Kaitlyn Jones has worn the beloved green jacket before for Saskatchewan.
That was at the Optimist Under-18 International tournament in Langley last spring after she won the Saskatchewan juvenile provincial championship.
This week though it's different for 16-year-old skip and her team from Regina's Tartan Curling Club. The rink is aiming for a spot on the podium at the Canada Winter Games at the Prince George Golf and Curling Club.
Jones has a different look to her lineup, one that includes newcomer Sara England at third to go along with her long-time second Shantel Hutton and lead Rayann Zerr.
As with any team from Saskatchewan - the heartland and hotbed of curling (with all due respect to Manitoba) - expectations are high for the Regina foursome. It's all about Prairie pride.
"We'd like to get a medal and be on the podium," Jones said Tuesday afternoon. "We'll settle for bronze, but we're going for gold."
Prior to this season, Jones played with 17-year-old Zerr for three years and 17-year-old Hutton for two years. In the off-season she made a change at third, adding 17-year-old England.
"It was a good choice," said Jones. "We qualified for the Winter Games. I feel like we all get along really well and Sara fit in really well right from the start. She brings a lot of laughs."
England is the daughter of the late Sandra Schmirler, whose Regina-based rink won the first-ever Olympic gold medal awarded in curling at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano.
Schmirler, backed by third Jan Betker, second Joan McCusker and lead Marcia Gudereit, also won Scotties (national) and world titles in 1993, 1994 and 1997 to go along with six provincial women's titles.
In the '90s, they were considered the best team in the world. Schmirler was dubbed Schmirler the Curler and the queen of curling due to her expertise and dominance in the house.
Schmirler died on March 2, 2000, after a battle with cancer.
Schmirler's legacy now lives on through Sara.
Sara's dad Shannon England remembers the first time he brought his oldest daughter to the rink in Regina. A competitive curler himself, he knew it was time to introduce her to the sport when she was 10.
"I took her to Little Rocks where she learned the fundamentals," he said Tuesday at the PGGCC. "She'd been curious about it before. She joined the youth curling league and was involved with that. She played with Jan's, Joan's and Marcia's kids and went from there. She started off showing some skill and she definitely had some natural ability.
"Last year when she was asked to join Kaitlyn's team, that's when she started to become more serious about it. That'd be Sara's first competitive year where she worked hard at the game, worked out, learned about nutrition and she still fits in school and a part-time job."
He also sees similar curling traits between Schmirler and their daughter.
At the top of her game, Schmirler did not like to lose. Ditto for Sara.
"Sara is very competitive and she doesn't like to lose," Shannon said. "She enjoys being with her teammates. She's technically skilled, though she's nowhere near her mother yet, but she is pretty skilled and she likes a lot of laughter. She has a passion for the game."
While Schmirler loved calling the game and throwing last rock, Shannon said Sara prefers the vice-skip position.
"She likes playing third better. She likes working with the front end and also having to throw difficult shots."
The Winter Games trials for Saskatchewan featured the top six women's teams in the province competing against one another in December, 2014, in Regina.
Jones finished the round-robin with a 4-1 record and had to beat the top team twice to earn the Games berth.
Despite the short time between the trials and the Games, Saskatchewan coach Clint Kismer said preparations really began last spring.
"Curl Saskatchewan is developing the top six men's and women's teams with a training program that the three (Jones, Zerr and Hutton) joined," he said.
"It focused on fitness and the sport so it really began last March.
"This is a team that works really hard and trains together once per week. They're on the ice three to five times per week. They definitely have the goods. They've proven they can compete under pressure. From top to bottom, they're a strong team."
After Jones' squad qualified for the Games, the rink won the bronze medal
at the 2015 Saskatchewan junior women provincial championship in January.
Proud dad Shannon England has no problem supporting and following his daughter around just like he used to support Schmirler in her triumphs.
"It's great. The spotlight's on them," he said. "They definitely seem like they want to compete."
Saskatchewan went 1-1 on Tuesday in its round-robin pool, earning a
10-2 win against Nunavut in the late draw. It suffered a 12-2 loss to Ontario in Tuesday's morning draw.
Saskatchewan is now 2-1 in its pool after a 7-3 Monday win against Prince Edward Island.
