The first weekend of the Tim Hortons Curling Trials has concluded and already there's a lot to take in. 

The Trials are the most pressure-filled event in Canadian curling, leaving very little room for error, especially if you get off to a slow start. 

Most notably, two of the biggest names in curling are 0-2 after the opening two days of competition. The reigning Tim Hortons Brier champions in Team Brendan Bottcher and the 2017 Trials winners in Team Rachel Homan suffered losses to the lowest-ranked teams in the men's and women's fields over the weekend, throwing a massive wrench into their plans of representing Canada at the Winter Olympics in Beijing. 

Bottcher's Edmonton foursome will take on Sault Ste. Marie's Team Brad Jacobs, who are 2-0, this afternoon in Saskatoon at the SaskTel Centre.

You can watch the contest at 3pm ET/12pm PT on TSN 1/3, the TSN App and TSN Direct. 

Team Bottcher find themselves in this early hole after a tough loss to Brad Gushue on Saturday followed by an upset defeat to Team Tanner Horgan, who were the last team to qualify for the Trials, on Sunday. Bottcher was short on his draw attempt on the final throw of the game, allowing Horgan to steal a single in the 11th end for the shocking 6-5 win. 

"That's what we wanted to do going into the end," Horgan said after the win. "That was our game plan, to make him throw a draw because that seemed to be the shot that was difficult. We got the break." 

Men's Standings (top three make playoffs)

Team Gushue (2-0)
Team Jacobs (2-0)
Team McEwen (1-0)

Team Epping (1-1) 
Team Horgan (1-1)
Team Koe (1-1)
Team Gunnlaugson (0-1)
Team Dunstone (0-2)
Team Bottcher (0-2)

 

Draw 6 - 3pm ET

Koe (1-1) vs. Dunstone (0-2)
Gushue (2-0) vs. Epping (1-1)
Jacobs (2-0) vs. Bottcher (0-2) - on TSN 1/3, TSN Direct and the TSN App
McEwen (1-0) vs. Gunnlaugson (0-1)

Still, Team Bottcher shot a very strong 91 per cent in the loss to Team Horgan, who shot 93 per cent collectively. Just one throw ended up being the deciding factor. We'll have to wait and see if that turns out to be the difference in Team Bottcher's pursuit of the playoffs by week's end.

There's a good chance four losses won't get you into the three-team playoff, so Team Bottcher might only have room for one more loss at the Trials with Jacobs, Mike McEwen and Kevin Koe on deck over their next three games. 

"To have the start that we've had feels great," said Team Jacobs third Marc Kennedy after Sunday's win over Team Matt Dunstone. "But a long week ahead. We'll get some rest tonight. We're not going to look too far ahead. Every single game is extremely difficult. So one game at a time."

Jacobs has won 20 of 34 matchups against Bottcher all-time, including both games last season inside the Calgary bubble.  

Bottcher, third Darren Moulding, second Bradley Thiessen and lead Karrick Martin have played in every Canadian championship final this past quadrennial, winning for the first time last season. 

In the evening draw, the women take centre stage as Team Krista McCarville will battle Team Tracy Fleury in the feature game. 

You can watch the matchup at 8pm ET/5pm PT on TSN1/3, TSN App and TSN Direct

Women's Standings (top three make playoffs)

Team Jones (3-0)
Team Fleury (2-0)
Team Harrison (2-1)
Team Scheidegger (2-1)

Team Walker (1-2)
Team Einarson (1-2)
Team McCarville (1-2)
Team Homan (0-2)
Team Rocque (0-2) 

 

Draw 7 - 8pm ET

Jones (3-0) vs. Scheidegger (2-1)
McCarville (1-2) vs. Fleury (2-0) - on TSN 1/3, TSN Direct and the TSN App
Rocque (0-2) vs. Homan (0-2)
Walker (1-2) vs. Einarson (1-2)

Team Fleury has been the hottest rink in women's curling this season, winning 32 of their 37 games, including the first two in Saskatoon. 

"[The Trials] are definitely the biggest event I've ever played in personally," said Fleury after beating Kelsey Rocque Sunday evening. "It's just a different atmosphere out there with there being so much on the line, but it's a lot of fun."

Team McCarville look to avoid a third loss after an up-and-down weekend with losses against Jennifer Jones and Casey Scheidegger, but a win against provincial rival Homan.  

All-time, the 39-year-old McCarville has a 14-8 record against her 35-year-old counterpart in Fleury. Their most recent head-to-head battle was at the 2019 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, a game McCarville won 7-5. Many of their games occurred at the Northern Ontario Scotties before Fleury joined her current team in Manitoba. 

Other games of major significance include the winless rinks led by Rocque and Homan battling it out looking to avoid a third loss. Also, Laura Walker and Kerri Einarson, both 1-2, will attempt to get back to .500. 

The best looking team so far in Saskatoon might be Team Jones. Jones, who won Olympic gold in 2014, stole a single in the extra end against Team Walker Sunday night to improve to 3-0. 

However, the biggest surprise at the Tim Hortons Curling Trials has been Jacqueline Harrison and her team out of the Dundas Valley Golf & Curling Club. At +6600, Team Harrison has the lowest odds to win the Trials out of any team in Saskatoon, but have started their week off with massive upsets over Homan and Einarson.

Sure, there's still a long way to go and they've gotten a few breaks, but after surviving Homan, Jones and Einarson over their first three games, Team Harrison has made the playoff race a lot more interesting.   

"It's probably a bit of a dream start I would say," said Harrison Sunday evening. "You go up against those three teams to start, the top teams in the country, you're going in there hoping to keep it close and maybe win one of them. So for us to have a 2-1 record right now, we're pretty thrilled by it."

Team Harrison has an off-day on Monday. 

The fun is just getting started in Saskatoon.