News Players' Championship

Some familiar faces are in temporary new places this week during the Players’ Championship in Toronto.

Several teams have called upon super spares for the late-season event whether due to injuries or prior work commitments (plus one team even has a spare coach).

Here’s the 411 on how a few of them came to be:

Pat Simmons, Team Shuster second 

Whoa, before you start yelling “traitor!” like Stormtrooper FN-2199 in Star Wars, two-time Canadian champion Pat Simmons hasn’t gone turncoat to join the Americans.

The Moose Jaw, Sask., native Simmons is filling in for front-ender John Landsteiner on Team John Shuster, the world bronze medallists from Duluth, Minn. Simmons is throwing second with Matt Hamilton moving to lead.

“I was down doing a charity event in Duluth,” Simmons explained. “Of course all of those guys and a lot of U.S. national team members were there. It came up that they needed a person and I’m happy to help.”

It’s been a bit of an adjustment at second for the skip Simmons, who has had to re-learn the art of sweeping for his role.

“That sweeping is tough work, I forgot about that,” he said. “It’s lots of fun. I’m sure I’ll be able to judge again by about game five or so but it’ll be good. It never hurts to get that kind of a workout in and I’ll enjoy it for sure.”

His own team based in Calgary will play their final event together at the season-ending Humpty’s Champions Cup — with second Carter Rycroft and lead Nolan Thiessen stepping back at the end of the year — and Simmons said he’s using the Players’ Championship to help stay in game shape.

“We’re in the last Slam of the year too, and without ice at home, so any extra games we’ll kind of treat it like practice,” Simmons said. “Then obviously if we can help them out at all that’s great.”

Simmons has stuck with his own team uniform so far, but it doesn’t have anything to do with not wanting to wear a Team USA jersey. Rather, it’s simply a sizing problem for the slim and trim Simmons.

“I’m a lot smaller guy,” he said with a laugh. “They’ve got about two sizes on me in jerseys so rather than wear a dress I though I’d do this. I might have to change just for luck by the looks of it so we’ll see how it goes.”

Kristy McDonald, Team Carey vice skip 

When news broke last month that Kristy McDonald was stepping back from competitive curling, there was doubt we’d even see her again in the Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling.

“I didn’t really announce the reason why I was stepping back because it was a little early but I am expecting my second baby,” McDonald said. “Life changes and two small children makes it difficult to tour and travel. I’ve throw it out there to some friends and other teams that I’m hoping to spare from time to time if I can make it work so this is one of those times.”

It didn’t take long for McDonald to find herself back in the series when her former skip Chelsea Carey came calling to help fill in for third Amy Nixon, who couldn’t make it due to work commitments and to spend time with her family, on the reigning Scotties championship team.

“It’s a busy schedule and some people have to manage it with their lives but it happens,” McDonald said.

The Winnipeg native McDonald won the Manitoba provincial title and a bronze medal at the Scotties in 2014 while playing third for Carey. McDonald skipped her own team the past two seasons after Carey headed west to Alberta.

The reunion though has been like clockwork.

“It’s fun, it’s completely natural,” McDonald said. “One or two games and we’re right back in it so it’s good.”

Cathy Overton-Clapham, Team Muirhead vice skip 

Cathy Overton-Clapham is no stranger to the super spare role. The five-time Scotties champ helped Val Sweeting win her first career Grand Slam title at the 2014 Masters.

Now Overton-Clapham is subbing for Anna Sloan, who will miss the rest of the season due to an ACL injury, on Scotland’s Team Eve Muirhead.

“Eve and I are good friends, we chat often and spieling over the years,” said Overton-Clapham, a three-time Players’ winner. “We played together in a spiel years ago in Victoria. I was really lucky and I didn’t want to pass up on the opportunity.”

The call-up meant Overton-Clapham had to cut short a trip to Las Vegas with her family.

“It was my parents’ 50th so the whole family was there and I had to come back a day early,” she said. “But you know what? It’s an opportunity I didn’t think I’d have a chance again so I thought I would accept.”

Bonus Round: Peter Steski, Team Paetz coach 

Not only does Alina Paetz have a spare for the event with Briar Huerlimann filling in at second for the injured Marisa Winkelhausen, but Pinty’s GSOC emcee Peter Steski is pulling double duty this week behind the bench as the Swiss team’s coach.

Paetz praised the assistance of Steski, one of the Original 18 skips in the GSOC series known for his jabs at the players during the intros.

“Actually, he does a really good job,” Paetz admitted. “He figures out all of the rocks, gives us lots of information and his timeouts are pretty good.”