Draw 5

Three of the four undefeated teams are in action tonight. Manitoba is on the next sheet to mine playing PEI, so fa without a win. Newfoundland and Labrador are playing BC on the sheet in front of me, and Saskatchewan play Ontario on the far sheet. In the other game New Brunswick play Yukon/Northwest Territories.

I think I will watch more tonight and post less. That way I can watch the Ontario match on the TV on the desk here too.

Also, my method of figuring out which match was the TSN feature just broke down.

My feature match will be Manitoba's. It might be quite short.

END #1: Manitoba score 2, BC 1, SK steals one, and Y/NT score 3.

END #2. PEI make aa great hit that clears away sveral Manitoba stones in the threatening middle of the end. In an exchange of rocks, Manitoba hit and roll a beauty of a biter behind a guard. PEI take 1.

SK thread the needle with an in-off between two Ontario stones in the house. ON hit and stick for threetwo.

NB take 2.

BC steal 2.

END #3: NL blank. PEI steal one, Y/NT score one. SK get into a freezing match and wind up being forced to draw to the button for one. Which they do.

END #4: NL are forced to draw for one. NB get 2 to tie at 4-4. Stoughton uses some hitting to get Manitoba 45 (no excuse there - it was right in front of me and I can still count to five). SK runback misses and Howard draws to give Ontario 3.

END #5: NL steal 1. Y/NT take one. PEI get one. SK have to settle for one.

END #6: Y/NT blank 6, still ahead 5-4. SK make a great last rock hit and roll in front of an Ontario rock and Ontario blank. NL steal one, but the measurement takes several minutes it is so close. Manitoba take 2 and lead 9-3. Apparently PEI are considering handshakes.

END #7: I note that TSN is seriously back to developing the deductive skills of its viewers by letting them try to figure out how those rocks got where they are at the start of an end when they return from a bout of advertising. I say 'back' because I had the (I am sure mistaken) idea that they weren't doing that in the Scotties. Or maybe they think Brier viewers are smarter than Scotties viewers. Or maybe they couldn't sell as much advertising for the Scotties as for the Brier, which rather suggests the opposite about viewer intelligence.
Ontario and Saskatchewan are playing let's fill the four-foot with rocks and then blow them up game.
PEI score one and shake hands with Manitoba. I was right about the relative length of the games! (Made me wonder how many curling clubs there are in PEI; the web suggests 7, while Winnipeg alone has 18).
Ontario blows 'em up real good for four.
NL steal another and now lead 4-3.
NB get 2 and lead 6-5.

END #8: NB blank.
At 9-3, Glenn Howard brings his son in as lead, who promptly slips on the ice. And then puts a rock pretty much where Dad asked. TSN made sure you missed that. And a second. Saskatchewan shake hands after Ontario steals one..
BC score 2. 5-4 BC. This has been one entertaining match, with some pretty complicated rock configurations, which they both seem to like.

OK I Have seen the light. The guys I call Y/NT (for Yukon/Northwest Territories) do have NT/YT on the back of their jerseys so I will use that spelling; I do not know what it means, but they changed a whole bunch of stuff up there a while ago and I never go there so I did not pay attention.


END #9: NT/YT take 2 and lead 7-6.
Gushue makes a great double, but he needed a triple for the deuce, so takes one to tie it up. They head into 10 tied, with BC having the hammer.

END #10: NB get one so there is a tie at 7-7 and an extra end.
NL center guard. BC push it into the house and become a short guard. NL puts a guard by it. BC miss a tick and the guard is restored. NL put a rock on the button. BC remove all the guards and the shooter. NL is undertime pressure (it is making my neck hurt craning to look back). NL put up a center guard but not center enough. BC hit the rock on the button remove it and stick. NL try to freeze but wreck on the guard. BC remove the NL guard, Skip rocks. NL aim to freeze; comes up short despite very aggressive sweeping. BC does not have a lot of time either and they are talking to the coach. The time pressure is understandable given the style of the play. The coach told them to take the double and they do. NL don't get what they want. BC have a draw to an essentially open house to win. And they make it. So two once-undefeated teams are defeated. Only Manitoba and Alberta are left.

I'm beat so check the web for NB about NT/YT.