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Competing against some of the best men’s curling teams in the world is something Saskatoon’s Evan Latos won’t soon forget.
Latos threw lead stones for Team Yukon at the 2022 Tim Hortons Brier in Lethbridge.
The young team out of the Whitehorse Curling Club used the Canadian men’s curling championship tournament as a learning experience, all while rewriting the history books in the purple jackets.
(Evan Latos/Submitted)
“It was an incredible experience. (I) took a lot of time soaking in the sights and playing against some of the top teams, being alongside a lot of the guys you see on TV,” Latos said.
Playing against some of the top teams in the world added a different element for Latos and his Yukon squad.
“It was a lot of fun playing them. We kept the games close for the first couple of ends and then we had to play a more aggressive game style,” Latos said.
The Yukon team was placed in the same pool as Saskatchewan’s Colton Flasch, Wild Card #2’s Matt Dunstone, Alberta’s Kevin Koe and Canada’s Brendan Bottcher.
“We went into the games knowing we were up against it and it was a bit of a learning experience as well, trying to make the most out of every game knowing we’ll be back again,” Latos said.
Latos said it made the experience that much better seeing familiar faces in the crowd in Lethbridge.
“It was great having fans in the stands,” he said. “Between people from the Yukon coming down and then also some family and friends coming down from Calgary and Lethbridge, we probably had close to 30 Yukon supporters in the stands.
“My favourite thing was just actually being there on the ice and playing. The ice was fantastic, (the) best ice I’ve ever played on, and then just being up against these top players and leaving it all on the ice.”
The Saskatoon product was even a part of some history in Yukon’s 13-7 victory over Prince Edward Island — his team’s only win of the event.
“Scoring four in one end, that was the first time Yukon has scored four in one end and I believe that might have been Yukon’s highest-scoring game as well,” Latos said.