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By Mike McEwen

It began back in March when the Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling series ventured into oil sand country in Northern Alberta. Fort McMurray did not disappoint and held an entertaining event in more ways than one!

Mild temperatures and a leaky arena roof created havoc on the ice surface. Play was suspended from the arena and overnight in heroic fashion the host committee was able to drape the ceiling in ribbons of tarps from end to end. Meanwhile, the ice crew worked tirelessly to prep the attached curling club ice where draws were held until the arena was deemed playable and safe again from the threats of an unwanted overhead shower. In the end, we witnessed Team Glenn Howard emerge victorious over Team Brad Gushue with a tough final last rock draw needing better than full four foot and Howard and team did not disappoint as they skillfully placed it on the pin.

From there the Grand Slam took a hefty journey in April to finish out the 2013-14 season with the Players’ Championship landing in Summerside, P.E.I. Two story lines dominated play and as they unfolded fans were treated to a rich viewing experience.

First, Team Rachel Homan had earned a chance at $100,000 bonus dollars after winning the first women’s Grand Slam of the season (the Masters) and working their way into the final of the Players’. It became a battle of Canadian titans as Team Jennifer Jones took on Team Homan. Down two with hammer in the eighth and final end, Homan attempted an upweight across the house double with her last stone. Had she made the double and stuck her shooter it could have been for three and a huge come-from-behind win topped by the largest bonus ever in curling history of $100,000! However, it was not to be as the target missed by mere inches and the recently crowned 2014 Olympic gold medallists of Team Jennifer Jones completed a defining career season and claimed the championship.

The men’s headline of the week was Team Kevin Martin making its last appearance as a squad and Kevin Martin announcing this as his final event before retirement and entrance into the Sportsnet broadcast booth. As it would be Kevin the Ol’ Bear Martin as they call him would take on the young and newly crowned Olympic gold medallists Team Brad Jacobs. In emotional style the grizzly veteran won the day as Martin placed his final stone perfectly on the tee line to seal the victory and etch a final mark in the record books — Grand Slam championship No. 18!

Ensuing was a spring/summer break that saw lineup after lineup change and so the fall season began with many questions after all the ‘musical chairs’! To answer some of the initial queries, the Masters opened the Grand Slam season at the end of October in Selkirk, Manitoba. On the ladies side Team Val Sweeting would have to persevere over very recent roster changes (they had to get a spare for this event!), a tough European foe in Team Margaretha Sigfridsson of Sweden, and the time clock ticking down as Sweeting would need to call her final timeout with just 15 seconds left to throw. Fittingly, Team Sweeting triumphed with a difficult game-winning hit and stick versus opposition counters.

On the men’s side we witnessed a shot of a lifetime and the first of three hometown/provincial favourites fail to win in Grand Slam finals this fall. Team Brad Gushue weathered the storm after Team Mike McEwen made one of the most brilliant shots for four you will ever see! The incredible shot extended the final match which ultimately saw Gushue execute a nice double to hold onto victory.

Three weeks later the National was hosted by Sault Ste Marie, Ontario, with big hopes that Team Brad Jacobs would win their first Grand Slam title on local soil. In front of a loud and supportive crowd, home advantage would fail again for the men as Jacobs was unable to pull off a tough angle double runback to send the game into extra time. The see-saw battle ended with Team Mike McEwen claiming redemption from their Masters loss only a few weeks earlier and notched their team’s fourth Grand Slam career title with the National win.

Next came the Canadian Open in December and an event that for its first time featured both a men’s and women’s field. Hosted and supported brilliantly by Yorkton, Saskatchewan, we were treated to more outstanding performances.

On the ladies side, two of the very best young women’s teams went toe to toe — Canada’s own Team Rachel Homan and Scotland’s Team Eve Muirhead. Muirhead topped off an excellent performance with a final stone draw to the button for the championship. In the men’s, hometown favourite Team Steve Laycock took on Team Brad Gushue in a scrappy affair. In the end, it was third time unlucky for the local team as Gushue grinded out a impressive Grand Slam win with two brilliant final shots by their skipper. Perseverance and grittiness that began for Team Gushue in their last qualification chance and extended into each and every playoff victory was very notable for the worthy victors.

Looking forward to 2015 as Sportsnet has the most extensive coverage on provincial playdowns for both men and women. Hopefully my team and I will see you on the tube as our own Manitoba provincials begin early Feb. 4-8 and many of the women’s provincials are scheduled in January just a couple weeks prior. Then in March 19-22 it’s an exciting new format of match play for the Elite 10 men’s Grand Slam in Fort McMurray, Alberta. Following the Easter holiday weekend in early April 7-12 the very best of this season’s men’s and women’s curling teams will be back on the ice in the old Maple Leaf Gardens (Mattamy Athletic Centre) in downtown Toronto for the Players’ Championship!