It’s a scary thought, but Team Brad Gushue may be more dangerous now than they were last season.

Winning their first national title in front of hometown fans in St. John’s lifted the Brier burden off Gushue’s shoulders. A 13-0 showing at the world championships a few weeks later was icing on the cake.

With two championship belts around their waist, plus Olympic gold for Gushue and third Mark Nichols, there is nothing more to prove for this rink, something that could make them even a bigger threat heading into the Roar of the Rings Olympic trials Dec. 2-10 in Ottawa.

“At this point, I don’t feel like we have anything to prove and certainly that doesn’t mean we are not going to go in hungry. It just means it’s not the end of the world if we don’t win,” Gushue told TSN.ca in a recent interview. “I don’t feel like we have as much pressure as what I would have felt 12 years ago [at the 2005 Olympic trials]. Certainly we all feel like it’s less pressure than we felt eight months ago at the Brier.”

Gushue’s squad entered the Canadian championship last season feeling the heat. And that heat got to them early in the week until they figured out how to manage the pressure, says the skip. Now with the do-or-die anxiety gone, the top ranked team in the world could be primed for more success in the nation’s capital.

“I’m kind of excited going into the trials knowing that we’re going to feel some nerves and stress, but I think it’s going to be at a nice level where it’s just going to make us nice and sharp and focused, but not to the point where we’re are shaking or having a real hard time controlling the nerves which is where we were at for a large portion of the Brier,” said Gushue.

And when those pressure situations arise in Ottawa, Gushue’s strong relationship with Nichols should ease the team through it. Both are natives of Newfoundland and Labrador and have had their best years in curling together. Gushue’s says part of their success comes from the fact that they even out one another.

“Mark’s a pretty quiet guy and I’m a little bit outspoken. Even from a curling perspective, Mark’s got big weight ability where my forte is off-weight stuff,” Gushue explained.

“I think we know each other so well that we are so confident that even when we get in those pressure situations we know what to say to each other to be comfortable and get the most out of each other.”

Team Gushue haven’t had a “championship hangover” in 2017-18, winning four of six events, including a pair of Grand Slams. They hold an incredible 32-5 record and are ranked first on both the Canadian Team Ranking System and World Curling Tour money list.  

Those numbers plus the achievements of last season equate to the best 12-month stretch of Gushue’s career, yet the 37-year-old feels his team can still reach another level this season. The foursome have had limited time to practice, but have still found ways to come out on top.

“The exciting part for us is really this year we don’t feel like we’re playing our best yet. We are finding ways to win games, whether it’s making the timely shot or teams not performing their best against us,” he said. “So it’s encouraging knowing that we can still be better.”

 

Trials return

This will be Gushue’s first appearance at the Roar of the Rings since winning in surprising fashion in 2005 as a 25-year-old skipper. The 2006 Olympic gold medalist failed to qualify for the 2010 and 2014 trials due to inexperienced teammates and subpar play at the wrong time.

Now over a decade later, Gushue is making his return to the biggest event on the Canadian curling calendar with the game completely changed.

“Back in 2006, you make a runback and it was a great shot if you made contact and now guys are doing that regularly and upset if they don’t stick it,” he said of curling’s improved skill level.

Gushue said elite-level teams are much more committed nowadays than back in 2005, with more attention placed on factors such as fitness level and sports physiology. And if you’re not willing to put in the same amount of time as the top-tier teams, you’re likely to fall behind.

“Unfortunately, it’s a poor paying job that you have to work full time at. Maybe not full time, but certainly, we’re putting in professional athlete hours and not getting compensated like professional athletes,” explained Gushue.

Team Gushue kick off the Roar of the Rings Saturday night against Team John Epping at 7 p.m. ET.