FORT MCMURRAY, Alta. — Winnipeg’s Mike McEwen defeated Niklas Edin of Sweden to capture the inaugural Syncrude Elite 10 title Sunday in Fort McMurray, Alta.
McEwen nailed the runback to take the seventh and clinch the title with a 2 & 1 victory.
McEwen made the draw for second shot as it stopped just in time to go 1-up after one. Edin countered with an angle raise to count two in the second end. McEwen pulled back into the lead after sitting two and not having to throw his final stone as Edin couldn’t squeeze his last shot through the port and missed the mark.
Edin held shot stone in four but couldn’t get the deuce and lost the hammer. McEwen stayed on the mark and made the open hit to get the fifth end and go 2-up. Edin made a long runback peel for a double to count two and cut the deficit to one.
Syncrude Elite 10: Watch now on CBC | Scores | Standings
Semifinals recap
Mike McEwen rolled past Kevin Koe 3 & 2 while Niklas Edin edged Brad Jacobs 1-up in the semifinals of the Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling match play tournament.
Team McEwen scored with the hammer in the opening end and stole the second and third ends for an early 3-up lead as Koe struggled. Team Koe shook hands after getting a single in the sixth as it wasn’t enough to score a checkmark for the end.
McEwen was on point during the match curling a perfect 100 percent as his rink — featuring third B.J. Neufeld, second Matt Wozniak and lead Denni Neufeld — reached their third Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling final of the season. Team McEwen fell to Team Brad Gushue of St. John’s, N.L., in the Masters final and defeated Team Jacobs to capture the National title earlier this season.
“We were grinding early in this event,” Wozniak said. “It wasn’t coming easy for us, we were struggling with ice and the rocks and the format is different so it was a little taxing but we kind of put it all together today firing on all cylinders now finally.
“Mike is playing great, which is what you need in this format. If your skip is making his shots, you’re going to do well.”
Meanwhile, Edin came out on top in a back-and-forth battle that had the crowd roaring after every end. He stole the first to jump out 1-up but Jacobs charged right back to score in the second and make it all square.
Edin then made an amazing shot to get the deuce in three and pull back into the lead. Jacobs matched again in the fourth to keep pace. After pushes in five and six, Edin squeezed his final shot through the port and made the gentle tap to count two in the seventh.
“That was probably one of the better shots I’ve made in my life,” Edin said. “It’s usually a long runback or something like that but that tap was delicate. On this kind of ice, the ice is so good once you try it. I missed the first and pretty much knew how to play it and I felt right away it could be close and needed to curl but when I made that it was such a satisfaction actually to make that it was probably one of the best moments in a Slam I’ve experienced.”
Edin made an open hit takeout with his final shot in eight to run Jacobs out of rocks and preserve the victory.
“We knew we were going to have to take all the chances we got and make a lot of shots especially late in the end,” Edin said. “They have such a strong lineup, especially the back end they can make every shot. We knew we weren’t going to outplay them. As a team they’re too strong for that and have played so good on this ice. We knew we needed to get some good positions and rocks in play and then make some pistols at the end. Fortunately, we did just that and managed to squeak out the win.”
Team Edin also features Oskar Eriksson, Kristian Lindstroem and Christoffer Sundgren. The rink struggled early in the tournament posting a 0-2 record at the start but have caught fire winning five straight and Edin is looking forward to a rematch against McEwen after losing in the final of the Pomeroy Inn & Suites Prairie Showdown in Grande Prairie, Alta., last week.
“It’s a different format now. In Grande Prairie I didn’t even think we could win, I didn’t even want to win because they were so much better. Back then we made a lot of mistakes and we were happy with the final,” Edin said. “This time is different. We’ve played really well the last three, four games to get to the final so we’re going to try and do the same as here, try and give ourselves a chance to make big shots and if we can keep the game close anything can happen.”
Click here for the full recap.
Quarterfinals recap
Mike McEwen slide past Brad Gushue and into the semifinals of the Syncrude Elite 10 Saturday afternoon.
