Montana’s Canadian Curling Trials Profile: Team Jacobs

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 Brad Jacobs

Lineup

Skip: Brad Jacobs (Age 40)

Third/Vice-Skip: Marc Kennedy (43)

Second: Brett Gallant (35)

Lead: Ben Hebert (42)

Coach: Paul Webster

Curling Club: The Glencoe Club in Calgary

2025-26 Season

Events: 5 Record:  27-6 World Ranking: 3rd

Highlights: Team Jacobs won the ATB Okotoks Classic in September and Pan Continental Curling Championship in October, going undefeated on both occasions and edging Team John Shuster of the United States in each final. They also made the PointsBet Invitational final before losing to Team Matt Dunstone, 6-4.

How They Qualified

Qualified as the Canadian Team Ranking System (CTRS) leader for the 2023-24 season.

Trials Schedule

Nov. 22 – Kevin Koe

Nov. 23 – Rylan Kleiter

Nov. 24 – Mike McEwen, Jordon McDonald

Nov. 25 – John Epping

Nov. 26 – Matt Dunstone, Brad Gushue

Expert Analysis from TSN’s Russ Howard

Team Jacobs will have a successful week at the Canadian Curling Trials if...

“They spend less time on strategy and more time on execution. If Brad sees it…let him throw it!”

Team Story

Brad Jacobs and his veteran-laden Calgary foursome could be the team to beat in Halifax.

Team Jacobs has the most Olympic experience out of any of the teams competing at this year’s Trails, as at least one of Jacobs, Marc Kennedy, Brett Gallant and Ben Hebert has represented Canada in the past four Winter Games.

Kennedy and Hebert have played together at two Olympics, winning gold on home soil in 2010 with Kevin Martin, while Jacobs stood atop the podium in 2014 in Sochi. Gallant claimed bronze with Team Brad Gushue four years ago in Beijing.

Team Jacobs was one of the rinks to make major lineup changes in the middle of this quadrennial, cutting Brendan Bottcher in favour of the Olympic and Brier champion Jacobs after the 2023-24 season.

The drastic decision couldn’t have worked out better as Jacobs led his new team to a Brier Tankard last year before claiming bronze at the World Men’s Curling Championship.

“Unbelievable, unbelievable,” Jacobs told Curling Canada after the Brier win. “It’s relieving. It’s been too long since I’ve won this championship. I’ve only got two now, but I said earlier in the week that it would take a lot of pressure off the rest of my career. I hope that’s the case.”

If that statement is true, Team Jacobs may be even more dangerous entering the Halifax Trials.

Jacobs and his teammates have won everything there is to win in curling. If they hung up their brooms today, they’d still have some of the best curling resumes in Canadian history.

They don’t have to prove anything to anybody and that will make them tough to oust at the Trials.

Team Jacobs has dropped all three of their games against Team Matt Dunstone this season, the rink they defeated in last year’s Brier final. The two sides go head-to-head in Halifax on Nov. 26, Team Jacobs’ second last game in the round robin.

Jacobs and company own .500 record (5-5) against Trials teams in 2025-26.

Their round-robin finale against Team Gushue will be must-see TV as it could be the last Battle of the Brads matches, we ever see.

Gushue defeated Jacobs in the 2021 Trials final in Regina.

Regardless of what happens in Halifax, Gallant will compete in the 2026 Olympics in the mixed doubles competition alongside his wife, Jocelyn Peterman.