I think Elladj did very well. Of course, he remains behind guys like Patrick, Kevin, Nam, even Keegan because his quad isn't there but I love seeing him skate, and I think his SP music is just awesome for him.
Dance: It was to be expected that Weapo, since they hadn't done any events prior would get low levels. I really like the second half of their SD and I am probably one of the only ones who like their FD... but of course, it will develop and get better. It's too bad though that they started in Russia... When we look at the world rankings, Weapo are ahead of many teams, including the Russians, so finishing in third here can be seen as either a lack of exposure to the judges, or many other things... what it does to Canadian skating though is that now, the Russians are taking a spot for the GPF (which perhaps they wouldn't deserve based on what may happen in at worlds) and it means that most likely, GP and Weapo are fighting for the last GPF spot.
Pairs : We all agree that Charlie and Julianne struggled a bit this weekend. However, when we compare to other things messing up SBS in other events, I am not sure that they were treated like contenders and winners of SA. Their PCS are so low. They are so far away from their PB.... especially in the LP when the only big mistake was one fall.... erm... a lot of teams have one fall or a pop and still manage to score high.... I wasn't NOT impressed... seemed to be a way again to secure spots for other teams in GPF... I don't want to sound Russophobe because I am not. But damn, when I think about it, that's all I can see.
On the other hand, Ruest and Wolfe, at their first ever GP got just behind with Julianne and Charlie in 6th.... they of course didn't score super high but were noticed and appreciated for what they did and rightly so... of course, they are not contenders yet... so they were rewarded
and even got to skate at the gala which pleased me. I think that with such a new team, having these opportunities is wonderful, it tells them : guys you are part of this... you are in the elite of pairs... keep working hard....
Talking about Ruest and Wolfe to end this post allows me to finish on a very positive note !!! YAY !!!!!
So thoughts on this weekend of Canadian skating?
because truly, I didn't enjoy their skating at all.... and was disappointed for others. However, whether Castelli and Tran, K/O'Shea or even Kavaguti/Smirnoff spoil it for others, the problem resides : Seguin/Bilodeau are counting on the right teams to do well and the contenders to do badly... not ideal. Lubov and Dylan could also get a silver... even if it's a tough one, and then would get 24 points.... We will see what happens but I feel that the Russians have an advantage, and I would be fine if it were a great team but it's not the case here IMHO. 
