Skate Canada: What to expect

The last event of the Grand Prix series comes to Canada this weekend. Skate Canada, in Kitchener, Ontario, will determine who advances to December's Grand Prix Final in Tokyo. It also features the return of Canadian world silver medalist Patrick Chan, redemption opportunities for several skaters, and three American ladies trying to catch up.

So far this season, many of our questions have been answered and beliefs confirmed: South Korean Kim Yu-Na is dominant. Russian Yevgeny Plushenko is perhaps better than he was when he won Olympic gold. The American dance teams are among the best in the world. Here are five questions we expect to be answered this weekend at the Aud Arena.

1. Can Jeremy Abbott and Daisuke Takahashi find their form?
American Abbott and Japan's Takahashi faced each other in the NHK Trophy two weeks ago, both trying to rebound from last-season setbacks - Abbott from a dismal performance at the 2009 World Championships after winning the Grand Prix Final and Takahashi from knee surgery that knocked him out for the entire season. In Japan, they both showed flashes of brilliance - Takahashi with his trademark charm and enthusiasm and Abbott with free-flowing style and easygoing confidence. But they both showed weakness in their jumping: Takahashi had three jumps downgraded and counted two falls in his free skate, while Abbott fell three times, had his quad toe downgraded and popped a triple Axel.

In Canada, each looks to complete the second half of his comeback, and both need to skate two clean programs to reaffirm themselves as among the best in the world. But will Abbott again attempt the quad? It's a historically inconsistent jump for him. And will Takahashi regain control of his quad? He's landed two in the same program (on his way to the highest free skate score in history), but in Japan, he lacked precision on many of his jumps. It's also important to note the gamble here: neither man garnered more than one point on his quad in Japan.

2. How will Joannie Rochette perform under pressure?
Skate Canada will be Rochette's first real test of how well she can handle the expectations that come with being a medal contender in a home Olympics. Rochette has insisted that the extra attention she's received is a positive. "I know that if I do a great performance I will be rewarded for it, so it just takes some pressure away," Rochette says. "I've been able to raise my profile and be seen as a top contender, finally." If she wants to maintain her visibility she'll need to avoid a repeat of her performance at her first Grand Prix event, in China. There, she had a meltdown in the short program, landing just one triple jump and ending up third overall behind two ladies she should be able to beat.

Rochette will face one of them again in Kitchener, Japan's Akiko Suzuki. Suzuki has emerged this season as compatriots Mao Asada, Fumie Suguri and Yukari Nakano have either struggled or underwhelmed. Suzuki's win in China places her on the list of ladies eligible to make the Grand Prix Final. Rochette can - and should - be there, too.

3. Is Patrick Chan ready?
Chan arrives in Kitchener as one of Canada's poster boys for the Vancouver Games, but his season debut has was delayed. Originally scheduled for a Grand Prix event in Moscow, Chan withdrew after tearing a muscle in his left calf. Skate Canada will be his only international competition prior to the Vancouver Games.

4. How will Alissa Czisny, Caroline Zhang and Mirai Nagasu answer the statements made by their teammates?
The American ladies are all jockeying for position heading into the U.S. Nationals and so far, Rachael Flatt and Ashley Wagner have established themselves as the front-runners. Will Czisny be able to capitalize on her track record of competing well at Skate Canada (she won in 2005 and was third in 2008) and get her season back on track? Will Zhang skate with the freedom, enthusiasm and most importantly, speed that would allow her to make an impact in Kitchener? All Nagasu wanted to do after her first event in China was to "go home and practice." She's had three weeks to fix the jumping errors that plagued earlier this season. Has she made the most of this time?

5. Who will make the final?
The top six skaters or teams from each discipline, based on points earned over the course of the series qualify to the Grand Prix Final, held in Tokyo, Dec. 1 and 2.

Barring disaster in Kitchener, the dance teams headed to Tokyo are set, including both American teams (Charlie Davis/Meryl White and Tanith Belbin/Ben Agosto). But for everyone else, nothing is certain until Skate Canada is completed so it's a logical assumption that elite skaters from the Czech Republic to China will be anticipating the results with some level of anxiety.

Of the Americans, Evan Lysacek is a sure bet for Tokyo, but both Johnny Weir and Wagner's fates rest on the blades of others. Weir, currently fourth in the standings, stands to benefit from Patrick Chan's participation in the event. Chan won't make the final because he is only skating in one event, and is poised to "steal" available points from others skaters. If Chan wins, it can only help Weir. There are multiple scenarios surrounding Wagner's inclusion or exclusion from the final, but a 1-2 finish (in either order) by Suzuki and Rochette will preserve her spot.