Canadian Pairs 2019/2020 Season News and Updates

[Erin]

2. If her name wasn't on my screen, I would have never, ever recognized Chloe Choinard. She's all grown up now and looks sooooooo good. Still a shame her partnership with Mathieu Ostiguy had to end due to height difference, something that can't be controlled. I know Davis has been out of skating/competing for awhile so I'll give him a break but hopefully skate canada is monitoring Choinard closely as she's a true talent.

Yes, she looks like a completely different skater! So mature and confident. I’m not sure if Davis is the right partner for her in the long run, but hopefully it is still useful for maintaining her pairs skills and she isn’t too discouraged by some of the results.

And I am also on the Stellato/Deschamps bandwagon. I’m a little meh on the program but the elements look great! Hopefully the long program is also starting to come together.

 

[Habs]

Stellato/Deschamps' short program at Challenge.

Deanna Stellato & Maxime Deschamps - 2020 Skate Canada Challenge SP

Deanna Stellato & Maxime Deschamps' short program from the 2020 Skate Canada Challenge, senior pairs short program. Music: "New York State of Mind", performe...

youtu.be

Wow! They are terrific together!

 

[Sk8mom123]

Yes, she looks like a completely different skater! So mature and confident. I’m not sure if Davis is the right partner for her in the long run, but hopefully it is still useful for maintaining her pairs skills and she isn’t too discouraged by some of the results.

And I am also on the Stellato/Deschamps bandwagon. I’m a little meh on the program but the elements look great! Hopefully the long program is also starting to come together.

Stellato/Deschamps were nice to watch. Also liked BB.

Wow I agree Choinard is all grown up! Glad she can continue to maintain pair elements and keep going until the right partner comes along or until Davis catches up. She’s also doing singles.

 

[Rock2]

Really great progress from S/D. Integrating the 3Tw. Agree, program is not an asset for them. Next year they are going to need to be packaged properly. I was most pleased with how happy she looked here, which I don't think I've seen from her in several years.

I can't get on the B/B bandwagon yet. They are big twist and lifts but it drops off from there. Still skating carefully as if they are a new partnership and their four jumping elements are all a huge risk, such that I would expect negative GoE on 3 of them in the long as baseline expectation. This caps their potential, even though they will battle for bronze under the current landscape at nationals. Can't wait for new programs next year.

I'm truthfully not seeing as much potential in Choinard as others are. What did impress me about this new team is that on the screen they seemed to really move across the ice which is uncommon for a new team.

They have lots of work ahead on coordinating their look but this will be complicated by what seems to me to be almost cringeworthy body line on her part. There is almost nothing straight or stretched about her and I'm not sure if this is a function of trying to look smaller as she grew while working with smaller partners. I haven't watched her much before but was unduly distracted by this in the program. Among the many things to be worked on, I would say line (individual and as a couple) should be near the top. The longer you go without addressing, the harder it will be to fix.

 

[AngieNikodinovLove (ANL)]

Wow what a great program from Dea and Max. The triple twist, she never had that before. That was a really great program. I specially love her position in the lift. Wow I hope More to come from them

⛸⛸

 

[aftershocks]

The triple twist, she never had that before.

Deanna had a triple twist with Nate Bartholomay and they got it fairly quickly. I'm sure Deanna and Max were working on a 3-twist since they partnered, but weren't ready to show it at their earlier comp.

Really great progress from S/D. Integrating the 3Tw. Agree, program is not an asset for them. Next year they are going to need to be packaged properly. I was most pleased with how happy she looked here, which I don't think I've seen from her in several years.

Indeed, not only Deanna looks happy. Max looks extremely happy as well. I don't recall him smiling and laughing so broadly in the kiss 'n cry with his former partners. Good for Max and Deanna. They are looking good. Deanna has lightened her hair slightly.

They came out with palpable confidence and connection with each other. Like I said earlier in this thread, fans have to be patient with newly formed partnerships. It does no good to over-react after every outing, especially with initial competitions where new teams are simply trying to get their feet wet while they're still training hard and becoming accustomed to each other's rhythms and timing.

