Team Bottcher becomes latest top Canadian curling rink to announce split

Team Brendan Bottcher said Friday that it will split at the end of the season, joining a growing list of top Canadian curling teams who will go their separate ways for the new quadrennial.

Bottcher, third Patrick Janssen, second Brad Thiessen and lead Karrick Martin finished third at the national championship last week.

"We are excited for what the future holds," the team statement said. "We wish each other the very best, on and off the ice."

Bottcher skipped the Edmonton-based team to four straight Tim Hortons Brier finals from 2018-21, finally hoisting the tankard last year in the Calgary bubble. Janssen moved from fifth to third last fall after the departure of vice Darren Moulding.

Currently ranked ninth in the world, Team Bottcher plans to finish off the season at next month's Players' Championship and the Champions Cup in early May.

"Next season, we will each take our curling careers in new directions," the statement said.