Canada’s Gushue defeats Australia, wins 4th straight at Pan Continental Curling Championship | CBC Sports

Canada’s Brad Gushue won a fourth straight game at the Pan Continental Curling Championship with an 11-5 victory over Australia on Thursday.

His St. John’s, N.L., team moved into a three-way tie for first place with South Korea and the United States all at 4-1.

After a loss to the U.S. to open the tournament at Calgary’s WinSport Event Centre, Gushue feels he and his teammates have found the all-important draw weight.

“We’re putting [rocks] in some good spots and making good freezes. We have a few little things to work on, but when you draw well on this ice, you do typically score well and give yourself good chances.

“I think we’re doing a very good job at that, and as long as we can maintain and keep up on the ice, I think we’ll be O.K.”

The inaugural Pan Continental is a qualifier for all countries outside Europe for the 2023 men’s and women’s world curling championships.

Finishing in the top five secures berths, but Canada as the host country of the men’s championship in Ottawa is assured an automatic entry.

Kerri Einarson (5-0) has clinched a spot for Canada in the women’s championship in Switzerland.

She was to face the U.S. and Gushue had a second game against New Zealand on Thursday.

Gushue extended a streak of scoring three points in the first end to four straight games. The Canadians also counted four in the fifth end to lead 9-3.

“We’re catching onto the ice a little bit better each game,” vice Mark Nichols said. “We’re also winning the draw to the button, which gives us an advantage in that first end. We’ve been lucky enough to convert a few bigger ends.

“We’re not typically a team that goes super aggressive, so when we get those bigger ends, it is nice.”

‘We’ve been able to capitalize on mistakes’

Dean Hewitt, who throws fourth stones for Australia, competed in Olympic mixed doubles in Beijing in February.

He and Tahli Gill were the first Australians to curl in any Olympic discipline.

Australia scored two in the second end Thursday, but couldn’t generate a multi-point end after that. They shook hands after eight ends.

“We do limit the big ends too,” Nichols said. “Any time you can score two or three and then force to one, you flip the game over pretty quick, and they’ve got to play a few more finesse shots and a few more risky calls to get back into the game, and we’ve been able to capitalize on mistakes.”

Australia has appeared in 11 men’s world championships all led by skip Hugh Millikin from 1992 to 1998 and most recently from 2005 to 2008.

The men’s and women’s semifinals are Saturday followed by Sunday’s finals.

In other A Division men’s games, the U.S. defeated New Zealand 6-2, Japan downed Brazil 9-3 and South Korea recovered from the previous day’s loss to Canada with an 11-5 victory over Chinese Tapei.

New Zealand was 3-2 behind the three front-runners, Chinese Tapei fell to 2-3, Japan was 1-4 and Brazil winless in five games.