Lawes tops Reese-Hansen on opening night at Scotties Tournament of Hearts

British Columbia skip Taylor Reese-Hansen reacts during her opening game against Manitoba's Kaitlyn Lawes at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Mississauga, Ont. on Jan. 23, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

MISSISSAUGA — Youth was no match for experience on Friday night at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts.

Taylor Reese-Hansen’s breakout season met a speed bump in her first career appearance at the Canadian women’s curling championship as she dropped a 10-4 decision to Manitoba’s Kaitlyn Lawes.

“I definitely felt the jitters this morning in practice and then again today for sure,” Reese-Hansen said. “Dream come true (to be here though). So really cool.”

Lawes, a two-time Olympic champion, was in control after opening with a three-point end on the first night of round-robin play at Paramount Fine Foods Centre.

Reese-Hansen has climbed to third in the national rankings — behind just world No. 1 Rachel Homan and No. 2 Kerri Einarson — but she struggled with draw weight early against the veteran Lawes rink.

The 28-year-old skip from Victoria gave up a steal in the second end before scoring a deuce in the third after Lawes missed a cross-house double takeout.

After the teams exchanged singles, the fourth-ranked Lawes tacked on a deuce in the sixth end and put the game away with a three-ender in the eighth.

“I thought we were very patient and took advantage of the opportunities (when) we had them,” Lawes said.

In other games, Canada’s Kerri Einarson rolled to a 13-4 victory over Yukon’s Bayly Scoffin. Ontario’s Hailey Armstrong defeated Nicky Kaufman of the Northwest Territories 9-5 and Nova Scotia’s Taylour Stevens outscored Quebec’s Jolianne Fortin 10-7.

Jocelyn Peterman wasn’t in the lineup for the Lawes rink as she’s preparing to play mixed doubles with Brett Gallant at the Milan Cortina Games. Laura Walker, who has played as a substitute for the team throughout the quadrennial, is her replacement at second.

“Maybe our butterflies just felt a little bit different,” Walker said of the opener. “Maybe a little more excitement rather than the little bit of nerves that come with your first big TV game and your first game in front of a crowd like that.

“So I would say that probably worked in our favour today, but I imagine they’ll be coming out firing from here on out.”

Reese-Hansen’s foursome has reached six finals this season. In addition to the B.C. title, the squad won a tier-two crown at the Grand Slam of Curling’s HearingLife Canadian Open and earned a win at a SaskTour bonspiel in Lloydminster.

An announced crowd of 2,949 was in attendance and the B.C.-Manitoba matchup was the feature game on the national broadcast.

“Like Friday Night Lights, right?” Reese-Hansen said with a smile.

She added she felt more excitement than nerves leading up to the event. Sliding over the four-heart logo made it all feel all the more real.

“I think to us, nerves just mean that you care and that’s great,” she said. “We should care. This is so exciting.”

No Homan

Rachel Homan won the Scotties in 2024 and 2025 but is not back to defend her title. She’s preparing to skip the Canadian women’s team at the Olympics.

Einarson, who lost to Homan in the final last year, is wearing Canada colours instead. She had a 10-3 lead after six ends before cruising to victory.

“We put some pressure on them early and we have some areas to sharpen up in, that’s for sure,” she said. “But a good first game overall.”

The 18-team field is split into nine-team pools. The top three teams in each pool at the end of round-robin play will advance to the playoffs next weekend.

The first-place team from Pool A will meet the second-place team from Pool B in the first round.

The winners will go to the Page playoff 1-2 game, while the losing teams meet the third-place finishers from pool play. The winners of those games will advance to the Page 3-4 game.

The 1-2 winner will advance to the final Feb. 1, while the 1-2 loser plays the 3-4 winner in the semifinal.

The winning team will represent Canada at the March 14-22 world women’s curling championship in Calgary.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 23, 2026.

Gregory Strong, The Canadian Press