skip Mike McEwen said, per the Westman Journal's Christopher L. Istace. "I thought there were a lot of good throws on our side. I thought we were dealing with a little bit of a difficult set of rocks. That's one of the most unmatched sets out on the ice here, but we tried our best."

Draw 16

Northern Ontario suffered its first defeat, falling 7-6 to Ontario after a sudden-death 11th end.

Things weren't looking good for Jacobs and Co. heading into the 10th end. They trailed 6-4 after Ontario added an insurance point in the ninth. But Jacobs placed the final stone perfectly to ensure Northern Ontario got the two points necessary for overtime.

Extra fun....Ontario and Northern Ontario are going to the 11th. #BRIER2019 pic.twitter.com/u0A4zXekWq

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 8, 2019

Alas, those heroics were all for naught. Ontario got a decisive point in the 11th end for the win.

Perfect no more! Ontario handed Northern Ontario their first loss at the #Brier2019. pic.twitter.com/0Rrc6VWguc

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 8, 2019

Alberta was able to maintain its unbeaten record and sent the host packing in the process. Manitoba fell to 4-5 with its Draw 16 loss, eliminating any hope of advancing to the playoff round. 

      

The full schedule and standings for the Tim Hortons Brier are available on Curling.ca.

The 2019 Tim Hortons Brier wrapped up round-robin pool play on Wednesday in Brandon, Manitoba. 

The first two draws of the day contained must-win situations for several teams hoping to make it to the Championship Pool, which begins on March 9. Fans on hand were excited to witness all of the drama:

You’re never too old, to wacky, too dire to meet up with friends and cheer at the Brier! #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/yZY2xQCgJ0

— Curling Canada (@CurlingCanada) March 6, 2019

Reigning back-to-back champions Team Canada took care of business with relative ease against a team that couldn't afford to lose. While an undefeated Team Alberta blew out winless Team Nunavut in Draw 12, the hometown team went down to the wire in Draw 13 as they hold their collective breath to see if they'll advance.

The top four teams of each eight-team pool advanced to the Championship Pool. The morning and afternoon draws set the stage for a dramatic Draw 14 Wednesday evening as teams fight for the last remaining slots.

Two decisive Draw 14 matches were nail-biters and needed all 10 ends to determine which teams would make it out of Pool B.

Below is a look at Championship Pool scheduling as well as results and a recap of Wednesday's action.

            

Results

Draw 12

New Brunswick def. Ontario, 9-8

Alberta def. Nunavut, 13-2

Canada def. Nova Scotia, 9-2

British Columbia def. Northwest Territories, 9-5

     

Draw 13

Northern Ontario def. Yukon, 10-5

Wild Card def. Saskatchewan, 8-2

Quebec def. Newfoundland and Labrador, 14-4

Manitoba def. Prince Edward Island, 7-6

Draw 14 

Canada def. Nunavut, 11-2

New Brunswick def. Northwest Territories, 8-2

Ontario def. British Columbia, 10-9

Alberta def. Nova Scotia, 7-5

Schedule

March 9

Draw 21 at 3 p.m. EST

Draw 22 at 8 p.m. EST

March 10

Draw 23 at 2 p.m. EST

Draw 24 at 8 p.m. EST

       

Recap

Draw 12

New Brunswick improved to 2-4 on the tournament with an 11th end win over Ontario. While New Brunswick's record is only good for sixth place in Pool B, a loss would have put an end to any hope of advancing to the Championship Pool. 

New Brunswick skip Terry Odishaw came up big when his team needed him most—hitting in the 11th end to edge out Team Ontario. "I used to get butterflies when you were throwing that type of shot," Odishaw told John Korobanik of Curling Canada of his hit and stick shot. "Now you're just afraid to miss."

New Brunswick can't afford to miss against Northwest Territories on Wednesday night.

Alberta's overwhelming defeat of Nunavut was to be expected, but the relative ease with which the team has coasted through Pool B will heighten expectations as the Albertans have to face off against the other best teams in the tournament. Not for nothing: Team Canada's lone loss came against Team Alberta in Draw 10, but it was a narrow 7-6 defeat.

