Kerri Einarson and her teammates were impressed along with the rest of the curling community when Brad Gushue's three-man team won a national men's title, but Einarson intends to use her alternate player if needed at the upcoming women's world championship.
Einarson, Val Sweeting, Shannon Birchard and Brianne Meilleur out of the Gimli Curling Club in Manitoba open the world championship Saturday in Prince George, B.C., against Italy and Norway.
Gushue will wear the Maple Leaf in the men's championship April 2-10 in Las Vegas after winning the Tim Hortons Brier on Sunday minus third Mark Nichols.
Gushue, second Brett Gallant and lead Geoff Walker won three straight playoff games as a threesome en route to the title after Nichols tested positive for COVID-19.
That feat showcased how valuable multi-talented positional players can be on a four-person team, but also shone a light on the importance of the alternate, or fifth, player fitting into team chemistry.
Illness or injury is common during a curling event given the rigours of a long curling season. Einarson has integrated her fifth of two years, Krysten Karwacki, into training.
"We practise a lot with her," Einarson said Tuesday during a media video conference. "To bring her into a game wouldn't seem unnatural for us. We've definitely talked that over. We'd bring in our fifth if anything was to happen.
"It was pretty unbelievable for (Gushue) to win and play with three, but they're absolutely amazing shooters."
Einarson front end Birchard and Meilleur were particularly interested watching Gallant's workhorse effort, Walker calling line for skip stones and both of them talking shot strategy with Gushue.
Birchard believes Gushue winning a Canadian mixed doubles championship last year with Einarson, and Gallant also a world-class mixed doubles player, was a factor in adapting to the challenge of curling short-handed.
"It was incredible to see what they're able to do out there, just how dynamic each of them was," Birchard said. "Brett taking on the bulk of the physical role on the team and then Geoff stepping in to call line and do something he hasn't done, I think he said in 10-plus years. It was incredible to watch.
"It's something you see from a lot of players nowadays, especially with mixed doubles being so prevalent, is that ability to kind of do it all out there. They really put on a show and exemplified what it means to be an all-around curler at that event."
Meilleur thought her lead counterpart Walker excelled under his extra responsibilities.
"I'm sure Geoff was excited to throw something different than draws and guards for once. He was probably pretty pumped about that," she said.
"Like Shannon said, it's really showcasing how well-rounded a lot of teams are, even though you think you can just put them in a certain box, they really have the abilities to play anywhere on their team if they really had to."
The women's world championship at the 6,000-seat CN Centre features 13 countries. Einarson won a third straight Canadian women's championship in February.
She placed sixth in last year's world championship in Calgary held in a curling bubble because of the pandemic.
Einarson and her teammates would have represented Canada in Prince George two years ago, but that world championship was cancelled because of the pandemic.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 15, 2022.
Donna Spencer, The Canadian Press
