Sluchinskis stay in hunt for national curling medal
Husband-wife team advanced to playoffs at Canadian mixed doubles tournament
Fresh off a bittersweet Brier performance, Airdrie's Aaron Sluchinski wanted more from this week's national curling effort than he got from the high-profile one a fortnight ago in Regina — that being at least a berth in the playoff round.
And so he got that and more alongside wife Amanda, at the Canadian mixed doubles championship in Fredericton, N.B.
“It would have been hard to go to mixed doubles a couple of days after the Brier,” Sluchinski said. “A week after the Brier, it was the right amount of time to get turned around and get ready to play mixed doubles.
“I am definitely excited to play in it with Amanda.”
They were more excited after securing a berth in the playoff round and getting a victory in play-in action early Thursday.
Though the Sluchinski squad — representing Alberta as provincial champion — lost its final round robin game late Wednesday to fall to 4-3 in the standings, the duo earned a spot to advance into the playoffs thanks to a tiebreaker.
The Sluchinskis were one of three teams in Pool B action to keep moving forward with their adventure at the nationals.
Then came the play-in draw and a 6-4 victory for Alberta's champions over Andrea Kelly and Tyler Tardi to move onto quarterfinal action later Thursday against Edmonton's Laura Walker and Kirk Muyres.
Indeed, the playoff picture became clear Wednesday.
The duos of Walker and Muyres, and Kadriana and Colton Lott, capped their preliminary rounds with 7-0 records to top their respective pools. They all earned byes to Thursday evening's quarters.
Taylor Reese-hansen and Corey Chester (6-1) and Paige Papley and Evan Van Amsterdam (5-2) also topped their pools to claim quarterfinal byes. Edmonton's Papley was the lead for Alberta's Selena Sturmay rink at the Scotties.
The remaining eight teams to advance from the field of 32 were determined by records and lastshot draws to break ties.
They included Madison Kleiter and Rylan Kleiter, Steve Laycock and Nancy Martin — who topped the Sluchinskis 7-5 late Wednesday — Kelly and Tardi and Calgary's Jocelyn Peterman and Brett Gallant — all at 5-2.
The Sluchinskis, Jim Cotter and Jaelyn Cotter, Riley Sandham and Brendan Craig, and Lisa Weagle and John Epping, all 4-3, also moved on to Thursday afternoon's play-in round.
The husband and wife team of Brent Laing and Jennifer Jones, who have several Canadian and world titles between them in team curling, finished outside the playoffs with a 3-4 record.
Sunday's winner represents Canada at the world championship April 20-27 in Ostersund, Sweden.
The national gold, silver and bronze medallists earn berths to Canada's Olympic trials Dec. 30, 2024, to Jan. 4, 2025, in Liverpool, N.S.
Peterman and Gallant, now based in Calgary, are experienced domestically and internationally, having won national mixed doubles titles in 2016 and 2019 and a world silver medal in 2019. That team advanced to quarters action as well with a 7-6 extra-end edge of Sandham and Craig in play-in action, pitting them against Papley and van Amsterdam in Thursday's later draw.
Walker and Muyres claimed a Canadian championship in 2018 and a bronze medal at the world championship that year.
The Lotts have twice been runner-up at the Canadian championship (2018, 2021).
The Sluchinskis are looking for their first national medal.