Canada improved to 5-1 with a convincing victory over Nova Scotia, dropping Nova Scotia to 3-3. The draw meant infinitely more to Nova Scotia, who dropped Draw 10 on Tuesday afternoon to Ontario. Nova Scotia needed to beat 3-3 Ontario to boost their record ahead of this draw against Canada and their final draw Wednesday night against Alberta.

Heading into Wednesday night, Nova Scotia is in fifth place behind Ontario in Pool B.

           

Draw 13

Team Wild Card won their sixth draw in a row after conceding Draw 1 to Northern Ontario, who finished pool play a perfect 7-0 after forcing Team Yukon to concede after just eight ends. 

The @TeamBottcher Buzzsaw rips through another opponent! 8-2 in 8 ends vs Sask. With 6 wins in a row, team Wildcard has emerged from pool play as a favourite to win it all. #brier2019 #curling https://t.co/2Fwv6yYdUa pic.twitter.com/5QF686xNbB

— CurlingZone (@CurlingZone) March 6, 2019

Team Manitoba and Prince Edward Island went the full 10 ends in a matchup that the hometown needed. With the win, Manitoba finishes its round robin schedule with a 4-3 record.

Manitoba's win paired with Yukon's loss eliminated Yukon and advanced the hometown side to the championship round. 

Manitoba is off to the championship pool after beating PEI pic.twitter.com/TmKCHa2utQ

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 6, 2019

Team Quebec pulled off a 10-point victory over Newfoundland and Labrador, but in fifth place at 3-4 and no remaining draws, it was too little too late for them in Pool A. 

The teams advancing from Pool A are Northern Ontario, Wild Card, Manitoba and Saskatchewan. 

Congratulations to the top four teams in Pool A advancing to the Championship Round - Wild Card (@TeamBottcher), Manitoba (@TeamRCarruthers), Northern Ontario (@TeamBradJacobs) and Saskatchewan (@muyrescurling)! #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/0vZJ61c7aA

— Curling Canada (@CurlingCanada) March 7, 2019

Draw 14

Team Canada (6-1) put the finishing touches on their glide through Pool B with a 11-2 win over winless Nunavut in only eight ends. After the win, Mark Nichols told TSN Canada that the team isn't yet thinking about a three-peat.

At the same time, Team Alberta remained undefeated by defeating Nova Scotia in a back-and-forth battle. Heading into the 10th end, Alberta had pulled away with a 7-4 lead. Nova Scotia couldn't recover.

The loss put an end to Nova Scotia's Brier run. Nova Scotia's elimination was confirmed by Team Ontario's win over British Columbia. Ontario and British Columbia both finished pool play with a 4-3 record, and their matchup confirmed how closely they resemble each other. 

Through seven ends, British Columbia and Ontario were tied at seven. Ontario took a narrow 8-7 lead into the ninth end, just for British Columbia to notch two and take the lead right back in the ninth. Ultimately, Ontario's two stones in the 10th end gave them the win and a ticket to the Championship Pool. 

Ontario beats BC to punch ticket to championship pool. #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/FPui5F3bWf

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 7, 2019

New Brunswick's win in eight ends over Northwest Territories proved fruitless. With a 3-4 record, New Brunswick needed either Nova Scotia or Ontario to lose in order to force a tiebreaker for fourth place. The four teams advancing out of Pool B are Alberta, Canada, Ontario and British Columbia.

Congratulations to the four teams moving on to the Championship Round from Pool B - Ontario (@McDonaldCurling), B.C. (@TeamJimCotter), Canada (@TeamGushue) and Alberta (@TeamKevinKoe)!#Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/YjD0UakEKF

— Curling Canada (@CurlingCanada) March 7, 2019

The full schedule and standings for the Tim Hortons Brier are available on Curling.ca.

The third day of the 2019 Tim Hortons Brier came to a wild conclusion in Brandon, Manitoba, with a sudden-death scenario between Prince Edward Island and Yukon. The winning squad pulled into a tie for the final clinching spot out of Pool A.

