Jan 30, 2017
Stage is set for high stakes curling at Pinty's Skins Game in Banff
The Pinty's All Star Curling Skins Game returns to beautiful Banff, AB, for a fourth consecutive year, this time with a little European flair in the mix. Here's you what you need to know for one of the biggest events on the curling calendar.
The Pinty's All-Star Curling Skins Game returns to beautiful Banff, AB, for a fourth consecutive year, this time with a little European flair in the mix.
For the first time, Sweden's Niklas Edin and Eve Muirhead of Scotland will join the Canadian rinks and attempt to claim as much of the $100,000 in prize winnings as possible.
Defending champions Brad Jacobs and Jennifer Jones will be there alongside notable names such as Brier and world champion Kevin Koe, Mike McEwen, Val Sweeting and Scotties champion Chelsea Carey.
TSN's signature curling event gets underway Friday, February 3 with a semi-final clash between Jones and Carey on TSN 1/3/5 as well as TSN GO.
All games can be seen live on TSN.
Game 1 - Jennifer Jones vs. Chelsea Carey
Friday, February 3 @ 8pm ET/5pm PT on TSN 1/3/5 and TSN GO
Team Jones: Skip Jennifer Jones, third Kaitlyn Lawes, second Jill Officer, lead Dawn McEwen
By The Numbers
| Team Chelsea Carey | Stat | Team Jennifer Jones |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Event Wins | 2 |
| 131.907 (17th) | CTRS Rank | 354.482 (1st) |
| $38,039 (10th) | WCT Rank | $83,897 (1st) |
| 1-3 | Season Record vs. Opponent | 3-1 |
Team Jennifer Jones will be the favourites in this one, despite coming off one of the toughest losses of their time together.
Jones was upset by Team Darcy Robertson in the Manitoba semis and will not qualify for Scotties in St. Catharines. This marks the first time since 2004 that Jones has lost at provincials. Team Jones should be fired up to get back on track and win some money in Banff.
The Olympic champions won the Canada Cup on the Season of Champions schedule and hold the top spot on both the World Curling Tour money list and Canadian Team Ranking System.
Carey beat Jones in last year's Page Playoff 1 vs. 2 game at the Scotties en route to her first Canadian championship. However, Team Carey has struggled a little this season, winning just one of the 10 events they've played. Their victory at the lightly attended Hokkaido Bank Curling Classic is the only time the Calgary rink has made it past the quarter-final stage this season. They posted a 2-4 record at the Canada Cup in Brandon, MB.
Team Jones are the defending champs, beating Val Sweeting in the 2016 final and claiming $54,000 in total winnings. The Winnipegger has won $85,000 in her career at the annual TSN Skins Game.
Carey competed in the 2015 Pinty's Skins Game when she skipped a different rink and lost to Jones in the semis.
Game 2 - Kevin Koe vs. Niklas Edin
Saturday, February 4 @ 11am ET/8am PT on the TSN Network and TSN GO
Team Edin: Skip Niklas Edin, third Oskar Eriksson, second Rasmus Wrana, lead Christoffer Sundgren
By The Numbers
| Team Kevin Koe | Stat | Team Niklas Edin |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Event Wins | 6 |
| 247.888 (7th) | CTRS Rank | NA |
| $58,500 (7th) | WCT Rank | $139,469 (1st) |
| 1-1 | Season Record vs. Opponent | 1-1 |
This matchup is arguably the most anticipated at the Pinty's Skins Game this year.
Team Niklas Edin of Sweden are having the best season out of any rink in curling this season and will make their TSN Skins Game debut in Banff, looking to add to their impressive winnings. Edin, a two-time world champ and Olympic bronze medalist, has won six events this season including two Grand Slams and a European Championship. The 31-year-old Edin and his young crew from Karlstad also made the Canadian Open final in Saskatchewan where they lost to Brad Gushue of St. John's.
Team Kevin Koe, meanwhile, is coming off a terrific season having won both the Canadian and world championships in just their second year together. However, they have struggled at the Grand Slams in 2016-17, qualifying for the playoffs just once in four events. They were also the defending champs at the Canada Cup, but were unable to make it out of the robin round this time around, posting a 2-4 record in Brandon.
