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TSN Senior Reporter

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It was a strange and yet also perfect situation for Mike McEwen and his Winnipeg team.

As they stepped on to the ice in the provincial final for the fifth time in the past six years, they had already secured a trip to the Tim Hortons Brier.

In a weird twist, McEwen’s rink, which had become known for being the best never to make it to the big dance, faced Matt Dunstone’s squad that had already announced it wasn’t going to play in the Brier if it won.

It was essentially a free pass to the Canadian championship.

However to ensure they not only got the trip, but the Purple Hearts that went along with it, McEwen used his final rock to make a silky little tap back on a stone sitting on the button, hidden behind cover to score one and claim a 3-2 victory.

The odd circumstances resulted when Dunstone led his team to the Manitoba final. Last month, he and his rink of Colton Lott, Kyle Doering and Rob Gordon won the Canadian Junior championship, which gave them a berth in the world final. That global tilt is being played the same week as the Brier and Dunstone made no secret of his intent to represent Canada no matter how he fared in the provincial championship.

McEwen knocked off defending Manitoba champion Reid Carruthers on Saturday night in the page-playoff game, giving him a spot in Sunday afternoon’s final. When Dunstone beat Carruthers on Sunday morning in the semi, it not only pushed his junior rink into final, but made that a lame duck contest, as far as a Brier berth was concerned.

Some might wonder why Dunstone would play in a provincial final if he wasn’t planning on attending the Brier.

First off, there is no age restriction on entering so that wasn’t a factor. Dunstone is 20, while the other three players are 19.

Second, the rink entered the Brier playdowns before winning the Canadian Junior. It was well on its way to reaching the provincial men’s final before it claimed the national junior crown in Stratford, Ont., on Jan. 31, setting up the conflict.

And third, there was more at stake than just a Brier berth. The winner of the Manitoba crown earns points in the Canadian Team Ranking System, which is used for a variety of purposes including entry to the Canadian Olympic playdowns.

Heading into the Manitoba championship, the Dunstone team was ranked 31st on the CTRS and very much in the Olympic discussion.

All of that was set aside when McEwen and his rink of B.J. Neufeld, Matt Wozniak and Denni Neufeld earned their way to Ottawa where they will wear the Manitoba Buffalo crests for the first time. Not only that, but they’ll arrive as one of the favourites to win the Brier crown.

They’ll face a field deep in talent and experience. It includes Ontario’s Glenn Howard, Brad Gushue of Newfoundland and Labrador, Northern Ontario’s Brad Jacobs, Kevin Koe of Alberta, BC's Jim Cotter, Quebec’s Jean-Michel Menard, Steve Laycock of Saskatchewan, Adam Casey of Prince Edward Island, and Mike Kennedy of New Brunswick.

Defending champion Pat Simmons will play as Team Canada.

A pre-qualifier with Nova Scotia, Northwest Territories, Yukon and Nunavut will take place ahead of the Brier to fill out the final team in the field.