Team Canada is looking for its third Brier championship in a row. On Tuesday afternoon, Team Canada defeated New Brunswick 8-7, which makes its record in the tournament 4-1—good for second behind 5-0 Alberta—with two more draws in Pool B before the Championship Pool begins.

Tuesday afternoon saw a surprising skip change for Team Northwest Territories during its Draw 10 win over Nunavut.

A few standouts have already clinched a spot in the next round, but plenty of teams finished Tuesday play with must-wins on the horizon in order to advance.

Delve deeper into Tuesday's action with a look at the results and a recap along with scheduling information for Wednesday below.

     

Tuesday Results

Draw 9

Manitoba def. Newfoundland and Labrador, 13-4.

Quebec def. Prince Edward Island, 8-5

Northern Ontario def. Saskatchewan, 7-5

Wild Card def. Yukon, 10-3

     

Draw 10

Alberta def. British Columbia, 9-5

Ontario def. Nova Scotia, 5-4

Northwest Territories def. Nunavut, 9-4

Canada def. New Brunswick, 8-7

     

Draw 11

Wild Card def. Quebec, 10-4

Northern Ontario def. Manitoba, 9-5

Yukon def. Prince Edward Island, 8-7

Saskatchewan def. Newfoundland and Labrador, 9-5

     

Wednesday Schedule

Draw 12 (10 a.m. ET)

Ontario vs. New Brunswick

Nunavut vs. Alberta

Nova Scotia vs. Canada

Northwest Territories vs. British Columbia

     

Draw 13 (3 p.m. ET)

Northern Ontario vs. Yukon

Saskatchewan vs. Wild Card

Quebec vs. Newfoundland and Labrador

Prince Edward Island vs. Manitoba

     

Draw 14 (8 p.m. ET)

Nunavut vs. Canada

Northwest Territories vs. New Brunswick

Ontario vs. British Columbia

Nova Scotia vs. Alberta

     

Tuesday Recap

Draw 9

Hometown Team Manitoba improved to 3-2 in Pool A play with a dominant 13-4 victory over Newfoundland and Labrador. The win was huge for Team Manitoba as it fights to maintain a top-four spot in Pool A. Newfoundland and Labrador never stood a chance and eventually had to concede following the eighth end.

One young fan skipped school to support his team in person:

We’ll just leave this one right here... #importanter #priorities #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/cPX9N5DUAy

— Curling Canada (@CurlingCanada) March 5, 2019

Northern Ontario remained undefeated, as Saskatchewan was forced to concede following the ninth end. Saskatchewan had a chance to come back but couldn't capitalize on Northern Ontario's failure to score in the eighth and ninth ends.

Meanwhile, the Wild Card team won its fourth draw in a row, as Yukon was forced to concede after just eight ends. Wild Card posted a 6-0 score in the fourth end to put the draw out of reach.

     

Draw 10

The main storyline to emerge from Draw 10 came when Jamie Koe decided to remove himself as skip in favor of David Aho. After the draw, Koe explained his decision to Curling Canada.

The future of curling in the NWT is strong with these kids!! The game is in good hands up there. https://t.co/bLaIMYVZOF

— Jamie Koe (@JKnwt) March 5, 2019

Meanwhile, Team Alberta skip Kevin Koe pointed out that, even though the team is undefeated, it has yet to play its best. "That's probably a good thing that we're winning with not yet our best game," Koe told Curling Canada. It's a good thing for the Albertans but disconcerting to the rest of the field.

Team Canada squeaked out a win over New Brunswick with two points in the 10th end via tap-back on the last rock. Geoff Walker, Brett Gallant and Mark Nichols stepped up for Canada, as skip Brad Gushue had a team-low 84 percent accuracy rate.

However, Gushue's 84 percent rating matched New Brunswick's team-high—illustrating how tough of an out the back-to-back champions will be at this year's Brier.

Canada's next opponent is Nova Scotia in Draw 12 on Wednesday morning, and it's a must-win draw for Nova Scotia, as the team sits in a three-way tie at 3-2 in Pool B.