Gushue struggled with his draw weight throughout the match and McEwen capitalized to win 4 & 3 in the Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling match play event.
McEwen, the reigning National champion, stole the first three ends to gain an early three-point lead. Gushue wrecked on a guard with his final shot in four, counting just one, and McEwen picked up the hammer for the fifth end with the push.
Gushue needed to steal in order to stay in the tournament but he couldn’t get shot stone with his final rock and McEwen didn’t need to throw his last stone.
McEwen will now play Calgary’s Kevin Koe in the semifinals.
Elsewhere, Niklas Edin made a couple of key doubles to score a 2 & 1 victory over Reid Carruthers.
With the game all square, Edin connected with the double takeout to count two in the fifth and stole the sixth end to pull 2-up. Edin made another double with his final shot in seven to eliminate Carruthers from contention.
“That’s our bread and butter, so to speak,” Edin said. “We need to make those shots because we’re not yet at the same level as the other teams here on the draw shots. We still need to work on a lot of those things but once it comes to the defensive game, playing hard takeouts and doubles and stuff, I think there’s no one out there that can beat us. We need to find situations where we can use that.”
Team Edin opened the tournament with an 0-2 record but have now claimed four consecutive games including a victory over Glenn Howard of Penetanguishene, Ont., in the morning tiebreaker.
Edin said being in that must-win situation was exactly what they needed.
“We started off really slow, we played bad and couldn’t figure out the ice and we were not communicating well,” Edin said. “Once we got that must-win feeling we started to play a lot better, we started to communicate more and it seems like everything has just fallen in place so it feels really good.”
Edin plays Sochi Olympics gold medallist Brad Jacobs of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., who earned a bye straight to the semifinals.
Click here for the full quarterfinals recap.
Draw 7 recap
Kevin Koe has grabbed a bye to the semifinals of the Syncrude Elite 10 after defeating Toronto’s John Epping during the final round robin draw Friday night.
Koe had to settle for a push in the opening end but stole the following three ends and stayed in control during the 3 & 2 victory.
Team Koe finished with a 3-1 overall record in the Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling event and secured the top seed. Epping ended at 1-3 and was eliminated.
“You come here and you want to get to the playoffs and then see what happens from there but we managed to slip into the semifinals so that’s big,” Team Koe second Brent Laing said. “It’s a bit of a different format, lots of fun to play but so far so good.”
Elsewhere, Niklas Edin scored four ends to get a 4 & 3 victory over Glenn Howard. Edin earned a deuce in the opening end and steals in two and three to go 3-up and iced the game with another point in the fifth end.
Both teams finished at 2-2 and will meet again in the tiebreaker. The winner will face Reid Carruthers in the quarterfinals.
Carruthers (3-1) scored in the second, stole the third and picked up another points in five and seven during a 3 & 1 victory over Steve Laycock (0-4).
The other quarterfinal game sees a rematch of the Masters final between Brad Gushue and Mike McEwen.
Click here to read the full Draw 7 recap.
Draw 6 Recap
Brad Jacobs qualified for the playoffs at the Syncrude Elite 10 after taking down John Epping during Draw 6 action Friday night.
Team Jacobs, the Sochi Winter Olympics gold medallists, scored four ends to win 4 & 2 and finish the round robin of the Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling match play event with a 3-1 record.
Jacobs bounced back in Fort McMurray after missing the playoffs during the Syncrude National last season.
“It feels great. We’ve redeemed ourselves from last year, we didn’t play too well last year but this year we’ve qualified and that’s one goal completed,” Jacobs said. “I’m just really proud of the way the guys came out and played today. We played pretty awesome, really had a good handle on the ice and the rocks and I think that’s why we played so well and made so many shots.”
Elsewhere, Mike McEwen landed on the lid with his final shot in the eighth to preserve a 1-up win over Glenn Howard. Howard stole the second end but his final shot in four came up light and McEwen swiped that end to tie it. McEwen took the sixth end to grab the lead and held on.
McEwen (3-1) moves to the playoffs while Howard (2-1) plays Niklas Edin in the final round robin draw.
