Summary of Day 1

Team Newfoundland & Labrador

 After an incredibly busy morning we experienced the start of the best, if not the greatest, Canadian Championships so far.

As stated by Danny Lamoureax, Director of Competitions for the Canadian Curling Association, "... last year we thought the bar was set high, Ottawa is going to have to work hard next year to top this year's event."

MB vs. Host

The venue is fully accessible and, as we have experienced so far, the organizing committee has left no stone unturned regarding the attention to detail that is necessary to pull off a great event.

The morning draw saw the traditional powers - British Columbia, Ontario, Alberta and Manitoba - take early control over their opponents.  As well, we saw a couple of games which we hope indicates the growth of some squads that have struggled a bit in the past.

Between draws, a highland band piped in the teams who were welcomed by various dignitaries and politicians. Each of these individuals expressed confidence in the success of the championships due to strong leadership, the large corps of very capable volunteers and the outstanding abilities of the best wheelchair curlers from across Canada.

In the afternoon, Newfoundland and Nova Scotia struggled with their weight in their games against Ontario and Alberta and consequently came out on the wrong end of lopsided scores. The depth of defending champion Manitoba's program is shining despite the adversity of reinvention which they have had to overcome this season. Their game against Northern Ontario is a testament to this. The play of all four members aided in the team scoring in 5 of the 7 ends with multiple point ends in two of them. Two of the games went the distance and one of those needed an extra end to declare a winner.

Are they spelling Quebec

Quebec which was down 6-3 after 6 ends fought back with one in the 7th and a pair in the 8th. In the extra end Lessard, the Quebec skip, could not find the pocket at the button which Bender had accidentally created with a heavy draw and, therefore, Saskatchewan earned the distinction of being the first winner of an extra end game in the championships this year.

 So .... that brings a close to the end of Day 1 with a few small surprises and a lot of aspirations.  Two more draws are on tap for tomorrow with live streaming and blog coverage starting at 1030.