News Players' Championship

It’s last call for several teams at the Players’ Championship.

The fourth and final stop of the Grand Slam of Curling season, which starts Tuesday night in Summerside, P.E.I., not only caps the 2013-14 season but also the end of a quadrennial Olympic cycle. A free-agent frenzy is upon us as teams have already begun planning the four-year road to the 2018 Pyeongchang Games with more roster shakeups expected in the off-season. Throw in some retirement and sabbatical rumours as well and we could be seeing completely different lineups at the next Grand Slam event in the fall.

With all of that in mind, here’s a rundown on the 12 teams in the running for the Players’ Championship.

Team Edin

Lineup: Niklas Edin (skip), Sebastian Kraupp (third), Fredrik Lindberg (second), Viktor Kjell (lead) | Hometown: Karlstad, Sweden | Order of Merit rank: 6th

Masters: Lost to Howard in quarterfinals | Canadian Open: Missed playoffs | National: Missed playoffs (Lost to Koe in tiebreakers) 

The Sochi Olympic bronze medallists attempt to recreate the magic that took them to the Players’ Championship final in 2011. Edin will also look to rebound from a disappointing finish at the Syncrude National. Team Edin led 4-2 after five ends in the tiebreaker match against Team Koe but the Calgary club rallied with a point in the sixth and single steals in the seventh and eighth ends to win 5-4 and clinch the final playoff spot.

Team Epping

Lineup: John Epping (skip), Travis Fanset (third), Patrick Janssen (second), Tim March (lead) | Hometown: Toronto | Order of Merit rank: 14th (as Team Kean)

Masters: Did not participate (Team Kean) | Canadian Open: Lost to Stoughton in quarterfinals (Team Kean) | National: Missed playoffs (Team Fanset)

Former Team Kean members Fanset, Janssen and March have added experienced skip Epping for this tournament. They could be a wild card and don’t forget Epping took home the Players’ Championship as the lowest-ranked seed in 2012, the last time the event was held in Summerside, P.E.I.

Team Gushue

Lineup: Brad Gushue (skip), Brett Gallant (third), Adam Casey (second) and Geoff Walker (lead) | Hometown: St. John’s, N.L. | Order of Merit rank: 7th

Masters: Did not participate | Canadian Open: Runner-up to Koe | National: Runner-up to Howard

Gushue received a surprising home-crowd ovation at the Syncrude National in Fort McMurray, Alta., and the 2006 Olympic gold medallist will once again be the fan favourite at the Players’ Championship in Summerside. Gallant and Casey are both from P.E.I. The rebuilding team has reached the final in the past two Grand Slam events, perhaps the third time is the charm?

Team Howard

Lineup: Glenn Howard (skip), Wayne Middaugh (third), Brent Laing (second), Craig Savill (lead) | Hometown: Penetanguishene, Ont. | Order of Merit rank: 2nd

Masters: Champions | Canadian Open: Lost to Koe in semifinals | National: Champions

The defending champion Howard has claimed three of the past four Grand Slams. The loss to Koe at the Canadian Open not denied a chance at completing a Tiger Slam (hold all four majors at once) but also a shot at the $1-million Grand Slam bonus if his team was able to sweep the four-event series this season. The Players’ Championship will be the last major event for this group: Jon Mead and Richard Hart will join Howard and Savill next season with Laing linking up with Koe and Middaugh opting to step back.

Team Jacobs

Lineup: Brad Jacobs (skip), Ryan Fry (third), E.J. Harnden (second), Ryan Harnden (lead) | Hometown: Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. | Order of Merit rank: 1st

Masters: Did not participate | Canadian Open: Did not participate | National: Missed playoffs

Team Jacobs made their Grand Slam season debut at the Syncrude National but the Sochi gold medallists had a bit of an Olympic hangover and finished with a 2-3 record. They should be recharged now and aim to rebound from that disappointing performance to try and capture their first Grand Slam title.

Team Koe

Lineup: Kevin Koe (skip), Pat Simmons (third), Carter Rycroft (second), Nolan Thiessen (lead) | Hometown: Calgary | Order of Merit rank: 4th 

Masters: Lost to Martin in quarterfinals | Canadian Open: Champions| National: Lost to Michel in quarterfinals

It’ll be the last hurrah for the reigning Brier champions with Koe linking up with Marc Kennedy, Ben Hebert and Brent Laing next season. Team Koe returns from China after representing Canada in the world men’s curling championship where they finished fourth.