It will be interesting to see how this one turns out given the different years these rinks are having.
Game 3 - Val Sweeting vs. Eve Muirhead
Saturday, February 4 @ 3pm ET/12pm PT on TSN 1/4/5 and TSN GO
Team Muirhead: Skip Eve Muirhead, third Anna Sloan, second Vicki Adams, lead Lauren Gray
By The Numbers
| Team Val Sweeting | Stat | Team Eve Muirhead |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Event Wins | 2 |
| 278.879 (4th) | CTRS Rank | NA |
| $58,250 (7th) | WCT Rank | $42,200 (9th) |
| 0-0 | Season Record vs. Opponent | 0-0 |
Like Edin, Scottish skipper Eve Muirhead will make her debut at the TSN Skins Game in Banff.
The 2013 world champion and 2014 Olympic bronze medalist definitely deserves to be there as she's helmed one of the toughest rinks in women's curling for the past five seasons or so. Team Muirhead welcomed lead Lauren Gray to the team this season and have won the Womens Masters Basel and Glynhill Ladies International on the Curling Champions Tour. The foursome also won bronze at the European Championships in November.
For Team Val Sweeting, this will be the third straight year the crew from Edmonton has been invited to the Pinty's All Star Curling Skins Game. In 2015 they fell to Rachel Homan's Ottawa squad in the semi-final and then topped that same team last year thanks to a draw to the button after they played to a tie. Sweeting lost to Jones in the final, but still took home $31,500 in cold hard cash. Overall, Sweeting's rink is having a decent season in 2016-17, but lost in the Alberta final for the second year in a row. They lost a tiebreaker to Winnipeg's Kerri Einarson at the Canada Cup in December.
With Sweeting having Skins game experience under her belt, the Canadian rink might have a slight advantage here, although it’s still anybody's game.
Game 4 - Brad Jacobs vs. Mike McEwen
Saturday, February 4 @ 7pm ET/4pm PT on the TSN Network and TSN GO
Team McEwen: Skip Mike McEwen, third B.J. Neufeld, second Matt Wozniak, lead Denni Neufeld
By The Numbers
| Team Brad Jacobs | Stat | Team Mike McEwen |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Event Wins | 2 |
| 360.302 (3rd) | CTRS Rank | 244.596 (8th) |
| $93,500 (4th) | WCT Rank | $54,994 (8th) |
| 2-1 | Season Record vs. Opponent | 1-2 |
Brad Jacobs and his Sault Ste. Marie rink are no slouches when it comes to the Pinty's Skins Game.
The foursome are two-time defending champions at the lucrative event, having beat Gushue in the final last year and John Morris in 2015. Overall, Team Jacobs has taken home a total of $146,000 over the past two years in Banff. Not too shabby at all.
The rink is having a solid season in 2016-17 after a tough campaign last year which saw them finish third at the Brier following an 11-0 round robin. Team Jacobs have made plenty of money this year, thanks in large part to a victory in their hometown at the National on the Grand Slam circuit. They lost to Steve Laycock in a tiebreaker at the Canada Cup.
On the other hand, Team Mike McEwen, the rink who lost to Jacobs in the bronze medal game at the Brier last year, are coming off a recent win at the Ed Werenich Golden Wrench Classic in Arizona and will look to keep rolling in Banff. The Winnipeg rink has been unable to get past the quarter-final stage at any of the Grand Slams this year and posted a 2-4 record at the Canada Cup, failing to make the playoff round. Team McEwen took home $5,000 at the Pinty's Skins Game last year and $8,500 the year before, falling to Team Jacobs in the semi-final both times.
McEwen is looking for a little revenge in Banff.
Women's Final - Carey/Jones vs. Sweeting/Muirhead
Sunday, February 5 @ 11am ET/8am PT on the TSN Network and TSN GO
Men's Final - Koe/Edin vs. Jacobs/McEwen
Sunday, February 5 @ 3pm ET/12pm PT on the TSN Network and TSN GO
Ready To Rock
Who will win the Pinty's Skins Game on the women's side?