New-look Grand Slam of Curling series begins under new ownership

Canada's Reid Carruthers opened the Grand Slam of Curling season Tuesday with a 7-5 loss to Sweden's Niklas Edin at the HearingLife Tour Challenge.

Carruthers, from Winnipeg, was the lone Canadian skip in action during the opening draw at Bell Aliant Centre in Charlottetown. He missed an angle-raise in the eighth end for the win and was denied an extra end when a measure confirmed an Edin single.

It's the first Grand Slam event since The Curling Group purchased the five-event series from Sportsnet last April. The network will continue to be the exclusive Canadian broadcast rights holder, with televised coverage slated to begin Thursday and continue through Sunday's finals.

One noticeable change is the addition of live online streaming on all sheets in the Tier 1 competition. Organizers also plan to boost the in-venue experience this season.

"We will give the fan and curler a level of trust that we are going to do this with the right spirit and motivation in mind," Curling Group chief executive officer Nic Sulsky told CBC Sports' Devin Heroux in the spring. "We have a love of the game and [both] the curlers and fans that have made the sport what it is today."

The new venture has some big names attached to it, including two-time Olympic champion John Morris and Olympic champion Jennifer Jones, who is retiring at the end of this season from the four-person game.

WATCH | Grand Slam of Curling about to 'blow up the roaring game':

Former NFL star Jared Allen is also part of the group. They will all be part of helping shape what the Slams look like moving forward.

"We want the growth of the game to be so successful. We want to be successful. I think the curlers are going to embrace this and be very excited about the opportunities," Jones said. 

Sulsky said the athlete's voice is going to be a critical piece in how they shape the Slams moving forward. That's why curling legends like Morris and Jones have been brought in from the beginning. 

"We need to provide a platform for curlers to take their position alongside the rest of the international sporting elite because they belong there. They are an incredible, engaging, fun, funny group of folks. It's about time the spotlight shines on them," Sulsky said. 

In other early action on a four-draw day, Bruce Mouat topped fellow Scot Cameron Bryce 6-2, Sweden's Anna Hasselborg dropped an 8-5 decision to Japan's Satsuki Fujisawa and Italy's Joel Retornaz beat American Korey Dropkin 6-3.

WATCH l CBC Sports' Devin Heroux talks with the retired Jennifer Jones: