Tim Hortons Brier 2017: Dates, Draw Schedule, Format for Curling Event

Team Alberta will be out to secure another triumph at the Tim Hortons Brier event, which gets underway in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada on Sunday.

Skipper Kevin Koe will lead the charge for the holders, as they seek to secure their spot at the World Men's Curling Championships as the Canadian representative.

In an extra incentive for the 12 crews involved—and especially the 2016 winners—the showpiece will be held in Edmonton, Alberta, next month.

It means the competition at the Brier will be especially fierce out on the ice, although this is an event that has so often seen the coolest heads prevail.

Here are the tournament details, the format and a look ahead at what to expect from this year's showdown.

Key Details

Date: March 4-12

Venue: Mile One Centre in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

Format: The 12th team involved will be determined by a pre-qualifying tournament between Nova Scotia, Nunavut, Prince Edward Island and Yukon.

Once the lineup in full is determined, the teams will go head-to-head in a round-robin format, playing every team involved once. From there, the top four sides progress into a playoff bracket, with the squad that finishes top of the table moving straight into the final.

In 2016, Newfoundland & Labrador won all 11 of their league matches before coming a cropper against Alberta at the final hurdle.

For the competition draw and schedule in full, check out the event's official website.

Preview

The Mile One Center, which will stage the event, offered an insight into what spectators and viewers can expect:

As the champions and world champions, Koe and his Alberta team will don the Canadian colours for this year's event. Based on their recent performances, they are going to be a tough squad to get the better of once again in 2017.

The captain has been involved in two of the last three victories for the team and is among the most experienced competitors in the field. As noted by the Curling Canada Twitter feed, his achievements in 2016 saw him nominated for the Calgary Booster Club Male Athlete of the Year award recently:

The Alberta team endured an inconsistent start to the year, although there were signs at the recent Pinty's All-Star Skins Game that they were finding their feet again just in time, taking home three quarters of the prize money.

Marc Kennedy, who will be third for Alberta again this year, opened up on how difficult it can be to stay motivated after such a run of success.

"I don't want to make any excuses," he said, per Donna Spencer of the Canadian Press (h/t the Toronto Star). "I really don't, because I don't think it has as big an impact as people say it does. But it's certainly hard to get motivated as quickly as you normally would. We might have been a little slow getting things going this year."

FABRICE COFFRINI/Getty Images

The main rivals for Alberta will likely be the Newfoundland & Labrador crew, especially given they'll be roared on by a home crowd this year. Per their Twitter feed, they are keen to get started in front of the locals:

Skip Brad Gushue will feel as though he has a score to settle, too, especially given how well the team played in 2016, only to come up short in heartbreaking fashion.

The holders and the hosts are scheduled to meet on March 9 in the group-stage format in what will be the penultimate league fixture for both sides. However, given the quality of the two teams, it would be no surprise to see them contesting another memorable final.