Team Laycock

Lineup: Steve Laycock (skip), Kirk Muyres (third), Colton Flasch (second), Dallan Muyres (lead) | Hometown: Saskatoon | Order of Merit rank: 12th 

Masters: Did not participate | Canadian Open: Missed playoffs| National: Lost to Howard in semifinals

Team Laycock had an impressive run last month at the Syncrude National. They edged Team Stoughton 6-5 in their opening match and handed Team McEwen their first (and only) loss of the tournament in the quarterfinals 5-2. Laycock held his ground against Howard in the semifinals and tied the game 6-6 with a three count in the sixth end, but Howard responded with a score of four in the seventh that was too much to overcome.

Team Martin

Lineup: Kevin Martin (skip), Marc Kennedy (third), David Nedohin (second), Ben Hebert (lead) | Hometown: Edmonton| Order of Merit rank: 8th

Masters: Runner-up to Howard | Canadian Open: Lost to Gushue in quarterfinals| National: Lost to Howard in quarterfinals

A fond farewell to this edition of Team Martin. Kennedy and Hebert, who won gold with Martin at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, are moving on to join Team Koe in the fall. Martin has won a record 17 Grand Slam events, including seven Players’ Championship titles, although it’s been three years since his most recent title. Kennedy has moved up from second to third in preparation for his new role with Koe.

Team McEwen

Lineup: Mike McEwen (skip), B.J. Neufeld (third), Matt Wozniak (second), Denni Neufeld (lead) | Hometown: Winnipeg | Order of Merit rank: 5th

Masters: Missed playoffs | Canadian Open: Missed playoffs (Lost to Rumfeldt in tiebreakers) | National: Lost to Laycock in quarterfinals

It’s safe to say when it comes to the five-rock rule, Mikey likes it. Team McEwen ran the table with a perfect 8-0 record to win the Canadian Open in December 2011 when the free-guard zone was modified for a test run and were on a roll when the rule returned at last month’s Syncrude National finishing 5-0 in the round-robin until losing to Team Laycock in the quarterfinals. Still, a 13-1 record in five-rock rule play isn’t too shabby. Team McEwen is on the path to claim their first Players’ Championship title. They were finalists at last year’s tournament in Toronto but lost a close 4-3 battle after Team Howard nailed a double takeout to score the winning deuce in the final end.

Team Michel

Lineup: Sven Michel (skip), Claudio Paetz (third), Sandro Trolliet (second), Simon Gempeler (lead) | Hometown: Adelboden, Switzerland | Order of Merit rank: 11th

Masters: Lost to Edin in tiebreakers | Canadian Open: Did not participate | National: Lost to Gushue in semifinals

Team Michel was on fire at the Syncrude National and topped Pool A with a 5-0 record in the round-robin including victories over favourites Koe and Howard. They defeated Team Koe again in the quarterfinals but ran into an equally red-hot Team Gushue in the semifinals. It came down to who had the hammer in the final end and unfortunately for Michel, it was Gushue who was able to score the winning point with last-rock advantage. Michel, who represented Switzerland at the 2014 Sochi Olympics, will look to build on his team’s best Grand Slam performance heading into the Players’ Championship.

Team Murdoch

Lineup: David Murdoch (skip), Greg Drummond (third), Scott Andrews (second) and Michael Goodfellow (lead) | Hometown: Aberdeen, Scotland | Order of Merit rank: 16th

Masters: Lost to Stoughton in quarterfinals| Canadian Open: Did not participate | National: Did not participate

Team Murdoch missed the past two Grand Slam events but the Sochi Olympic silver medallists had a strong showing at the Masters. They finished second in Pool B with a 3-1 record in round-robin play including wins over McEwen and Michel.

Team Stoughton

Lineup: Jeff Stoughton (skip), Jon Mead (third), Reid Carruthers (second) and Mark Nichols (lead)| Hometown: Winnipeg | Order of Merit rank: 3rd

Masters: Lost to Howard in semifinals | Canadian Open: Lost to Gushue in semifinals | National: Missed playoffs

Stoughton was stunned when his team fell short at the Syncrude National with a 2-3 record but look for a bounce back at their swan song tournament as they go their separate ways at the end of the season. Mead heads one province east to join Team Howard while Carruthers will return to skipping his own squad. As for Stoughton, he put the retirement rumours to rest when he told Sportsnet during the Syncrude National broadcast he plans to continue playing next season.