Robin Short: Brad Gushue doesn’t feel residency rules will break up his rink (Telegram)

He predicts ‘operating and functional’ changes, but suggests lineup won’t be affected 

Ottawa — Regardless of what happens tonight at the Roar of the Rings semifinal, look for Team Gushue to stay together next season.

To which most are replying, “Ya think?”

See, here’s the deal. Brad Gushue and Mark Nichols are from St. John’s — well, actually Mount Pearl and Labrador City — and Brett Gallant and Geoff Walker are from Charlottetown, P.E.I. and Edmonton.

But Gallant and Walker maintain residences in St. John’s, which is probably only half the time, anyway, on a team that’s racking up the travel reward points.

File photo/Grand Slam of Curling photo/Anil Mungal — Brad Gushue celebrates with teammates Mark Nichols (left, behind Gushue), Brett Gallant and Geoff Walker (right) after their win in the 2017 Tour Challenge Grand Slam event. All indications are that the Gushue foursome will stay together next season, although there is a good chance the rink might have to avail itself of Curling Canada’s “free agent” rule, which allows teams to have one out-of-province resident.

This is nothing new. Happens all the time in curling … Brent Laing from Kevin Koe’s Calgary team lives in Ontario, along with his wife, Jennifer Jones, who skips a Winnipeg-based foursome. John Morris, skip of the B.C. team, is an Alberta fireman. Cathy Overton-Clapham of Winnipeg plays for Chelsea Carey’s Calgary rink.

On and on it goes.

Things for Gushue might change a bit next year because things are definitely changing for lead Walker. He’s getting married to Laura Crocker, a curler from Edmonton. Meantime, Gallant is in a relationship with Jocelyn Peterman, who curls with Carey in Calgary.

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