'Impossible to replace Brad Gushue': Iconic skip set for final Brier playoffs

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — Brad Gushue had just handed the reigning Olympic champions their first loss at the Brier and, like he always does as he leaves the ice, the skipper posed for selfies with fans who put their faces right up next to his. He signed dozens of autographs — including on a box containing a figurine of himself doing a fist pump — and then he waved goodbye, with a smile.

It’s par for the course here at Mary Brown’s Centre, where all week long, Gushue has been the biggest star on the Rock. Everybody wants a piece of him.

That’s no shock, and neither is all the emotion, stress and nerves Gushue has been feeling at this event.

But as Gushue reflects on the Brier so far, which has seen his Team Newfoundland and Labrador go on an undefeated run with eight straight wins, he points out something else, too: “I’ve had a lot more fun this week than I expected.” 

It’s a pleasant and well-deserved surprise for the skip who’s about to call it a career after an incomparable run, and in as pressure-cooker of an environment as you could possibly draw up.

Gushue announced last September that he’d be retiring after this season, setting up a potential fairytale finish since his 23rd and final Brier was happening right in his hometown, where there are already streets and a highway named after Gushue and his team, which won Olympic gold 20 years ago.  

On Friday, Gushue opens his final playoff push at the Brier, and no matter when he throws his last Brier rock, whether it’s an early exit or during Sunday’s final, the legacy he leaves behind puts him squarely in the conversation as the Greatest of All Time to play on pebbled ice.

The winningest skip in Brier history, with six Tankards in all, Gushue won everything there is to win on top of that: Olympic gold in 2006, world-championship gold in 2017, Olympic bronze in 2022 and 15 Grand Slam titles.  

“He's forced everyone to keep up,” says Matt Dunstone, the Winnipeg skipper and two-time Brier silver medallist, who’s set to play Gushue to open the playoffs on Friday afternoon. “I think the quality of play of the top Canadian and world teams that you see is largely in part of what he has done over the last 20 years. You're just hanging on for dear life trying to keep up with him because of the bar that he set. I see him as a leader in our sport in every way possible.” 

Adds reigning Olympic champion and Gushue rival Brad Jacobs: “I respect the fact that he's been one of the most passionate, dedicated players that our sport has ever seen, and I know that for a fact. And he's just helped push and raise the bar to new levels throughout his career.”

For all the talk about Gushue this week — and it’s daily, nearly non-stop — fellow Newfoundland skipper Nathan Young has done more than his fair share, and happily so.

“I mean, inspirational, motivational, role model, mentor,” the 23-year-old Young says, rattling off what he views as Gushue’s legacy. “You know, ‘proof’ is a word that I’ve used, because it’s not like he was born with a broom and a curling rock in his hand, right? It was totally built from scratch from Newfoundland, and he became the best in the world. And, you know, it’s not an easy thing to do, but if he can do it, we believe we can do it, and others can do it. So, it’s just proof.” 

Brett Gallant saw that proof firsthand while playing third and mostly second for Gushue over the course of a decade. As Gallant considers what this game looks without his former long-time skip, he shakes his head.

“It’s going to be different,” says Gallant, now the Team Jacobs second, and winner of Olympic gold less than two weeks ago. “He’s the most supported team no matter where we go, it seems, right? Across the country and internationally, he’s got such a following and he’s built such a fan base. I hope all those fans stick around. I don’t mind who they cheer for, but I hope they stick around and are still supporting curling, and whoever their next team becomes.

“But,” Gallant adds, “it’s going to be impossible to replace Brad Gushue.” 

A final Brier in Gushue's hometown provides endless evidence of what Gushue means to this game in his city, the way the arena is packed on a Tuesday afternoon when Gushue, Mark Nichols, Brendan Bottcher and Geoff Walker are in action, but more sparsely smattered for the same day’s evening draw. Players have observed that the round robin felt like two separate bonspiels: Gushue’s Pool A, and the much quieter Pool B. 

Kevin Koe, the 51-year-old skipper and four-time Brier champion who estimates he’s played against Gushue 100 times, puts it this way of his long-time rival: “I mean, he is curling in Newfoundland.” 

Nichols, who first teamed up with Gushue in 1998, won’t ponder what his life will be like without Gushue as his skip just yet. They’re busy trying to win another Brier, which would mean they’d represent Canada later this month at world championships, extending Gushue’s career.

“You reminisce and you think about all those special moments, and we’re still having them, so I don’t want to think about what’s next right now, because I really want to enjoy these last few games,” Nichols says. “And we are still trying to win, and if we win then we’ve got more games, and that’s kind of what’s the cool part about it. We have a bit of control of our own destiny right now.”

If Team Gushue keeps its undefeated run going with a win over Manitoba’s Dunstone, it'll advance to Saturday’s Page 1-2 playoff. The winner there goes straight to Sunday night’s final. 

Gallant remembers well the last time the home team played in a Brier final in this building, since he was part of it. That was back in 2017, against Team Canada’s Koe, then the reigning and three-time national champion. 

The pressure was squarely on Gushue and Team Newfoundland to not only deliver in front of hometown fans, but “to get the monkey off our backs and win that first one,” as Gallant describes it. That Brier was the 14th for Brad Gushue, and while he’d won Olympic gold, he’d yet to have his name etched on the Tankard as a national champion, and was a two-time silver medallist. 

Tied through nine in that final, Gushue had hammer in 10, and he scored the winning point with his last rock.  

“I just remember when the final shot stopped, it was like popping a cork on a bottle of champagne — everything just exploded,” Gallant says, with a grin. “The emotions and the crowd, and everybody was feeling that. It’s probably one of my fondest curling memories, to this day.” 

That’s no small thing for a curler who just won Olympic gold. Gallant and his Team Jacobs are also reigning champions of this event, and they open their playoffs Friday afternoon against Koe. 

“To be back here in the same building — I know we’re on the other side of it, but you hear the roars. Like, you’re already hearing them, before the playoffs,” Gallant says. “The fans are really excited, you know, they want Brad (Gushue) to close out with one more — and we just want to prevent that.” 

Every team in contention wants the same, but they’re in the small minority as they play on Gushue’s home ice. 

“It’ll be sad this week after he throws his last rock — hopefully it’s way at the end and it’s for the win,” Young says. 

Adds Nichols: “Eventually, yeah, it’ll come to an end, but we can certainly prolong this a little bit more. We’re going to do our best to try to prolong this, just a little bit longer.” 

Gushue knows as the playoffs get going, he’ll feel more of the stress and nerves and emotion that he knew would be present this week. The emotion comes in waves, like during a break in a game, when he hears the Newfoundland song, Islander, play over the arena’s speakers, and then takes a moment to look around at the sold-out crowd. 

“I have really enjoyed this,” Gushue says.