Nova Scotia dropped its Draw 10 matchup to Ontario, and it's a costly loss, as the team's last two remaining draws in pool play come against Alberta and Canada.

     

Draw 11

The closest matchup on Tuesday night was Prince Edward Island and Yukon. The two teams were knotted at seven through 10 ends and forced an 11th. That said, the most stakes were found between Northern Ontario and Manitoba.

Team Yukon ended up on top with one stone in the 11th, which keeps its hopes alive, as the team pulled into a tie for fourth place in Pool A with Manitoba. Prince Edward Island is totally out of the race at 1-5.

Manitoba kept it close through six ends, but two stones in the ninth end by Northern Ontario put the contest out of reach. The conceded loss, while against an undefeated team, is a major blow to Manitoba's chances of advancing out of Pool A, as it enters the final draws at 3-3 and sharing fourth place.

In between those two extremes was Wild Card's convincing win over Quebec behind 94 percent accuracy from Brad Thiessen. After conceding the first draw of the Brier, Wild Card has been on fire and poses a real threat to the likes of Alberta, Canada and Northern Ontario as the Championship Pool approaches.

Tuesday ended better than it started for Saskatchewan, as the team improved to 4-2 after dropping its morning draw to Northern Ontario.

Big cheer for SK's 9-5 win over NL! With that, @muyrescurling Sask squad is guaranteed at least a tiebreaker for the championship pool! #curling #brier2019 https://t.co/bKai2iHxpR pic.twitter.com/DHxdp9zpYV

— CurlingZone (@CurlingZone) March 6, 2019

Saskatchewan's final draw in Pool A will be against Wild Card with a chance to tie for second place in the pool. With the Draw 11 win, however, Saskatchewan is guaranteed at least a tiebreaker for the Championship Pool.

Team WC skipped by @TeamBottcher have now rolled through 5 opponents in a row, outscoring them 53-24 in that span. Their 5-1 record guarantees them a spot in the championship round! #curling #Brier2019 https://t.co/xQCt12UL93 pic.twitter.com/8tNd0Hw8n9

— CurlingZone (@CurlingZone) March 6, 2019

     

The full schedule and standings for the Tim Hortons Brier are available on Curling.ca.

The 2019 Tim Hortons Brier moved into its third day Monday at Westoba Place in Brandon, Manitoba.

Skip Brad Gushue and Team Canada are on track for a third successive title. They opened with a 7-6 win over Ontario on Saturday and defeated Northwest Territories 7-5 on Sunday. Canada had a pair of games Monday, facing off with British Columbia in Draw 6 and taking on Alberta in Draw 8.

Northern Ontario has gotten off to a blistering start, winning all three of its games by a combined score of 25-7 entering Monday.

Here's a brief recap of Monday's action and a look at Tuesday's schedule.

      

Monday Results

Draw 6

Alberta def. New Brunswick, 12-7

Nova Scotia def. Northwest Territories, 6-5

Ontario def. Nunavut, 9-2

Canada def. British Columbia, 10-4

     

Draw 7

Saskatchewan def. Quebec, 8-6

Wild Card def. Newfoundland and Labrador, 10-5

Yukon def. Manitoba, 7-6

Northern Ontario def. Prince Edward Island, 10-4

       

Draw 8

Ontario def. Northwest Territories, 10-2

British Columbia def. New Brunswick, 7-6

Alberta def. Canada, 7-6

Nova Scotia def. Nunavut, 11-2

      

Tuesday Schedule

Draw 9 (10 a.m. ET)

Manitoba vs. Newfoundland and Labrador

Quebec vs. Prince Edward Island

Saskatchewan vs. Northern Ontario

Yukon vs. Wild Card

      

Draw 10 (3 p.m. ET)

Alberta vs. British Columbia

Ontario vs. Nova Scotia

Northwest Territories vs. Nunavut

Canada vs. New Brunswick

      

Draw 11 (8 p.m. ET)

Quebec vs. Wild Card

Northern Ontario vs. Manitoba

Prince Edward Island vs. Yukon

Saskatchewan vs. Newfoundland and Labrador

      

Monday Recap

Draw 6

Blowouts were the theme in Draw 6.

