2008 Brier - 7th End - Alberta 4 Ontario 2 - Substitute calledin for coverage

In the last end, some statistical profundities were cited to suggest that Alberta's situation, leading by one after 5 ends with the hammer, gives them an advantage. Wow - I am glad they have experts who can dig that data out. A fine use of my tax money.

I do not seem to recall this sort of thing in the TSN coverage.

Doc has passed the hammer to me so I will cover the seventh end. Things so far have not gone as expected. All the playoff rounds until now have been mostly characterized by simply great ice reading and play, and have featured an occasional really great shot (Howard taking 3 in one end through a tiny port to beat Ursel) or terribly bad luck, the Simmons apparent pick against Martin in his final end. And nothing could have been more classic than the Simmons-Howard match yesterday, finished with a forced draw by Howard to the four-foot to win. The best word I can find to describe this so far is 'goofy'.

I am hoping the CBC statistical staff can be assembled now, as they are on an election night, to project the result of this match, Alberta now up 2 with Howard having the hammer.

In the intermission Pat Simmons reports that you can't afford to have bad breaks go your way against Alberta. Well, yeah.

So again we missed lead shots thanks to the CBC. Two Alberta rocks in the house, an Ontario corner guard and an Ontario rock behind that in the back of the house.

Kennedy removes the Ontario guard and one of the Alberta rocks in the house, leaving a rock offset in front of the Ontario rock. Laing first shot dives, now in the 12-foot just off the center-line.

Kennedy removes the remaining Ontario shot in the back of the house. We have Ontario at 11:45 at the front of the 12-foot, at the front of the house. Alberta with two rocks a little farther in the house. OK they are now at the front of the four-foot at 1, at 3 in the 8 foot and the Ontario rock is now at 2 o'clock mid-8 foot. And it just got replaced by a Morris rock, now about 12:45. Still nobody seems sure of the ice or weight at all.

Hart pushes the central Alberta rocks more into the center. Not what he wanted.

Alberta peel the front Ontario rock. Ontario front end want to try to triple out the house and Hart does!! Now we get an exchange of hits and deliberate peel and blank so we go to 8 with Howard down 2 still with the hammer.

(Events may have gone a little quickly for the granularity of detail I struggled for above. :-) )