All paths through Gushue!

Reigning champs claim spot in Page 1-2 for third consecutive year at Montana’s Brier

Canada’s Team Brad Gushue’s latest win was a stark reminder to his opponents at the 2025 Montana’s Brier, presented by AGI: any team’s path to winning the Canadian men’s championship must go through the three-time defending champions.

Team Gushue (St. John’s, N.L.) earned its spot in the Page 1v2 game on Friday afternoon in front of a near-capacity 5,154 curling fans at Prospera Place in Kelowna, B.C.

The team’s 7-4 win over Alberta’s Team Brad Jacobs (Calgary) elevated Team Gushue to the Page 1v2 game for the third straight year.

The win served Team Jacobs its first loss of the week. It served as a solid bounceback game for Gushue, third Mark Nichols, second Brendan Bottcher, lead Geoff Walker, alternate Adam Casey and coach Jeff Hoffart, who lost their final round-robin game of the week to Manitoba’s Team Matt Dunstone of Winnipeg on Thursday.

“Yeah, it was patience, starting out the game without hammer against that team that’s playing really well this week,” said Gushue. “We knew we just had to be patient and limit the mistakes. It’s hard to be perfect, but if we could flip the hammer in six, seven or eight, that was kind of the situation we knew we were going to be in. I really expected it to be tied up coming home, or one down with coming home.”

Patience was a virtue, as it wasn’t until the seventh end that Canada could breathe a little easier. After trading singles through the first six ends, Canada stole a single in the seventh when Jacobs missed an in-off to score multiple points.

It was the first loss of the event for Team Jacobs, which will now need to qualify for the Page 3v4 game later Friday at 6:30 p.m. (all times Pacific) against Nova Scotia’s Team Owen Purcell.

“Brad Gushue just proved why he’s Brad Gushue,” said Jacobs following the game. “I think he probably curled 100 per cent. I don’t think he missed a shot, and their whole team played really well. We got outplayed, and especially late in the game, which is too bad. But you know what? Chins up, we’re not out of the Brier yet.”

Canada kept Alberta to a single point in the eighth. Gushue’s last draw was swept just far enough by Nichols and Walker to nibble the top-four foot, which kept Team Jacobs to a score of one and tie game. In the ninth, Alberta attempted a freeze on its last shot but couldn’t lock it on, which led to a Canada soft tap for three.

“We got pretty fortunate there in the ninth to crack the three to make it a little less stressful in the last end. But a heck of a game,” said Gushue. “There was a lot of really good shots. Very high calibre. Hopefully the people at home enjoyed watching it, because we certainly enjoyed playing it.”

In the other Page 1v2 qualifier, Manitoba’s Team Dunstone secured its spot in the Page 1v2 game for the first time since 2023. Team Dunstone made a meticulous pick to score two in the sixth end and stole another point in the eighth en route to a 6-5 win over Saskatchewan’s Team Mike McEwen (Saskatoon). 

“I think that set the tone,” Dunstone said of the pick for two. “We have a two-point lead going into the seventh end. That’s kind of when you start thinking about even-odd ends, that sort of thing. That was a big shot in that game and those are the moments I live for. It’s awesome when those moments present themselves at this very special event.”

Team Canada and Team Manitoba-Dunstone will clash in the Page 1-2 game Saturday at 6:30 p.m., with the winner moving to Sunday’s gold-medal game and the loser dropping to Sunday morning’s semifinal against the winner of the Page 3-4 playoff, which is set for Saturday at 12:30 p.m.

Team McEwen will be back on the ice at 6:30 p.m. to take on Manitoba’s Team Reid Carruthers of Winnipeg in the Page 3v4 qualifier.

Live scoring, standings and statistics for the 2025 Montana’s Brier are available at www.curling.ca/scoreboard/.

TSN and RDS2 will provide complete coverage of the 2025 Montana’s Brier. CLICK HERE for the complete schedule.

For ticket information for the 2025 Montana’s Brier, go to www.curling.ca/2025brier/tickets/

This story will be available in French as soon as possible at www.curling.ca/2025brier/nouvelles/?lang=fr