A capsule look at the 16 men’s teams competing in the GSOC Co-op Invitational, Oct. 13-18, at Victoria’s Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre.
Check out the women’s teams by clicking here.
Lineups are listed in order of skip, third, second and lead, unless noted.
Full-event, weekend and day passes plus single draw tickets are available. Visit GSOCtickets.com for more information.
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Bottcher
Hometown: Edmonton, Alberta
Lineup: Brendan Bottcher, Jake Horgan, Tanner Horgan, Geoff Walker
Five-time Grand Slam champion Bottcher has returned to skipping, sticking with Walker from Team Gushue. They’re joined by the Horgan brothers, both formerly with Team Epping.
Carson
Hometown: Dumfries, Scotland
Lineup: Orrin Carson, Logan Carson, Archie Hyslop, Charlie Gibb
Carson is a three-time bronze medallist at the world juniors. His team qualified for the GSOC Co-op Invitational through the Satellite Events series after reaching the semifinals of the Euro Super Series.
Casper
Hometown: Chaska, Minnesota
Lineup: Danny Casper, Luc Violette, Ben Richardson, Aidan Oldenburg
Casper and his crew represented the U.S. at the Olympic Winter Games in Milano Cortina. They kicked off their season by winning the Stu Sells Oakville Tankard last month.
Dunstone
Hometown: Winnipeg, Manitoba
Lineup: Matt Dunstone, Colton Lott, Mark Nichols, Ryan Harnden
The Brier champions and world silver medallists added Nichols after E.J. Harnden stepped back at the end of last season. Dunstone also reached three straight Grand Slam finals last year, earning his second title in the series at the Masters. His new-look team captured the Okotoks Classic title two weekends ago.
Epping
Hometown: Winnipeg, Manitoba
Lineup: John Epping, B.J. Neufeld, Ryan Wiebe, Ian McMillan
The Toronto-based Epping is now playing one province over after adding Neufeld and Wiebe. The team reached the final of the AMJ Shorty Jenkins Classic to qualify for the GSOC Co-op Invitational.
Eriksson
Hometown: Karlstad, Sweden
Lineup: Oskar Eriksson, Rasmus Wranå, Simon Olofsson, Christoffer Sundgren
Eriksson is at the helm after legendary skip Niklas Edin stepped back from the tour. The team won the Oslo Cup and finished third at the Karuizawa International last month.
Hardie
Hometown: Stirling, Scotland
Lineup: Ross Whyte, Grant Hardie (skip), Craig Waddell, Euan Kyle
Hardie’s new challenge sees him skipping and throwing third stones with Whyte. Under Whyte’s leadership, the team reached three Grand Slam finals last season, winning the Players’ Championship title. Whyte also earned a third straight Scottish men’s title and took home bronze at the men’s worlds.
Hösli
Hometown: Glarus, Switzerland
Lineup: Philipp Hösli, Marco Hösli (skip), Simon Gloor, Justin Hausherr
Better late than never, reigning Swiss champ Hösli earned the final berth in the GSOC Co-op Invitational through the Prestige Hotels and Resorts Curling Classic in Vernon, B.C. Hösli went undefeated through the tournament, including a 7-6 extra-end victory over Team Tsuyoshi Yamaguchi in the final.
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