Coworkers’ enemies: Gushue and Bottcher unite…
Brad Gushue is a Canadian curling generational talent.
To date, he has the most Brier appearances and wins, and has won the Canadian National Championship a record six times, with four in the past five editions. Seemingly, no one could stop Gushue.
While Glenn Howard and Kevin Martin had their iconic rivalry, the mantle had since been taken up by Gushue and Kevin Koe, who between them had represented Canada at the Men’s World Curling Championship nine times. No one has interrupted their dominance since 2016.
Except Brendan Bottcher.
Bottcher, the 2012 World Junior Champion, stopped what could have been five titles in a row for Gushue. He won the 2021 Brier by beating Koe in the final, having earlier eliminated Gushue in a winner-takes-all quest for play-off qualification.
After two years with a new line-up, his teammates Mark Kennedy, Brett Gallant and Ben Hebert departed together, leaving the 32-year-old with no team. But he still had purpose. While waiting for the right opportunity, Bottcher started coaching two-time world champion Rachel Homan and her rink during the summer period, whilst also aiming to qualify for the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games in mixed doubles with Homan.
Bottcher steps up
While Bottcher was deep in analysis, Gushue was surveying his own team’s line-up. After two full seasons, he chose to replace E.J. Harnden after the season had already started – an unorthodox move. Speculation over his replacement would not last long, with Bottcher being selected.
“It’s nice to be wanted,” said Bottcher.
“It was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up on. We were all kind of aligned in what our thinking was and that got us to a yes. I don’t think anyone was interested in just throwing something together and seeing how it worked.
“We wanted to be a little more deliberate and make sure we were doing things for the right reasons.”
To some curling fans, Bottcher’s appointment may seem out of the blue, to Gushue, it made perfect sense.
“The people that we relied on for this information in this decision – our mentors, our advisors, our supporters – are all 100% behind it,” said Gushue in an interview with CBC.
“I think for the casual fan, or even the intense curling that supported our team for a number of years, it’s probably a bit of a surprise because Brendan was a rival of ours for a number of years and competed against them and they played the skip position too – people assumed he wouldn’t jump into second stone.
Chemistry a high priority
But in this decision, there is a clear motive to keep chemistry as high as possible. While Gushue and third Mark Nichols – who have played together since 1998 and only been apart for four seasons since – have a bond unlike any other in St John’s, Newfoundland; Bottcher has spoken highly of lead Geoff Walker calling them “buddies outside of curling”, with both based in Edmonton. It gives the front end duo time to gel, while receiving feedback from Team Gushue coach Jeff Hoffart, who also hails from the city.
Bottcher’s decision to join the team came with sacrifice – he took a step back from coaching Homan and company before the partnership really had time to get off the ground.
“I was really open with the girls when we were talking back in April,” he said.
“I wanted them to know, I’m not just going to play to play – I’m going to play when there’s something good. It makes a lot of sense and I’ve thought through it.
“It happened maybe a little bit sooner than we had all anticipated, but I can’t say enough good things about the girls. They really made it easy on me to look at what was absolute best for me in the moment.
“Everyone on all sides of the equation agreed that playing men’s and coaching was probably not a recipe for success on either side.”
Ready for the PCCC
Bottcher’s first event with the team will be the Pan Continental Curling Championships, meaning stakes are high for them from the off. Yet, his familiarity with the team, even in opposition, keeps him confident.
“We know there’s going to be some challenges that will have to work through, but you have to do that with any new player, and we’re certainly excited about bringing a player of Brendan’s calibre on to our team. To have him throwing second stone for us, with the success he’s had as a skip, is going to be great for us,” said Gushue in his CBC interview.
“It’s another person I can rely on for some feedback and for some ice reading. I feel he’s one of the top five or ten shot makers in the world.”
“I’ve been playing against Brad and the boys for at least a decade and a half now,” added Bottcher.
“So they’re aware with what shots I’m capable of making.
“I’ve been in some of those pressure moments, some of those big games at the end of important weeks, and I think that dynamic is also quite important. What’s important to keep on the horizon is that we’re chasing some big things that go past what happens next week.
“It’s pretty cool to have the first event as a new team, be one where you get to represent Team Canada.
