LAS VEGAS — Win or lose at this week's world men's curling championship, Brad Gushue feels his team's legacy is secure.
"I think we are the best team to ever play from the longevity that we've had and the success that we've had," Gushue said. "It's a hard argument for anybody else to make, so (a title here) would be icing on the cake for sure."
His team of vice Mark Nichols, second Brett Gallant and lead Geoff Walker has padded the resume nicely this season with a Trials win, a fourth national title in six years and an Olympic bronze.
Another medal could come this weekend after the team nailed down a semifinal berth with an 8-6 win over Scotland's Kyle Waddell on Friday. The first-place Canadians (10-2) secured the top seed in the evening with a 9-2 rout of Denmark's Tobias Thune.
Three-time defending champion Niklas Edin of Sweden (9-3) closed his round-robin schedule in the afternoon with a 7-6 win over Norway's Magnus Ramsfjell. Edin earned the other direct berth to the semifinal.
The other playoff spots went to Italy's Joel Retornaz (8-4), American Korey Dropkin (7-5), Scotland (7-5) and Switzerland's Yannick Schwaller (6-6). The Swiss were in a three-way tie but got the nod thanks to last stone draw numbers.
Italy will meet Switzerland and the U.S. will face Scotland in qualification games Saturday with the winners advancing to the evening semifinals.
Gushue's current four-man lineup spent two quadrennials together, but Gallant will be leaving at the end of the season. In addition to their national and Olympic hardware, they won world gold in 2017, silver in 2018 and have 12 Grand Slam titles to their credit.
"There's enough there on the resume to cement the legacy of this team," Gushue said. "I don't know if a win here this week is going to move that needle very much. Obviously winning will improve it."
Gushue, who won Olympic gold in 2006 with Nichols, was determined to limit the distractions that he felt hampered the team when the 2018 world championship was played at this venue.
The Canadians are not staying at the tournament hotel and have laid low in their downtime. A pre-event round of golf has been the most ambitious activity on the calendar since arriving in Sin City.
It has been a taxing yet successful season for the Gushue team. They topped the field at Canada's Olympic trials last November -- considered the toughest event in curling -- and isolated in a pre-Games training camp in B.C. for a couple weeks before heading to Beijing.
A semifinal loss to Edin at the Ice Cube was followed by a win over American John Shuster in the bronze-medal game. A short break was followed by a memorable week at the Brier, where Gushue's side prevailed despite losing Nichols for the final weekend due to COVID-19.
A second world title would be quite an accomplishment in an unforgettable season that concludes with a couple of Grand Slam stops.
"There's been times this week where I've felt like a zombie out there," Gushue said. "You're focused and you're trying to do your best. But it's been a long year. It has been a grind."
The Canadians were in control over the second half against Scotland but an angle raise from fourth Ross Paterson in the ninth end tied the game at six. Gushue had hammer in the 10th but didn't need his final stone after Paterson flashed his last throw between the two Canadian rocks in the house.
It was a nice break for the Canadians since draw weight had changed during the game. Balmy conditions outside -- the mercury reached 30 C -- may have impacted ice conditions.
"We got a few flat spots and it kind of junked up," Gushue said. "If we had to draw the four-foot in the last end, it would have been a bit of a guess and you don't really want that. Fortunately, we played a really strong 10th end."
Canada opened with a pair against Denmark and pulled away with a three-point third end. The teams shook hands once the minimum six ends were completed as Canada reached the 10-win mark.
"This was what we expected," Gushue said. "It's what we wanted and what we worked for. So we're happy with it."
The venue, located a couple kilometres from the Vegas Strip, boasts plenty of Canadian flavour even though the pandemic has impacted attendance, travel plans, and limited the usual event activities.
Several dozen Canadian fans bellowed their support when Gushue's side was on the ice. The Tragically Hip's "38 Years Old" played on the arena loudspeakers after the morning game.
Gushue beat Edin in the 2017 world final in Edmonton. The Swede, a five-time world champion, won the return match a year later.
Medal games are scheduled for Sunday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 8, 2022.
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Gregory Strong, The Canadian Press