Regarding their programs, just as with the new pairing of Luba/Charlie, starting out with safe, comfortable programs that are basic is the normal strategy. Once both these new teams continue to build comfort and confidence, and discover their unique styles, they will surely push forward to work more on packaging (choreo, music, costumes) while incorporating more difficulty and stand-out moves.

 

[aftershocks]

... Wow I agree Choinard is all grown up! Glad she can continue to maintain pair elements and keep going until the right partner comes along or until Davis catches up. She’s also doing singles.

Among the many things to be worked on, I would say line (individual and as a couple) should be near the top. The longer you go without addressing, the harder it will be to fix.

I think this new team of Choinard/Davis has potential. They moved well across the ice. I agree that working on line right now is imperative. They should take ballet barre and movement classes.

The coaches looked upbeat in the kiss 'n cry. They understand the long haul and patience needed. Davis landed his sbs jump, but then fell as he was probably checking on where Choinard was and not wanting to jump too close to her. Surely Davis is new to pairs, so it takes time to perfect comfort with pairs skills. He did well considering his newbie to pairs status, especially with the throws, the twist, and the lifts. They clearly still have a lot to work on together in order to smooth things out. With hard work and dedication, they can improve. Choinard is very tall, and I doubt it's easy to find many tall male pairs partners to choose between. If Nic Nadeau were to decide to switch to pairs, he might be a good option. But so many fantasy pairings never happen, alas.

I'm still thinking about the fantasy dream team of Trennt Micheau and Kirsten Moore-Towers. It's stuck in my head now that someone mentioned it here earlier.

It was interesting to see all the new Canadian pairings, particularly those training at Oakville. The junior pairs were especially intriguing -- many of them really need a lot of work, but it looked like they were all enjoying themselves and seem very eager. They shouldn't let the scores in the kiss 'n cry bother them too much at this point.

ETA:
What is missing from Wang/Boudreau-Audet's skating that causes them to continue to be scored so low?

 

[AngieNikodinovLove (ANL)]

Deanna had a triple twist with Nate Bartholomay and they got it fairly quickly. I'm sure Deanna and Max were working on a 3-twist since they partnered, but weren't ready to show it at their earlier comp.



Indeed, not only Deanna looks happy. Max looks extremely happy as well. I don't recall him smiling and laughing so broadly in the kiss 'n cry with his former partners. Good for Max and Deanna. They are looking good. Deanna has lightened her hair slightly.

They came out with palpable confidence and connection with each other. Like I said earlier in this thread, fans have to be patient with newly formed partnerships. It does no good to over-react after every outing, especially with initial competitions where new teams are simply trying to get their feet wet while they're still training hard and becoming accustomed to each other's rhythms and timing.

Regarding their programs, just as with the new pairing of Luba/Charlie, starting out with safe, comfortable programs that are basic is the normal strategy. Once both these new teams continue to build comfort and confidence, and discover their unique styles, they will surely push forward to work more on packaging (choreo, music, costumes) while incorporating more difficulty and stand-out moves.

No I mean she did not have a triple twist of that caliber with Nathan. This twist they did the other day is world class if you ask me. She looks great on the ice with Max

And I'm totally in love with her lift position how she lifts her free leg higher up in the air during the left

I'm VERY curious as to what our girl @Cleo1782 thinks

 

[Sylvia]

Challenge Senior Pairs final standings:
1 Evelyn Walsh / Trennt Michaud ON 63.04 (2) 116.34 (2) 179.38
2 Justine Brasseur / Mark Bardei QC 60.67 (3) 117.26 (1) 177.93
3 Deanna Stellato / Maxime Deschamps QC 64.28 (1) 101.28 (3) 165.56
4 Lori-Ann Matte / Thierry Ferland QC 56.16 (4) 99.36 (4) 155.52
5 Nadine Wang / Francis Boudreault-Audet QC 54.80 (5) 90.77 (5) 145.57
6 Natasha Purich / Bryce Chudak QC 49.36 (6) 81.79 (7) 131.15
7 Chloe Choinard / Shaquille Davis ON 45.46 (7) 82.49 (6) 127.95

