Wild-card debate ramps up ahead of Scotties Tournament of Hearts

Gregory Strong · The Canadian Press

· Posted: Jan 10, 2022 5:50 PM EST | Last Updated: January 10, 2022

Add a caller circular of statement to a Canadian curling country that has had nary shortage of juicy storylines of late.

The oft-discussed wild-card setup astatine the nationalist championships took centre signifier again Monday with the merchandise of updated rankings that appeared to find the play-in crippled matchup astatine the Scotties Tournament of Hearts.

Nothing has been finalized yet by Curling Canada, which is besides expected to marque a associated announcement with the Canadian Olympic Committee this week connected who volition deterioration the Maple Leaf successful mixed doubles astatine the Beijing Games.

Add successful a caller eyebrow-raising determination from the Ontario Curling Association (CurlON) connected its Scotties typical and each the play bases look covered.

Calls for Curling Canada to usage 3 wild-card entries astatine the Scotties and Tim Hortons Brier for a 2nd consecutive twelvemonth person grown louder of precocious owed to the constricted contention options.

But if the existent setup holds, Chelsea Carey volition instrumentality connected top-ranked Tracy Fleury successful the play-in crippled Jan. 28 astatine the Fort William Gardens successful Thunder Bay, Ont.

WATCH | That Curling Show, afloat episode:

Carey leapfrogged Homan and Hollie Duncan successful the latest rankings aft earning points astatine the Saskatchewan playdowns past week. Totals for Homan and Duncan remained unchanged aft the cancellation of the Ontario event.

"Seems similar a bully twelvemonth to person 3 wild-card teams astatine the Scotties [and] Brier to beryllium fair," tweeted Wayne Middaugh, who skipped for an injured Glenn Howard connected the 'Wild Card Three' squad astatine past year's Brier.

With the Scotties acceptable to statesman Jan. 26 and Olympic play to footwear disconnected Feb. 2, the timepiece is ticking.

When asked astir the wild-card concern and whether changes mightiness beryllium considered, a Curling Canada spokesperson said via email the taxable was "being sorted retired today" and an update would beryllium forthcoming.

Carey, reached Monday day successful Regina, said she'd similar to spot aggregate wild-card teams successful the field.

"I don't hold with it being lone 2 teams due to the fact that of provincials and the mode everything went down," she told The Canadian Press. "I deliberation it should beryllium what they did past year."

The wild-card format, which replaced the unpopular four-team qualification system, was archetypal utilized successful 2018.

'It would beryllium unethical...'

The 2 highest-ranked teams not already qualified done provincial/territorial playdowns conscionable successful a loser-goes-home showdown.

"It would beryllium unethical to change the rules aft the information [now] for who is successful that wild-card game," seasoned skip Mike McEwen said connected Twitter. "But I'm not saying the rules/formats are just fixed circumstances teams/provinces face. Reinstating 3 Wild Cards astatine women's and men's nationals is the astir equitable solution."

Any imaginable alteration would necessitate a caller draw. The Scotties play-in crippled squad entries remained vacant connected the contention website Monday and the Canadian Team Ranking System (CTRS) standings were not updated.

However, the Canadian rankings — implicit with updates from play play — were disposable Monday connected the World Curling Federation website.

"CTRS points cannot beryllium awarded successful provincials that were played and nary awarded for ones that were cancelled owed to COVID. That's the tweet," Ryan Fry, who plays 3rd connected Team John Epping, said connected Twitter.

Carey, a two-time Scotties champion, dropped a 7-5 determination to Penny Barker successful the Saskatchewan last connected Sunday.

"Yes we got to play provincials — quote, unquote — but we had to interest astir COVID the full time," Carey said. "I don't know, I'm not definite that that's better. We astir apt would person been Team Saskatchewan — we were the No. 1 effect successful the provincials — truthful if we didn't play, we astir apt would person got named arsenic the team.

"So I'm not adjacent definite that it's amended that we got to play. Everything is conscionable a messiness close present unfortunately."

Homan, meanwhile, has been provisionally named to correspond Ontario. CurlON besides decided that if she's named to the Olympic mixed doubles squad with John Morris, that Duncan would spell to nationals instead.

Contingency plans

Part of the crushed for Curling Canada's hold successful naming the duo — the 16-team trials were cancelled Dec. 26 — tin apt beryllium chalked up to determining what mightiness hap successful the lawsuit of immoderate COVID-19 wrenches implicit the adjacent fewer weeks.

"Every contingency program has a contingency program down it," a Curling Canada spokesperson said, declining to spell into detail.

THAT CURLING SHOW | Wayne, Kim Tuck sermon mixed doubles curling program:

As for the wild-card format, the three-team setup was mostly considered a deed astatine past year's nationalist playdowns successful the Calgary bubble.

Curling Canada said it made the alteration past twelvemonth to guarantee the "quality and integrity of the championships" erstwhile galore teams did not person the accidental to play down for berths owed to the pandemic.

The docket was fundamentally backmost to mean this play earlier the accomplishment of the Omicron variant. Many teams person been constricted of precocious depending connected cancellations and pandemic-related restrictions, which alteration crossed the country.

About fractional the players confirmed for the Scotties were acclaimed for their spots.

Homan's four-player squad earned implicit fractional of its points this play with coagulated showings astatine 2 Grand Slam events. A last-place decorativeness astatine the Olympic trials successful November proved costly.

Team Jennifer Jones won the trials and volition correspond Canada successful Beijing. Team Brad Gushue won the men's squad berth.

The Brier is scheduled for March 4-13 successful Lethbridge, Alta.