Canadian Nationals 2016- Pairs

Duhamel and Radford have not been at their best all season, and that streak continued at nationals. That's not at all to say they didn't skate well, but we were spoiled by the excellent skating and nearly perfect consistency last season, and that's missing a little this year. For the second time this season, I've seen Meagan double the side by side lutzes (first at the Autumn Classic), which is a jump we all know she can do with no problem, which makes me wonder if this program just isn't working for them. They don't look as comfortable with this program still as they did with the program last year. With the competition they'll be seeing at Worlds, if I were them, I might just be switching back to the old short for the end of the season.

It's no secret that Seguin and Bilodeau are one of my favourite teams right now. They're more consistent than just about anybody, and they commit 100% to the performance, which are probably the two things I like most in my favourite skaters. I will take skaters with quality in the technical elements and the transitions, performance, and skating skills with a lower technical base value over just technical base value any day. I find them fun to watch, I'm not nervous watching them, and even though they were not at the top of their game here, they were still pretty spectacular. Even though they got into the Grand Prix Final this season largely based on what others didn't do (and who didn't go), I would say they're going to be there pretty regularly in the coming years, and then once they get a quad, watch out Meagan and Eric, they'll be one of the best teams in the world for sure. They had some pretty spectacular elements, notably the huge triple twist in the short and I genuinely love watching them.

Ilyushechkina and Moscovitch had two very good skates for them here. She didn't struggle as much as she usually does on the side by side jumps, and as per usual the lifts were amazing. Their other elements were strong, and they're starting to come together as a coherent team in a way they weren't entirely last season. They seem to fit well together naturally, which is making the transition for them smoother than for some of the other new teams we saw at nationals. They still need to work on their synchronization on their side by side elements and the step sequence, they tend to lose each other just a little, but as far as relatively new teams go, that's a pretty small critique. As long as she can nail the side by side jumps going forward, they'll soon be climbing the world ranks.

Moore-Towers and Marinaro were unfortunately the most memorable team of the event in the worst way. I have never seen a twist go that wrong, and I hope it never happens to anyone again. But, if I'm being frank, Michael has made me nervous on every twist and lift (especially lift) since Kirsten has partnered with him. There is a significant inherent risk in pairs skating, but his bad posture and general shakiness in the lifts only increases that risk. I'm glad that they're both okay, and were able to skate both programs (surprisingly well, considering the intensity of that fall), but it's unsurprising they weren't given any assignments for the rest of the season, the question now is what happens for them going forward? This is the second year in a row they've missed worlds, and it's not looking like Duhamel and Radford or Seguin and Bilodeau are going anywhere any time soon. They're going to have to make a lot of ground if they want a chance to skate in the next Olympics.

Grenier and Deschemps seemed to really struggle with the twist in both programs, though not nearly as much as Moore-Towers and Marinaro. In general, I like these two well enough, but they aren't the most exciting or memorable team, especially in a field where there are so many memorable teams (for good or bad).

Bell and Sweigers have made significant improvements since the beginning of the season, but they still have a long way to go. They seem to have a lot of trouble with the pair spin, it was pretty rough in both programs here, and the setup seems to take forever. I'm sure over time that as well as the twist will come, they're a new team, and so they're going to struggle with some of those elements. They definitely had some trouble on the side by side jumps, but that's unsurprising, most teams new or not, struggle with the side by side jumps.

Jones and Regan are a team I like, in general. But they looked a little rough at nationals. They both looked a little stiff in the short, and so they were a little shaky. They mostly need some tidying on their big elements, like the catch on the twist and the landings of the side by side jumps and throws. I also don't know how they don't have issues with the judging on their death spiral, because her head always ends up on the ice. You can see when they finish that element that there is snow on her head. Her blade should be the only thing touching the ice, from the second her head touches the ice, the element should be considered over the issue without having the technical panel's ability to review elements is telling when her head touched the ice. The other main critique I have of them is that she skates with her head down, which removes the connection with the audience from the performance, it is especially obvious in the free, since they already don't seem that committed to some of their choreography.