Senior Pairs FS replay video: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x7ommol

SP protocols: https://lamp.skatecanada.ca/results/2020challenge/2020CHALLSeniorPairSP1DRO.html

FS protocols: https://lamp.skatecanada.ca/results/2020challenge/2020CHALLSeniorPairFP2DRO.html

ETA:

Challenge Junior Pairs medalists:
Patricia Andrew / Zachary Daleman ON 53.04 (2) 97.01 (2) 150.05
Brooke Mcintosh / Brandon Toste ON 48.37 (5) 100.19 (1) 148.56
Audrey Carle / Gabriel Farand ON 50.37 (4) 83.21 (6) 133.58

SP protocols: https://lamp.skatecanada.ca/results/2020challenge/2020CHALLJuniorPairSP1DRO.html
FS protocols: https://lamp.skatecanada.ca/results/2020challenge/2020CHALLJuniorPairFP2DRO.html
FS replay video: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x7omii4

 

[Rock2]

Love the top 3 junior pairs. All out of Skate Oakville btw #powershift

I have been waiting for Patricia Andrew to take her game up a notch and I saw it here with more elements being landed. The performance level was higher, especially in the last minute.

McIntosh lack of SS starting to distract me. And seems she's not doing sbs 3S so I'm hoping for more forward progress from them.

C/F have potential. Time to get on SC radar.

 

[Rock2]

Challenge Senior Pairs final standings:
1 Evelyn Walsh / Trennt Michaud ON 63.04 (2) 116.34 (2) 179.38
2 Justine Brasseur / Mark Bardei QC 60.67 (3) 117.26 (1) 177.93
3 Deanna Stellato / Maxime Deschamps QC 64.28 (1) 101.28 (3) 165.56
4 Lori-Ann Matte / Thierry Ferland QC 56.16 (4) 99.36 (4) 155.52
5 Nadine Wang / Francis Boudreault-Audet QC 54.80 (5) 90.77 (5) 145.57
6 Natasha Purich / Bryce Chudak QC 49.36 (6) 81.79 (7) 131.15
7 Chloe Choinard / Shaquille Davis ON 45.46 (7) 82.49 (6) 127.95

Senior Pairs FS replay video: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x7ommol

SP protocols: https://lamp.skatecanada.ca/results/2020challenge/2020CHALLSeniorPairSP1DRO.html

FS protocols: https://lamp.skatecanada.ca/results/2020challenge/2020CHALLSeniorPairFP2DRO.html

So happy I have tickets to Pairs (and men) SP in Mississauga. Going to see some serious jockeying for position in the eyes of SC and for that important third 4CC spot. Starts with working your way into the final group after the short.

Where S/D fit in will be most interesting as they are the one team that's getting better day by day. Every other team sort of is what they are so it's just a game of how much can they execute on the day. Max is a beast and pretty reliable - you just KNOW Deanna will see missing her landings as unacceptable. There isn't enough popcorn in the arena.....

 

[aftershocks]

No I mean she did not have a triple twist of that caliber with Nathan. This twist they did the other day is world class if you ask me. She looks great on the ice with Max...

Thanks for clarifying because you didn't make that clear in your initial post. I'll take another look, but I still don't see any reason to be surprised about the high caliber 3-twist execution. I think Max is slightly taller than Nate, and although there's a similar muscularity, Max has a bit more line and elegance to his skating. When I first heard Deanna & Max were pairing, I was excited because I immediately recognized they have a similar physicality, and that they would match exceptionally well aesthetically. Plus, I always felt Max was a very good pairs partner; he was always stronger on the ice than his previous partners.

Surely when they first began skating together because Max was helping Deanna keep up her pairs skills, it must have immediately dawned on them how good it felt skating together and how well-matched they are. Apparently, Max quickly nixed his plans to pair with an Asian skater. Why leave Canada if he didn't have to? Plus, when a good thing drops in your lap, why not grab it and run with it? Deanna and Max both must feel that the rewards of simply skating together are worth the risks and challenges they face, particularly with the release and the citizenship issues.

