Stepping Stones at U18 Curling

Some of Canada’s strongest young curlers were in Timmins, Ont. for the 2023 Canadian U18 Junior Curling Championship.

The record books will show the Alberta team of Zachary Davies, Benjamin Kiist, Terren Algot, Lucas Sawiak, Logan Thomas and coach Byron Jagoe won the boy’s event by defeating Nick Mosher, Owen McPherson, Evan Hennigar and Aidan MacDonald of Nova Scotia by a score of 9-2 in the final. It marked a fitting end to what had been a solid, undefeated week for Davies and his teammates.

Meanwhile, Alberta showed even more domination by winning a second straight U18 title, also undefeated. Skip Myla Plett and teammates Alyssa Nedohin, Chloe Fediuk and Allie Iskiw won the girls’ final 10-1 over the team of Melody Forsythe, Rebecca Watson, Izzy Paterson and Caylee Smith from Fredericton, New Brunswick.

There were some familiar names in the building as the daughters of some well-known curlers named Nedohin, Iskiw, McCarville, Galusha, and Gushue competed under the watchful eyes of their curling parents. Brad Gushue watched his daughter Hayley compete, and was not only a nervous dad throughout the event but was also a tremendous ambassador for the sport, taking pictures with countless volunteers, local citizens and members from some of the competing teams.

Those who had the chance to spend some time at the McIntyre Community Centre during the week might best remember the curlers who brought skill, a love of the sport and a little bit of personality to the event. There were many interesting stories among the competitors in Timmins.

Grace Beaudry of Manitoba arrived fresh from skipping her U21 team at the Manitoba Scotties Tournament of Hearts, where they finished 2-3. This included a game where her team was only down 3-2 at the fifth end break against national curling legend Jennifer Jones. Grace will continue her busy schedule representing Manitoba at the upcoming Canadian Juniors in Rouyn, Quebec.

Katrina Frlan was first introduced to the larger curling community before the pandemic when she launched her own YouTube channel called The Lazy Handle Show, where she interviewed some of the top curlers in the world. A few years later, it was her turn to be in the on-ice spotlight as she represented Ontario as the skip of her team from Carp, a 30-minute drive outside Ottawa. Katrina and her team missed the playoffs but won their final two games in the consolation round to finish the event with a record of 4-4.

On the local front, young Leanna Delich of Timmins was being driven to school on Wednesday morning when she received a call that she would need to step in for Team Toner of Northern Ontario, who were short a player due to illness. Instead of math class, Leanna soon found herself on the ice, competing in a national championship.

It likely felt like a surreal 24 hours for Leanna as just a few hours earlier, she and her U18 team from Timmins, who had fallen just short of qualifying for this championship themselves, had shared some practice ice with Brad Gushue.

Every team in Timmins seemed to have an interesting story above and beyond the fact they had qualified for a national. For many young athletes, the event is a stepping stone on a path that will one day see them compete for Brier or Scotties titles. For others, the U18s will be the highlight of their curling careers, and Timmins will be their one shining moment as they pursue other paths away from the curling club.

More than anything, these young athletes demonstrated to curling fans both on site at the McIntyre Community Centre and those tuning in via livestream that many great young curlers are developing throughout Canada, and that the future is bright.