Both Ontario and Canada had their victories wrapped up after the eighth end. Ontario handed Nunavut its third straight defeat, 9-2, while Canada prevailed 10-4 against British Columbia, handing B.C. its first loss of the Brier.

Alberta also got six points in the final two ends to pull away from New Brunswick. New Brunswick led entering the ninth end but lost 12-7.

Nova Scotia and Northwest Territories went down to the wire, though. Nova Scotia got two points in the eighth end to take a 5-3 lead. Northwest Territories responded with two points in the ninth end to tie things up at five.

NWT is light on their draw as NS pick up their second victory. #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/GLbksx8Fci

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 4, 2019

      

Draw 7

Fans in Manitoba may be losing hope of seeing their squad win the Brier on home soil.

Manitoba lost 9-8 to the Wild Card team during Sunday's night session and followed up with a 7-6 defeat to Yukon in Draw 7.

UPSET:
McEwen rolls too far and Manitoba loses to Yukon 7-6. #brier2019 #curling pic.twitter.com/XM2JijF425

— Thomas Friesen (@thomasmfriesen) March 4, 2019

"It's just curling, but it's more than that," Manitoba skip Mike McEwen said, per the Canadian Press (via TSN). "Yeah, we're amateur athletes, but this is my life. It helps support my family. There's a lot that goes into this so this is tough when these things happen. It's like a job demotion or something like that. It's not good."

Saskatchewan also pulled off an impressive comeback against Quebec. Quebec led 6-5 heading into the eighth end. Saskatchewan then earned one point apiece over the final three ends to walk away with an 8-6 win.

      

Draw 8

In a highly anticipated Draw 8 clash, Alberta defeated Canada to climb into sole possession of first place in Pool B. Alberta is also one of two teams to start 4-0, joining Northern Ontario.

Canada went ahead 2-0 after the first end, but Alberta immediately answered back with two points in the second end to set the stage for a back-and-forth affair. Canada got one point in the eighth end to take a 6-5 lead.

Unfortunately for the defending champion, Alberta skip Kevin Koe had the hammer in the 10th and final end. Koe placed his takeout perfectly to clear a pair of stones from the board and secure two decisive points for his team.

Alberta beats the defending champs 7-6 after a terrific game winning shot by Kevin Koe. #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/e4UYshG1Mz

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 5, 2019

     

The full schedule and standings for the Tim Hortons Brier are available on Curling.ca.

The 2019 Tim Hortons Brier continues Sunday with the second day of competition featuring four different draws in the morning, afternoon and evening.

Following Saturday's action and Sunday's early draw, Manitoba and Northern Ontario led the way in Group A with two wins. There was a four-way tie in Group B with Alberta, British Columbia, Canada and New Brunswick with 1-0 records.

After that brief opening act, here are the results and standings from Sunday's competition at Westoba Place in Manitoba, Canada.

     

Sunday's Results

Draw 3

Saskatchewan def. Yukon, 6-5

Northern Ontario def. Newfoundland and Labrador, 8-2

Wild Card def. Prince Edward Island, 14-4

Manitoba def. Quebec, 8-3

     

Draw 4

Canada def. Northwest Territories, 7-5

British Columbia def. Nunavut, 10-4

Nova Scotia def. New Brunswick, 7-3

Alberta def. Ontario, 8-5

     

Draw 5

Wild Card def. Manitoba, 9-8 (OT)

Saskatchewan def. Prince Edward Island, 9-2

Northern Ontario def. Quebec, 7-3

Yukon def. Newfoundland and Labrador, 8-4

     

Monday Schedule

Draw 6 (10 a.m. ET)

New Brunswick vs. Alberta

Nova Scotia vs. Northwest Territories

Nunavut vs. Ontario

British Columbia vs. Canada

     

Draw 7 (3 p.m. ET)

Saskatchewan vs. Quebec

Wild Card vs. Newfoundland and Labrador

Yukon vs. Manitoba

Northern Ontario vs. Prince Edward Island

     

Draw 8 (8 p.m. ET)

Northwest Territories vs. Ontario

New Brunswick vs. British Columbia

Canada vs. Alberta

Nunavut vs. Nova Scotia

     

Sunday Recap

Draw 3

The only drama in the first round of matches Sunday was Saskatchewan's 6-5 win over Yukon. The Saskatchewan squad has split their first two matches with both being decided by one point.