Kudos on their 3-twist, but we see amazing triple twist feats from experienced pairs skaters all the time. I'm sure they take it in stride and are proud to be flashing it this soon, and are getting down to business trying to steadily improve in all areas.

 

[million$momma]

Love the top 3 junior pairs. All out of Skate Oakville btw #powershift

I have been waiting for Patricia Andrew to take her game up a notch and I saw it here with more elements being landed. The performance level was higher, especially in the last minute.

McIntosh lack of SS starting to distract me. And seems she's not doing sbs 3S so I'm hoping for more forward progress from them.

C/F have potential. Time to get on SC radar.

McIntosh was doing triples earlier in the season in her singles programs. When you look at singles results she is a much stronger jumper than she shows in pairs. She has not been skating singles in the past few months. Has she been injured? Or just focusing on pairs?

 

[sk8girl]

I'm truthfully not seeing as much potential in Choinard as others are.
<snip>
They have lots of work ahead on coordinating their look but this will be complicated by what seems to me to be almost cringeworthy body line on her part.

I agree on both counts. Just watched their long at Challenge and I'm just not seeing it. Which aspect is it that people are excited about? Was she a lot better with her previous partnerr? (I haven't been following junior pairs much over the past couple of years.)

Now with Brasseur, I get it. I'm concerned about her jumps, but she has the attack and the lines and the it factor and she drew me in immediately.

Love the top 3 junior pairs. All out of Skate Oakville btw #powershift

Patricia and Zachary are in Brantford with Alison Purkiss. But yeah, all Ontario teams.

 

[RoseRed]

Love the top 3 junior pairs. All out of Skate Oakville btw #powershift

I have been waiting for Patricia Andrew to take her game up a notch and I saw it here with more elements being landed. The performance level was higher, especially in the last minute.

McIntosh lack of SS starting to distract me. And seems she's not doing sbs 3S so I'm hoping for more forward progress from them.

C/F have potential. Time to get on SC radar.

In addition to A/D as mentioned, McIntosh/Toste are not out of Skate Oakville either. They've done simulations and things there, but their main coach has always been Andrew Evans out of Toronto/Mississauga (I think they train at the Canadian Ice Academy).

Skate Oakville's junior teams here were Carle/Farand, Ripley/Brawley, and Leung/Fletcher.

As mentioned, Brooke has done 3S, 3T and 3Lo (often <) in her singles skating. I'm not sure Brandon can do all of those - the only triple he landed at Challenge last season seems to be the 3S, and I haven't seen him skate singles since then. Don't know which of them it's been taken out for, but she has grown so they may need time to get it stable again if it is her.

 

[fsfann]

I just love their 'look' and line together.. Very exciting new partnership.

 

[Rock2]

In addition to A/D as mentioned, McIntosh/Toste are not out of Skate Oakville either. They've done simulations and things there, but their main coach has always been Andrew Evans out of Toronto/Mississauga (I think they train at the Canadian Ice Academy).

Skate Oakville's junior teams here were Carle/Farand, Ripley/Brawley, and Leung/Fletcher.

As mentioned, Brooke has done 3S, 3T and 3Lo (often <) in her singles skating. I'm not sure Brandon can do all of those - the only triple he landed at Challenge last season seems to be the 3S, and I haven't seen him skate singles since then. Don't know which of them it's been taken out for, but she has grown so they may need time to get it stable again if it is her.

Thank you for the clarification. The feed had M/T out of Skate Oakville so I was reacting to that.
Fair point that it might be him that's the issue on jumps. I was reacting to something I had been told offline that sent me in that direction but he's growing a lot too so he may be losing his jumps. Hard to tell if she's not skating singles this year where the problem really is.

Shame to get the 3Tw going and then start giving those points back on jumps. Arrrgh.

 

[shutterbug]

As mentioned, Brooke has done 3S, 3T and 3Lo (often <) in her singles skating. I'm not sure Brandon can do all of those - the only triple he landed at Challenge last season seems to be the 3S, and I haven't seen him skate singles since then. Don't know which of them it's been taken out for, but she has grown so they may need time to get it stable again if it is her.

