Kerri Einarson opens Tournament of Hearts 4-peat bid with victory

Defending champion Kerri Einarson opened the Canadian women's curling championship with an 11-8 win over Quebec's Laurie St-Georges on Friday in Kamloops, B.C.

Einarson scored four points in the eighth end to take a commanding lead. Quebec shook hands after nine ends.

Einarson's team out of Manitoba's Gimli Curling Club is chasing a fourth straight national title.

In other results in Friday evening's opening draw, B.C.'s Clancy Grandy beat Prince Edward Island's Marie Christianson 10-6, Nova Scotia's Christina Black defeated Saskatchewan's Robyn Silvernagle 12-7 and Kaitlyn Lawes's wild-card team downed Alberta's Kayla Skrlik 8-5.

The winner of the Scotties Tournament of Hearts on Feb. 26 represents Canada at the world championship March 18-26 in Sandviken, Sweden.

Canadians coaching curling teams from other countries is a common sight at tournaments, but Grandy recruited a Swedish heavyweight.

Six-time world and reigning Olympic men's champion skip Niklas Edin is coaching the host B.C. team in Kamloops.

"He's the best at what he does in the game, in my opinion," Grandy said Friday before the win over Prince Edward Island.

"We were looking for some tactical help. Someone who could come out and provide that quick input.

"We also really think his personality meshes well with our team. He's got that really calm demeanour and that's something we thought would work really well with our group."

Edin, 37, is pacing himself following knee surgery in November. He tore the meniscus in his knee in October.

While he returned to competition in January's Canadian Open in Camrose, Alta., and reached the final, the injury afforded him the time to take on a coaching assignment.

"They just asked me and it was good timing for me to coach a