Yukon, which fell to 0-2 in the tournament, was able to get within one thanks to two points in the seventh end. That would be the final points scored by either rink over the final three ends.

None of the other three matches in the third draw were very competitive. Northern Ontario has been the most impressive group thus far, defeating Newfoundland and Labrador by an 8-2 score after an eight-point win over the Wild Card group Saturday.

Speaking of the Wild Card team, it had the biggest win of the Brier thus far over Prince Edward Island. The Karrick Martin-led group was able to dominate on the strength of three four-point ends. Prince Edward Island was held scoreless in six of the eight ends, and three of its four points came in the third end.

Mike McEwen and Manitoba were able to breeze past Quebec thanks to stealing two points in the sixth that increased their lead to 5-1. Manitoba would add insurance points late to walk away with an 8-3 victory.

     

Draw 4

The defending champions continue to roll, as Canada knocked off the Northwest Territories for its second straight win to start this year's Brier.

Despite the victory, Canada skipper Brad Gushue didn't feel like his team was getting the rock "set up the way we like" throughout the match:

Brad Gushue after his win against Jamie Koe. #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/CjSOivpADZ

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 3, 2019

British Columbia kept pace with Canada in Pool B by cruising past Nunavut 10-4. The Nunavut squad led by David St. Louis forfeited after eight ends. It's been a rough two years for St. Louis' team, which has lost all nine of its matches.

After an easy win over Nunavut on Saturday, New Brunswick had no such luck against Nova Scotia. The match was tense through the first five ends with the score tied at three, but Nova Scotia pulled away with single points in each of the next four ends.

Nova Scotia leader Taylor Wayne Ardiel lived up to his title with a team-high 61 points on 18 shots. The team also stole four ends, compared to just one for New Brunswick.

Ontario did something it hasn't done in 23 years following an 8-5 loss to Alberta.

Ontario starts 0-2 at the Brier for the first time since 1996 when Bob Ingram skipped the province. #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/GfTyGmC53F

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 3, 2019

While Scott Chadwick will look for answers to get Ontario back on track, Alberta is off to a 2-0 start in its quest to get back to the final after losing to Canada in 2018.

     

Draw 5

Saskatchewan had little trouble getting past Prince Edward Island in the second match of Sunday for both teams.

Skipper Kirk Muyres had his team focused from the jump, as Saskatchewan jumped out to an 8-0 lead through four ends. Prince Edward Island's only points came in the sixth end, though by that point the match was too far gone, and it was conceded after the eighth.

“Love skipping, love the pressure.” - @kirkmuyres on his new role on the ice#Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/1TYGAeR4jh

— Curling Canada (@CurlingCanada) March 4, 2019

The match of the day saw the Wild Card team hand Manitoba its first loss of the Brier. The group led by Brendan Bottcher made history by coming back from a 5-0 deficit to steal a 9-8 victory in 11 ends.

“Just as we drew it up.” - Brendan Bottcher joked about his come-from-behind victory (biggest one in Brier history) #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/XSuqRYCxbS

— Curling Canada (@CurlingCanada) March 4, 2019

Manitoba set up the extra time with this shot that knocked Wild Card's rock off track:

We go to an extra after Manitoba wrecks on the guard. #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/QJezD0fxFq

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 4, 2019

Bottcher's team came back in a hurry, getting three points each in the fifth and sixth ends. Even after going up 6-5, they had to remain on point because Manitoba went back on top with two points in the seventh end.

Karrick Martin, Brad Thiessen and Darren Moulding each had at least 70 points and an 80 percent success rate on their shots.

Both Manitoba and the Wild Card are now 2-1 through three matches in Pool A. This could be a huge result in the round-robin portion of the tournament, though there is still plenty of time for Manitoba to get back on track.

