Brad Gushue, the retiring curling legend, began his final Brier with a 2-0 record in St. John's, moved by the hometown fans' support. The 2026 Montana’s Brier kicked off on February 27 at Mary Brown’s Centre, featuring intense early matches. Gushue's team defeated Québec and Nunavut convincingly, while local Team Young also secured a win.
The 2026 Montana’s Brier, Canada's men's curling championship, opened on February 27 in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, at the Mary Brown’s Centre, running through March 8. For 45-year-old skip Brad Gushue, this tournament marks the end of his competitive career, following his announcement in September that the 2025-26 season would be his last.
Gushue, a 2006 Olympic gold medallist and six-time Brier champion (2017, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024), entered his hometown event to overwhelming support. After a 10-2 opening win over Québec’s Jean-Michel Ménard on Friday, Gushue admitted the crowd's roar brought him to tears. “That roar from the crowd in the first end (Friday night) — like my eyes were full,” he said. “Yeah … I actually got a little teary-eyed there when (the applause) kept going. So that was pretty special.”
On Saturday, Team Gushue, with third Mark Nichols, second Brendan Bottcher, and lead Geoff Walker, followed with another 10-2 victory over Nunavut’s Derek Samagalski, maintaining their perfect record. Gushue described battling nerves: “I haven’t curled half an end where I was tearing up, so that’s something new.” He emphasized balancing emotion with focus, noting past experiences like his shaky but perfect performance in 2017 at the St. John’s Brier.
The crowd's enthusiasm extended to other teams. Defending champion Brad Jacobs, fresh from Olympic gold in Italy, praised the atmosphere: “There’s nowhere in Canada where you will hear a louder crowd than here in St John’s, Newfoundland.” Local Team Nathan Young, qualifying by defeating Team Simon Perry 5-4 in the Newfoundland Tankard, beat Nunavut 8-4 but lost 3-7 to Ménard. Young called it “better than a dream,” highlighting the support from fans.
Gushue reflected on curling's growth in Newfoundland: “I think we’ve developed this province into a great curling community.” He aims for a seventh Brier title to cap his career, with draws continuing Sunday at 8 a.m., 1 p.m., and 6 p.m. ET, broadcast on TSN.
