Usually, playing well and winning a curling game at the beginning of November during round-robin play isn’t the biggest deal, but for Canada’s Team Rachel Homan, it certainly felt that way.
Coming into their meeting against Japan’s Team Satsuki Fujisawa at the P&H Masters in Medicine Hat, Alta., the reigning Olympic bronze medalists had a season record of 1-4, and didn’t look good in any of their games.
On Wednesday, though, we saw flashes for the first time this season of the normal Team Homan that has dominated the women’s game for years. It led to a 7-5 victory over the Japanese team, a squad that has given Homan trouble her whole career. Coming into the game, the Ottawa native held just a 6-7 record against Fujisawa all-time in Slam events.
The first sign of brightness came in the third end for Homan when she made a great quiet-weight hit for two. The rock was judged perfectly by the whole team down the ice, and Homan showed great weight control.
In the sixth end, though, Homan, the 20-time GSOC champion, made the most clutch shot she’s possibly made all year, just barely getting by Fujisawa’s first stone to complete a three-hit for three.
But it wasn’t just Homan who looked good. Tracy Fleury, Emma Miskew and Rachelle Brown, who’s replacing an injured Sarah Wilkes, all made great shots throughout the game. Highlighted by Miskew’s double peel in the eighth end, which really opened the middle for Homan’s draw with her last stone.
Now, there were still mistakes made by the Canadians throughout the game, like in the fourth end when Fleury missed both her shots and in the seventh when they left Fujisawa a hard but makeable double for four. Luckily for Homan’s team, Fujisawa wasn’t able to do too much damage with those opportunities.
So, even though the team clearly still isn’t at their sharpest, they took a big step in the right direction with this win, which should also boost their confidence in their shot-making abilities moving forward.
Wednesday’s results (Full scores and standings)
Draw 5
X. Schwaller 6, Kobayashi 4
Waddell 6, Hlushak 4
Wrana 8, Lloyd 4
Kitazawa 6, Einarson 2
Draw 6
Mouat 6, Epping 3
Dunstone 6, Yamaguchi 3
Hardie 6, Spiller 5 (SO)
Gim 10, Sturmay 6
Draw 7
Hasselborg 9, Park 7
Nihira 5, Reese-Hansen 4
Homan 7, Fujisawa 5
Paetz 7, Gray-Withers 4
Draw 8
Casper 9, Van Amsterdam 3
McDonald 7, Jacobs 5
Bottcher 5, Koe 4
Hoesli 8, Y. Schwaller 7 (SO)
Spiller and Hardie running on fumes but playing well
Considering the fact that Scotland’s Team Grant Hardie and Italy’s Team Stefano Spiller played each other on Sunday in Ostrava, Czechia, for the European Championship — which Hardie won — and then got on a plane to fly halfway across the world to Medicine Hat, Alta., the level of play from these two teams has been incredible through the first two days.
Yes, Spiller has lost both of his games in a shootout now after Ross Whyte, Hardie’s fourth-stone thrower, out-drew him in the draw to the button to earn a 6-5 victory. Yes, this has resulted in Spiller earning zero points thanks to the new points structure, but his team has nothing to be upset about. In fact, Spiller has been one of the more impressive teams in the field during their first two games, given the strength of competition.
In the first shootout loss, the Italians took on Canada’s Team Brad Jacobs, the reigning Olympic gold medalist, and honestly played well enough that they could’ve won the game, and nobody would’ve been overly shocked.
However, during the match against Hardie, it felt like the two teams raised their play even more — it probably helped that it was their third time playing each other within a week, splitting the first two. They each showed the ability to make great timely shots, not allowing each other any chance to score a massive end.
In the end, though, Whyte was just a touch better than Spiller, which was the difference in getting the two points. Not only were these two teams battling body clocks from a six-hour time difference, but they also both played in the late draw on Tuesday before moving up to the 11 a.m. draw local time.
No matter what happens this week for either team, they’ve shown that, regardless of the conditions, they will show up and play at an elite level.
Shot of a world champion
Things weren’t looking great for Switzerland's Team Xenia Schwaller against Japan’s Team Mina Kobayashi on Wednesday after already dropping their opening match to Canada’s Serena Gray-Withers. Kobayashi frustrated them all game, gave them nothing to work with, and even got two straight steals at the midway point.
Down 4-2 in the eighth end, though, Schwaller refused to just go away. It also helped that Kobayashi’s team made a couple of mistakes for what felt like the first time all game. Including one with her last stone that opened the door just enough for Schwaller to have a chance.
Still, Schwaller had to play a ridiculously hard shot. All the Swiss skip had was an in-off into the button to kill Kobayashi’s stone and score four. Hit it too thick, and the shooter rolls over the top of the stone. Hit it too thin, and the shooter goes underneath.
Schwaller showed why she’s the defending world champion, connecting at just the right spot to lift her team to victory and avoid a terrible 0-2 start.
The P&H Masters will be available on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+ starting with Draw 10 at 12 p.m. ET/ 10 a.m. PCT. Sportsnet will air three draws per day on Thursday and Friday. Sportsnet+ and CBC will carry the Saturday quarterfinals, while CBC will air the semifinals on Saturday evening. Championship Sunday will be on Sportsnet.
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