Northern Ontario is the first team to three wins after breezing past Quebec, 7-3. Brad Jacobs' quartet used two stolen ends and five shots worth at least three points to get the win.

In the matchup between two 0-2 teams, Yukon was able to get off the schneid with an 8-4 win over Newfoundland and Labrador.

     

The full schedule and standings for the Tim Hortons Brier are available via Curling.ca.

The 2019 Tim Hortons Brier officially opened Saturday in Brandon, Manitoba, with draws in the afternoon and night at Westoba Place.

In 2017, Newfoundland and Labrador won the Brier on home soil. Representing Team Canada, skip Brad Gushue led his team to victory again in 2018. Gushue, Mark Nichols, Brett Gallant and Geoff Walker are looking to make it three in a row.

Team Canada is in action during Saturday's night session, facing off with Ontario.

Here's a look at Saturday's action.

      

Saturday Results

Draw 1

Prince Edward Island def. Newfoundland and Labrador, 5-4

Quebec def. Yukon, 11-2

Manitoba def. Saskatchewan, 7-6

Northern Ontario def. Wild Card, 10-2

     

Draw 2

British Columbia def. Nova Scotia, 8-7

Canada def. Ontario, 7-6

Alberta def. Northwest Territories, 9-4

New Brunswick def. Nunavut, 10-2

      

Sunday Schedule

Draw 3

Yukon vs. Saskatchewan

Newfoundland and Labrador vs. Northern Ontario

Wild Card vs. Prince Edward Island

Manitoba vs. Quebec

     

Draw 4

Canada vs. Northwest Territories

British Columbia vs. Nunavut

New Brunswick vs. Nova Scotia

Alberta vs. Ontario

      

Draw 5

Wild Card vs. Manitoba

Prince Edward Island vs. Saskatchewan

Northern Ontario vs. Quebec

Newfoundland and Labrador vs. Yukon

      

Saturday Recap

Draw 1

Saturday's afternoon session featured a perfect split of results. Northern Ontario and Quebec coasted to victories in dominant fashion, while Prince Edward Island and Manitoba waited until the 10th and final end to overtake their opponents en route to wins.

Manitoba skip Mike McEwen earned two points for his team in the 10th end, with the home fans letting out a loud roar as the team secured a 7-6 win over Saskatchewan.

The Brandon crowd goes crazy as Manitoba beats Saskatchewan in their opener. #Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/VDqK3yrh9h

— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) March 2, 2019

In the eighth end, McEwen had the hammer and delivered an expertly placed takeout to salvage a point for Manitoba. Without that point, Manitoba would've had an even bigger hill to climb in the 10th.

Skip John Likely delivered similar heroics for Prince Edward Island. Newfoundland and Labrador scored two points in the ninth end to take a 4-3 lead. But Likely's deuce put Prince Edward Island back on the front foot.

Elsewhere in Draw 1, Quebec beat Yukon 11-2, and Northern Ontario dominated Wild Card 10-2. Both games ended after the eighth end.

      

Draw 2

Much like Draw 1, Saturday's second draw had a nice mix of drama interspersed with some dominant performances.

Team Canada got its title defense off well, beating Ontario 7-6. The margin was razor-thin, with the two teams exchanging one point over each of the final four ends.

In the seventh end, Ontario skip Scott McDonald executed a takeout with the hammer. A measurement was required to determine the point tally for the end. The results showed the two remaining stones to be equidistant from the tee, leading to a tie and granting Ontario only one point.

Were its stone a fraction of an inch closer, Ontario might have opened the 2019 Brier with a win.

It’s a tie!!!!! We’ve all just witnessed something incredibly rare between @McDonaldCurling and @TeamGushue.#Brier2019 pic.twitter.com/p1l4Vk68iC

— Curling Canada (@CurlingCanada) March 3, 2019

British Columbia and Nova Scotia required an 11th end to determine a winner, while Alberta and New Brunswick coasted past their opponents for victories.

     

The full schedule and standings for the Tim Hortons Brier are available on Curling.ca.