Click here to read the full Draw 6 recap.
Draw 5 recap
Reid Carruthers came out on top again in a rematch of the Manitoba provincial final against Mike McEwen during Draw 5 action at the Syncrude Elite 10.
Carruthers broke a tied game with a deuce in the fifth end, stole one in six to go 2-up and ran McEwen out of rocks in the final end to earn the 2 & 1 victory.
Both Winnipeg-based teams now hold 2-1 records in the match play Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling event.
Elsewhere, Brad Jacobs defeated Sven Michel 1-up. Jacobs broke an all square game winning the third and fifth ends and take a two-score advantage. The Sochi Olympic gold medallist gave up a point in the seventh but drew to the button with his final shot in eight to prevent another steal and preserve the victory.
Jacobs holds a 2-1 record while Michel heads home at 0-4.
Kevin Koe earned steals in the fourth, fifth and sixth ends against Brad Gushue and win 3 & 2. Koe improved to a 2-1 record while Gushue is off to the playoffs at 3-1.
Click here for the full Draw 5 recap
Draw 4 recap
Glenn Howard stole a point in the fifth end to go 1-up and held on to defeat Reid Carruthers during Draw 4 action Friday morning at the Syncrude Elite 10.
Howard climbed to a 2-0 record in the match play Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling tournament while Carruthers is now 1-1.
Elsewhere, Sven Michel (0-2) and Brad Gushue (2-0) are all-square through seven ends. Michel stole the first two ends and Gushue knotted it after winning three and five. Michel holds the hammer coming home.
Niklas Edin (1-2) earned his first win of the tournament defeating Steve Laycock (0-3). Edin took the first end but gave up a steal in three. Edin bounced back nailing a double takeout to win the fourth and stole the fifth and sixth ends to ice the game with a 3 & 2 victory.
Click here for the full Draw 3 recap.
Draw 3 recap
Brad Gushue and Mike McEwen jumped out to 2-0 records on the opening day of the Syncrude Elite 10 Thursday.
Gushue topped Brad Jacobs 2 & 1 while McEwen cruised past Niklas Edin 3 & 2 during the evening draw of the match play tournament.
John Epping beat Sven Michel 3 & 2.
Click here for the full Draw 3 recap.
Draw 2 recap
Glenn Howard rolled out of the gate scoring points in the first four ends to down Steve Laycock during Draw 2 action Thursday at the Syncrude Elite 10.
Howard (1-0) won the first and stole three consecutive ends to take a commanding four-point lead. Laycock could only count one in the fifth and shook hands as Howard took the match 4 & 3.
Laycock (0-2) dropped his opening draw game to Mike McEwen.
Elsewhere, Calgary’s Kevin Koe defeated Sven Michel of Switzerland 3 & 1. Koe (1-1) bounced back after falling in his Draw 1 game to Brad Jacobs, of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. Winnipeg’s Reid Carruthers defeated Niklas Edin of Sweden 3 & 1. Carruthers (1-0) won the fourth and sixth ends and stole the seventh. Edin holds a 0-1 record in the tournament.
Click here for the full Draw 2 recap.
Draw 1 recap
Brad Jacobs edged Kevin Koe in the opening draw of the Syncrude Elite 10, the all-new Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling event Thursday.
Team Jacobs, the 2014 Sochi Olympics gold medallists, led 1-up with the hammer coming home. Koe’s final shot was the lone stone in the house biting the 12-foot circle and Jacobs drew to the button to seal the victory.
Elsewhere, reigning National champion Mike McEwen stole the fourth end and added another steal in seven to beat Steve Laycock 2 & 1. Brad Gushue stole four ends and defeated John Epping 3 & 1.
Click here for the full Draw 1 recap.
The Syncrude Elite 10 uses match play rules. Teams compete to win the most ends by either scoring two or more points (with hammer) or steal at least one point (without hammer). If an end is blanked, the hammer switches and points do not carry over. Winning scores indicate how many ends a team was up by and if there were any ends not played (e.g. a team that won 3 & 2 finished the game 3-up after six ends.)