In late October Brooke was working on a 3flip-3loop: https://www.instagram.com/p/B35eH9YHtZv/ If there's problem with triple jumps, it's more likely Brandon.

 

[Rafter]

Love the top 3 junior pairs. All out of Skate Oakville btw #powershift

I have been waiting for Patricia Andrew to take her game up a notch and I saw it here with more elements being landed. The performance level was higher, especially in the last minute.

McIntosh lack of SS starting to distract me. And seems she's not doing sbs 3S so I'm hoping for more forward progress from them.

C/F have potential. Time to get on SC radar.

I agree about McIntosh. Stroking and edges need a lot of work. And she’s in desperate need of some ballet or Pilates classes. Anything to get more free foot stretch and a pointed toe.

Audrey Carle has a nice look. A look that is a rare thing from a Canadian ladies pairs girl.

Patricia Andrew just looks like a pair girl and seems pretty fearless. Daleman will have to be careful not to go too OTT in the expression department and therefore outshine her.

Brasseur and Bardei don’t appear to be progressing. She looks scared of the throws and they are as slow as molasses going into the SBS jumps and throws.

 

[Colonel Green]

Brasseur and Bardei don’t appear to be progressing.

They have been, though, particularly in terms of landing the jumps. There's still a ways to go, but it's better than it was last year.

 

[mackiecat]

Andrew and Daleman are not from Oakville, they represent Hamilton. Brandon does represent Oakville but Brooke is CIA and they train there for pair. The only top 3 team from Oakville was Carle/Farlan

 

[Xsktrx]

In late October Brooke was working on a 3flip-3loop: https://www.instagram.com/p/B35eH9YHtZv/ If there's problem with triple jumps, it's more likely Brandon.

Check out last year’s nationals Novice short program scores. Brooke landed triple toe triple toe combo with a bonus and triple sal with a bonus and apparently is still training and landing them in practice. The jumping limitations for this pair are Brandon’s.

 

[jlmart]

I have been a fan of Justine since she set a national novice women's record that stood for a couple of years.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y35t4Xvwue4&list=PL1J8Ig1tWVgWruuuUf6Wqoj8XpXd0B4XO

I followed her when she partnered with Steven LaPointe and then with Matthieu Ostiguy. When I heard she was going to partner with Bardei I looked him up on Youtube and watched with a bit of horror. Steven and Matthieu had gently tossed her a couple of feet in competition, Mark was firing his partner half way across the arena. I wondered then how she would manage, or if she would just curl up in a ball and hope for the best. He is not as aggressive with his throws now and she has greatly improved her landings. I agree they are not progressing as quickly as I had hoped but I am not ready to give up on them yet. They could be fabulous -I just don't understand quite why they are taking so long to gel.

 

[Rock2]

Patricia Andrew just looks like a pair girl and seems pretty fearless. Daleman will have to be careful not to go too OTT in the expression department and therefore outshine her.

When she's at her best, vaguely reminiscent of a young Sale, but not quite ready for that comparison yet.

As for him, that smile is painted on. Either that or someone rammed a coat hanger into his mouth. Nothing authentic about it - almost to the point of being a little creepy - but he's trying.

 

[livetoskate]

I'm really happy to see Deanna still skating and doing well with a new partner. They look great especially for being a new team. I remember when she was a promising singles skater. She must be such a hard worker to learn pairs and be so fit competing against teens.

 

[aftershocks]

What is this about a male partner not supposed to 'outshine' his female counterpart? The pairs girl just has to pony up now and get up to speed with presentation skills.

It was enjoyable taking a look at the Canadian junior pairs teams currently competing. The bottom two teams appear very new to pairs and need a lot of work. Teams 7 through 11 are interesting, with 7 through 9 having fairly nice long lines (aside from Caidence, but she matches well with Eberl). In particular, the heights of Ethier and St-Louis can accommodate their partners possibly growing taller. Performance-wise, I enjoyed Leung/Fletcher even though they placed 11th. As well, Levesque/Hudon, Carignan/Pierro, Caidence D/Raine Eberl and the top 3 teams have nice performance qualities. From 3 through 10, these pairs seem fairly close in skill level. All of course are still learning and growing as they work on increasing their pairs skill sets.

