With the 2025 Montana’s Canadian Curling Trials quickly approaching, TSN.ca will profile one men’s team and one women’s team each day before the first rocks fly on Nov. 22 at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax.
Team Matt Dunstone
Lineup
Skip: Matt Dunstone (Age 30)
Third/Vice-Skip: Colton Lott (30)
Second: E.J. Harnden (42)
Lead: Ryan Harnden (39)
Coach: Caleb Flaxey
Curling Club: Granite Curling Club in Winnipeg
2025-26 Season
Events: 6 Record: 26-9 World Ranking: 2nd
Highlights: Team Dunstone has had a great season, beating Scotland’s Team Ross Whyte in the final of the Masters on the Grand Slam circuit and Team Brad Jacobs in the PointsBet Invitational final. They also made the Tour Challenge Grand Slam final and the Lake Tahoe final, losing to Scotland’s Team Bruce Mouat on both occasions.
How They Qualified
Qualified via Canadian Team Ranking System (CTRS) after losing 2025 Montana’s Brier final to Team Brad Jacobs.
Trials Schedule
Nov. 22 – John Epping
Nov. 23 – Jordon McDonald
Nov. 24 – Rylan Kleiter, Brad Gushue
Nov. 25 – Kevin Koe
Nov. 26 – Brad Jacobs, Mike McEwen
Expert Analysis from TSN’s Russ Howard
Team Dunstone will have a successful week at the Canadian Curling Trials if...
“They don’t let the situation get too big and stay in the moment.”
Team Story
Is it Matt Dunstone’s time to take the next step?
The 30-year-old skip, known as The Sheriff, has been on the verge of curling greatness for the past few years, but hasn’t been able to quite get over the hump.
Dunstone lost the 2023 Brier final to Brad Gushue in London and last year’s national championship game to Brad Jacobs in Kelowna.
Things have continued to trend in the right direction as the two-time Canadian junior champ has levelled up considerably since replacing BJ Neufeld for power sweeper E.J. Harnden last December.
Since the Harnden brothers reunited mid-season last year, Team Dunstone is 61-17, winning the opening Grand Slam of the 2025-26 season in September before capturing the PointsBet Invitational a week later in Calgary.
Their efforts since the second half of last season have improved their world ranking to No. 2 and No. 1 in Canada.
The results have been there and so has the experience.
E.J. and Ryan Harnden won the 2013 Olympic Trials alongside Jacobs before capturing gold at the Sochi Olympics.
“I think they’re playing better than anybody.” #RockTalk
— TSN Curling (@TSNCurling) November 19, 2025
The men’s field at #Trials2025 is wide open and Russ Howard feels @TeamMDunstone might be in the best position to stand atop the podium in Halifax despite prior heartbreak.
FULL CHAT: https://t.co/yZIMl0onFH pic.twitter.com/FZqbM0eBNu
Still playing with Jacobs, the Harnden made the 2021 Trials final in Saskatoon where they dropped a close 4-3 contest to Team Gushue.
Dunstone has competed at the past two Trials, posting a 2-6 record in 2017 before going 3-5 four years ago, alongside longtime teammate and friend Colton Lott.
You can tell much winning means to Dunstone given his emotions following the devastating Brier losses and how determined he is to win major events.
“Completely heartbroken for my team,” said Dunstone after last year’s Brier final loss. “I wasn’t good enough for them down the stretch and yeah, I’m just heartbroken for them, but this is a really good group.
“Sometimes winning’s out of your control and what we’re going to focus on is trying to grow as a team.”
Team Dunstone is 3-0 against Team Jacobs this season and 10-3 against Trials teams.
With his skill set and the elite-level team that surrounds him plus the lessons learned from past shortcomings, Dunstone’s time to wear the Maple Leaf on curling’s biggest stage might be here.
