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This article was published 09/12/2024 (312 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Reid Carruthers and Derek Samagalski curled together for parts of 14 seasons.

The duo from Winnipeg began their curling careers with each other in CurlManitoba’s men’s league and went on to celebrate accomplishments together for nearly a decade and a half, capturing five Manitoba Men’s Championships, a Canada Cup, a Grand Slam and qualifying for the Brier on eight occasions.

After spending 10 years on Team Carruthers, Samagalski announced on Nov. 9, he would be leaving the no. 12-ranked curling squad in the world. The 40-year-old never gave a specific reason as to why he left the club, but in a recent interview with the Free Press, Carruthers suggested family may have been a factor in his decision.

“It’s not easy on the World Curling Tour — we have a lot on the go,” said Carruthers. “Derek and I both have families now — we’re not just curlers; we’re dads, so there’s definitely more to life than curling.”

Playing with each other for as long as they had, Carruthers said Samagalski will remain a lifelong friend for what they did on and off the ice together, but that he’s now focused on earning a chance to compete for the ultimate prize.

“Our goal is to get to the Brier,” said Carruthers. “We’re going to do everything from now until then to prepare ourselves for the provincials.” Provincials are the Viterra Championships, which will be held in early February in Portage la Prairie.

A key piece to reaching the Brier’s was filling the shoes left by Samagalski leaving as second on the team. With a roster spot to fill mid-season, finding a replacement in sufficient time was difficult to achieve, but Carruthers managed to do so.

In late November, Carruthers and his squad welcomed Kyle Doering as its newest member before the Grand Slam of Curling (GSOC) National.

“Kyle was the standout candidate for us,” said Carruthers. “I’ve known Kyle for a long time; he’s a very good friend of mine, a talented curler, and a great team guy, so it was a pretty quick decision.”

Affiliated with The Granite Curling Club, the 28-year-old Winnipegger captured a Canadian junior championship and a world junior championship bronze medal as the second for Matt Dunstone’s team in 2016. He also served as an alternate at The Brier in 2022 for Mike McEwen’s team, of which Carruthers was a member.

Doering has yet to find success at the men’s curling level, but Carruthers said he will be a good fit for the group because of his time availability.

“There’s a lot of great curlers in Winnipeg to choose from, but not everyone can put the time in that is required,” he said. “To find someone like Kyle, who lives in Winnipeg to practise with, has the ability to manage a job, and compete on the road and be away from home is a huge plus for us.”

Carruthers (skip), Doering (second), Catlin Schneider (third), and Connor Njegovan (lead) threw the stones together for the first time at the GSOC in St. John’s, N.L. The tournament featured the top 16 teams in the world and saw Team Carruthers notch a 1-3 record.

They prevailed in the first game and lost three consecutive after that, failing to qualify for the playoffs.

Carruthers said his team’s performance was in part due to a lack time spent practising together.

“We haven’t worked with each other the whole curling season, so there’s some catch-up to do,” Carruthers said. “We’re up against teams that have played together not just for this year, but two or three years already — chemistry is obviously a big factor.”

He said by the time January rolls around; his group will have had enough games and practices where it will feel like a seamless transition.

“There’s a renewed energy to want to go out there and get at it again — that’s all you can really hope for,” said Carruthers.