“It’s been a little bit chaotic”

Kevin Koe’s Team Alberta curled to a 9-8 victory over Colton Flasch’s Team Saskatchewan on Friday evening, as the former teammates faced off in a battle of the prairies on the opening night of the 2022 Canadian men’s championship.

The fans are back at the Brier in Lethbridge, Alta. which adds a fresh element to Olympic bronze medallist Brad Gushue’s recent experiences.

“It’s been a little bit chaotic,” said Gushue, who plays his first game on Saturday. “I don’t think we’re coming in here fully rested, but (I’m) very excited to play in front of some fans.

“That’s something we missed when we were over in Beijing, it was pretty quiet at times in the rink. And we’re looking forward to having a good, full house here for our games.”

The Alberta-Saskatchewan game was a see-saw affair in which the lead was swapped several times.

Koe, who struggled with draw weight throughout the game, threw a soft double-runback on his final shot in the 11th end to score a single point and take the victory.

“I struggled personally,” said Koe following the match. “I think I missed as many draws that game as I have all year.”

Koe threw 74 per cent, the lowest of any player on either team in that game, but was still able to offer a victory to the hometown crowd as live fans returned to the Brier following last year’s event in the Calgary bubble.

“It's just so much fun to play in front of fans, especially Alberta fans,” said Koe. “I think it’s going to be a great week and the fans are going to have a ton of fun and the players are going to enjoy it too.”

The game opened with Saskatchewan taking the hammer on the last stone draw. Flasch led off the scoring with a deuce in the second end, following a first end blank.

A well-made hit and roll by Koe on his first skip stone in the third end, followed by an unintended nose hit by Flasch, set the Alberta skip up with a chance to hit for three on his final shot of the end. Koe made it and took a 3-2 lead.

A missed guard by Koe on his first stone in the fourth end opened up the opportunity for Flasch to sink draws on each his stones, scoring two and retaking a one-point lead.

A double takeout on a runback by Flasch on his first throw of the fifth, followed by a heavy draw from Koe that went through the rings, left the hosts facing three on Koe’s final stone. The four-time Brier champion was able to raise a guard into the house to cut down the damage, but still gave up a steal of two that left him trailing 6-3 at the break.

A heavy draw from Flasch on his final stone of the sixth end gave Koe a chance to get back into the game with a tap for three. The veteran skip made no mistake, tying the game at 6-6.

A blank seventh end allowed Saskatchewan to carry the hammer into the eighth. Alberta then forced Saskatchewan to a single, reclaiming the hammer down one point going into the ninth.

Koe took two in that end, reclaiming a one-point lead, but passed the hammer back to Flasch— who won the 2019 Brier as Koe’s second—for the 10th end.

With Alberta lying one in the 10th, Flasch had the chance to hit for the win but he was only able to hold one stone in scoring position, tying the game once again, and setting up the extra end where Koe would have hammer and played his tricky shot for the win.

“Luckily the guys battled, grinded it out, made the big shots and kind of a veteran win,” said Koe.

Fellow Albertans Team Brendan Botcher, playing as Team Canada at the event, also offered their home province fans a win with a 5-4 victory over Glenn Howard’s Team Ontario.

Newfoundland and Labrador, a young squad skipped by Nathan Young and making their Brier debut, defeated Thomas Scoffin’s Team Yukon 7-5. Olympians Brad Gushue and Mark Nichols, who are playing as Team Wild Card 1 at this Brier, watched the game and greeted their fellow Newfoundlanders as they came off the ice after their win.

“We see them almost every day and we see the work ethic that they put in, and so to walk off the ice and have Mark Nichols and Brad Gushue there saying ‘good game’ is very special,” said Young.

Finally, Matt Dunstone’s Team Wild Card 2 defeated James Grattan’s New Brunswick by a 7-6 count.

Grattan’s team will need to regroup in preparation for their game today, one of the most anticipated matchups of the event. New Brunswick third Darren Moulding will take on his former Bottcher teammates in Draw 3 at 8:30pm ET.