Stoughton’s reaction to P.E.I. loss? Curses!

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 09/03/2009 (6266 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

CALGARY — Look, I’m a big believer that the f-word, used to its maximum advantage, can be a noun, verb, adverb and adjective — sometimes all in the same sentence.

Such ribald talk, in other words, never, ever shocks me. But it did Sunday afternoon — not, mind you, because of what was said; rather, it was who was saying it.

"You useless (insert bad word)," Jeff Stoughton barked at his Manitoba teammates underneath the stands of the Saddledome.

"You need to (insert bad word) work harder. You’re costing us (insert bad word) games out there."

It was language I have never heard Stoughton use in over 10 years of covering his every move. This is a man who, publicly at least, usually blushes at the word ‘darn.’

And it was a tone I have never, ever heard used before with teammates by a man who is famously even-tempered and who long-time lead Steve Gould describes as the most easygoing teammate in the game.

And that was precisely why I reacted to the Manitoba skipper’s profanity-laced tirade the same way as his teammates did — we roared with laughter.

It was, of course, all a put-on by Stoughton, staged for the benefit of a reporter who had stumbled upon the Manitoba team heading for their car following a shocking 6-5 loss to lowly P.E.I.

The sloppy effort dropped previously undefeated Manitoba to 2-1 heading into today and raised serious questions about what kind of threat they pose in a very tough field if they cannot beat a team that was the concensus pick before this event to finish dead last.

And so it would have been precisely the kind of moment when more than a few skips here would have chosen to light up their teammates in pointed language not much different than what Stoughton used in jest.

Indeed, it was exactly the kind of tone Newfoundland skip Brad Gushue hinted he used here Saturday night after his team cratered in the 10th end to gift-wrap a win for Ontario. "I’m not the best loser," said Gushue. "I don’t mind losing if we play well. But when we fold the tent like we did last night, it’s very disappointing.

"I had my moments during the (post-game) meeting where I said what I needed to say."

Stoughton’s teams have always had post-game meetings too — including Sunday. But Stoughton, for all his occasional hubris, is famously patient with teammates and whose default, always, is to get angry with himself, not his teammates.

Stoughton says it’s a laissez-faire attitude that has come with maturity — and seven Brier appearances.

"Raise my voice to teammates? Never. I don’t get mad at teammates," said Stoughton. "It’s just a patience that comes with playing for so long. It’s never easy out there. Everyone is trying their hardest. You’re upset about missing the shot, but you can’t get mad at the guy. He’s trying. If the guys sweep my rock and it’s a foot heavy, it’s not like they were trying to sweep it a foot heavy. Everyone’s trying to make their shots.

"Even if," Stoughton added with a wry smile, "it sometimes doesn’t look like it."

It’s an attitude that keeps the Stoughton team laughing at themselves, even in disappointment like Sunday’s. And the good-natured barbs between the teammates go in both directions.

Which is why moments before Stoughton was calling out his f-ing teammates for not playing too f-ing good, Gould was laughing that his team would have been well served in the loss to P.E.I by the services of a different Manitoba skip.

"We could have used," Gould said, "Jennifer Jones playing for us out there."

No (insert bad word here) kidding.