McEwen gets it done

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 10/03/2016 (3725 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA — It’s been a week of firsts for Brier rookie Mike McEwen.

And he just added another one — his team’s first Brier playoff appearance.

McEwen clinched a spot in Saturday’s Page playoff 3 vs 4 game with a nail-biting 8-5 victory over Quebec’s Jean-Michel Ménard Thursday night in which an eighth-end four-ender for Manitoba saved the night.

The win over Quebec improved Manitoba’s round-robin record to 7-3 — they lost earlier Thursday, 8-5 to Northern Ontario — and that means they will now face Alberta’s Kevin Koe in the 3-4 game.

“That was a tough day — nothing came easy for us,” said Manitoba third B.J. Neufeld after a long day. “We really struggled with the ice, especially in our first game. And we lost our draw weight. But we battled through it, and we’re in the playoffs.”

Friday night’s Page playoff 1 vs. 2 game will feature a still-undefeated Northern Ontario team taking on a Newfoundland foursome that has been beaten just once all week.

The winner of that game will advance straight to Sunday’s Brier final, while the loser will get a second chance in Saturday night’s semifinal against the winner of Manitoba-Alberta.

Teams at this event always come in with two goals. McEwen has now achieved the first one — making the playoffs.

But it’s the second one that is always the bigger challenge — winning the bar brawl that is the Brier playoffs by being the last man standing Sunday night.

And that promises to be a particular challenge this weekend for a Manitoba team with three losses that have — perhaps not coincidentally — come to the same three teams that are joining them in the playoffs.

Is that relevant? Sure, says Neufeld. “It means we can still beat everyone in this bonspiel,” Neufeld grinned.

While that may sound like false bravado, consider this statistic: three of the last six Brier champions have come through the 3-4 game, including last year with Pat Simmons.

If Manitoba is going to pull off the same trick, this McEwen team is going to have to do it while playing an unfamiliar role — the underdog.

One of the top cash-spiel teams in the world for the last five years, McEwen and his foursome — Neufeld, second Matt Wozniak and lead Denni Neufeld — are one of the favourites to win any event they enter and are usually playing from a position of strength.

‘That was a tough day — nothing came easy for us. We really struggled with the ice, especially in our first game’– Manitoba third B.J. Neufeld

So can Tom Brady suddenly pretend he’s just an aw-shucks underdog and fly under the Brier radar?

“The fans love to root for underdogs,” said McEwen with a laugh. “And I don’t mind a bit being viewed as the underdog. Because I know what we’re capable of and I don’t view ourselves as an underdog.

“I know our best is equal to those other three teams’ bests. It’s just a deck of cards now — can you pull an ace when the other guy pulls a king?”

It was Alberta with the ace during the round robin against Manitoba — Koe hammered McEwen 9-4 back in Draw 7.

Koe finished his round robin last night with an 8-3 record, and that means even if McEwen wins his final round-robin game over P.E.I. this morning, the result will be meaningless — Alberta will still get the hammer in the 3-4 game.

So what does McEwen hope to get out of one final meaningless round-robin game today? “It’s practice. It’s about going through the reps and making some good throws. Because the more we can adapt to this ice and how it’s been changing with the weather, the better prepared we’re going to be.”

❚ LOOSE HAIRS: Brier veteran and Ottawa resident Craig Savill, who’s battling cancer, was inserted into the Ontario lineup Thursday night as an “honorary alternate,” throwing two rocks to a standing ovation before leaving the game.

paul.wiecek@freepress.mb.caTwitter: @PaulWiecek