Carle/Farand have long, lean lines similar to Laurin/Ethier and Perreault/St-Louis, but C/F both have endlessly long legs and a very engaging look together on the ice. Their ice coverage was good and they especially excelled at lifts, twist, and death spiral. Their spins were decent, but they need to improve consistency, technique and confidence on their throws and sbs jumps, and of course eventually upgrade to a 3tw. They have a nice quality together, which bodes well if they continue to improve and are provided with more opportunities from Skate Canada. Places 3-10 were bunched up in the scoring in the fp, so although C/F placed low in the fp, their overall score had them coming in third, which should boost their confidence.

The top two teams (McIntosh/Toste and Andrew/Daleman) have the best overall strengths on their elements, but they need to continue improving in all areas.

 

[Vase]

Brooke and Brandin skated a beautiful long program. Though in podium pictures she looks to be slouching to appear smaller, not the first time I’ve noticed this. They do skate pairs out of Canadian Ice academy with Andrew Evans
I like the look of Audrey and Gab and happy for their podium finish, they are going and have time to develop. She’s younger then Patricia.
Patricia and Zach are looking great, I’m excited for them at Nationals. Patricia has landed 3S before in competition, I know she did it at challenge last year.
so it looks to be the focus on the throws, before adding anything more.
But looking at the past couple weeks Alison wasn’t at sectionals, then went to events with Walsh/Michaud and also MTM. I’d think that would not benefit A/D training weeks preparing for challenge.

 

[aftershocks]

I'm really happy to see Deanna still skating and doing well with a new partner. They look great especially for being a new team. I remember when she was a promising singles skater. She must be such a hard worker to learn pairs and be so fit competing against teens.

Yes, I'm happy for Deanna and Max that they found each other, and I hope it all works out for them with the release and the citizenship issue. Since Deanna is already married (is she still with her husband and did he make the move to Canada?), marriage which is the speedier route to citizenship would not be an option. I wonder what is happening with her release. Meanwhile, she and Max seem happy working together, and the sp showed the fruits of their labor.

In the fp, Deanna appeared to have more nerves than is usual for her, and so the jumps and throws were off. But the quality and the promise is definitely there. They were stoked to win the sp, which should give them a boost of confidence to spur them on. They edged Walsh/Michaud in the sp by skating clean and beautifully. Surely they scored better than W/M on PCS - I haven't seen protocols. In the fp, W/M didn't perform lights out, as Evelyn was shaky on the jumps and throws. Therefore, with a performance similar to what they achieved in the sp, Deanna/Max could have won -- they are definitely a promising team with a lot to hope for and look forward to.

Brasseur/Bardei have amazing lifts and 3tw, but seem messy and uncertain in other areas. They performed better in the fp at Warsaw Cup. They seemed tired at this Qualifying competition. I would imagine that Aunt Isabelle has passed on some lift tips to Justine, gained during Isabelle's great pairs career with Lloyd Eisler. Plus, Bardei is a tall, strong pairs guy.

Does anyone know why Walsh/Michaud had to compete at Qualifying when they competed on the GP? Which junior and senior Canadian teams made the cut for Canadian Nationals?

 

[Vase]

In late October Brooke was working on a 3flip-3loop: https://www.instagram.com/p/B35eH9YHtZv/ If there's problem with triple jumps, it's more likely Brandon.

I think adding too many elements too fast are maybe a distraction to the young pair girls. So much mental and physical strength needed for young bodies. They are maybe all capable but so much growth needed in all areas, I would like to think coaches are prioritizing.

 

[skatingguy]

Does anyone know why Walsh/Michaud had to compete at Qualifying when they competed on the GP? Which junior and senior Canadian teams made the cut for Canadian Nationals?

Any of the skaters who have byes to Nationals can choose to compete at the Challenge. Nam Nguyen didn't need to compete either, but I guess that they wanted another competition before Canadians. There are only 3 other senior teams so all the entries for have qualified, and for junior there were 13 teams at Challenge so I would think that the top 12 would advance, but I'm not sure if there are any byes.