Canadian ice dancers Tessa Virtue, left, and Scott Moir are shooting up the figure skating ranks, according to CBC Sports analyst Kurt Browning. (Andrew Vaughan)

Jessica Dube and Bryce Davison gave Canada a big boost to start the figure skating season by capturing the pairs title at the season-opening Skate America event in Reading Pa., last Saturday.

Now, with CBC Sports's coverage of the Skate Canada International commencing Friday in Quebec City, we'll find out how the rest of the team matches up against some of the best skaters in the world.

Men's world champion Brian Joubert of France will take part in the competition, along with Japan's Mao Asada, who earned a silver medal at the 2007 world championships in Tokyo.

With the Grand Prix season already under way, CBC figure skating analysts Kurt Browning and Tracy Wilson spoke to CBCSports.ca regarding Jeffrey Buttle's medal chances this year, the state of the Canadian program and if Japan's dominance in the sport will continue.

Q: Jeffrey Buttle is returning from a back injury that sidelined him for all of last year's Grand Prix season. He says his training has gone well, but is he ready to challenge the top skaters in the world?

Browning: Jeffrey is still one of most recognizably great skaters on the planet. We're all waiting for the power to show in his jumps and the quad to happen. If he does, it's like, 'Wow, welcome to the ring.' The guy is already one of the best skaters in the world. His jumps are just really beautiful. They're seamless, so when he executes them it doesn't really matter that they're an inch and a half lower than the other competitors because they're so perfect and eloquent. This allows him to get positive marks. Then there are the spins, his footwork, musicality and presentation. I mean, there are a lot of things to add up.

Q: He also places a high premium on conditioning. Why is that important?

Wilson: Because he builds himself a very strong foundation and very high base to build on. He's in terrific shape and has only been really limited by injuries in his training. To watch his work ethic and the way he pays attention to detail – every edge, every nuance – is quite remarkable.

Q: Montreal's Joannie Rochette finished 10th at the 2007 world championships. What does she need to do in order to take the next step?

Wilson: She needs to [increase] the technical degree of difficulty and that means a triple-triple combination. She can do them. She can do them in practice. What I love about Joannie is the combination of her power and grace.

Q: There is talk, not just with the Canadian media but around the world, that Canada's ice dancing pair of Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir are stars in the making. Why are they creating such a buzz?

Browning: They're shooting up the ranks so fast. Last year at the world championships, they did something on the ice and I found myself unable to think of anything else but what they were doing during a dance event. That's a huge compliment and it wasn't because they are Canadians. I think it was in their long program [where] they performed a waltz and they just nailed it. It was classic [1988 Olympic bronze medallist] Tracy Wilson Rob McCall stuff. It was so well done I just went, 'Oh my God that is what the sport is missing right now.' I just sat there and understood why people like to watch figure skating after I watched them. I have a really sneaking suspicion that these kids – I hate to say it – have serious potential to wear some hardware around their necks in Vancouver [site of the 2010 Winter Olympics].

Q: They're preceding the Canadian team of Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon, who retired last season following a highly successful run. What are your thoughts when you look back at their careers?

Wilson: I thought what they were able to do was to combine all the technical requirements of the new [judging] system with the theatre and the drama of their program. I believe they were most successful at that. Although they had some difficulty in their program with the footwork and the turns, they were able to weave it into the music that made you forget [about their weakness] and get carried away with the rest of routine. When you pulled yourself back, you appreciated what they did with the technical aspects.

World champion Miki Ando is part of a Japanese program which has dominated the sport of figure skating in recent years. (Koji Watanabe/Getty Images)

Q: How do you view the Canadian figure skating program as a whole?

Wilson: I see Skate Canada as an organization which is building a new attitude and new approach. You've got a new group [of people] in now running Skate Canada and the feeling from me is that they've got a strong vision and they're going to be more aggressive and I think that's what had to happen.

Q: What are some of the key story lines or issues that you see coming for this upcoming season?

Wilson: You're getting close now to the [Vancouver] Olympics and this season is kind of setting the tone. This season will probably dictate who the players are and who will be left behind. That's what we will be watching, who is going to be able to step up. Will the American ladies be able to compete with Korea's Yu-Na Kim or the power Japanese skaters Miki Ando [the world champion] and Mao Asada? And so we're just now kind of looking to see how the landscape is changing and building going into the Olympics.

Q: Jeffrey Buttle admits world champion Brian Joubert of France will be the man to beat this season. You choreograph his short and long programs, what makes him so good?

Browning: I've spent some time with him and he's in a great mental place. He's so level-headed and he just loves to compete. He wants to do three quads in all his programs. He's as healthy as you can get, he's strong as an ox, and wants to improve his artistry. He presents himself well and then he's got fantastic jumps. There is a weakness [with his artistic marks] but unfortunately [for the rest of the field] in the next three years before the Olympics, that weakness is going to keep getting stronger.

Q: As a nation, Japan has been a force for the last few years, especially the duo of Ando and Asada. Do you expect that to continue?

Wilson: I do. The Japanese are very deep and powerful. You have some fantastic skaters. The bar has been definitely raised for someone like Joannie Rochette and the American women to measure up to. The Japanese women have really set the bar high with their jumps. Sometimes it can be a cycle, but it's also the current champions who motivate the young skaters.

The [Japanese] association will also send these skaters anywhere in the world to get the best training and it also promotes competition. If you're a skater and three other kids are doing triple lutzes, it will push you. They also have large numbers and very dedicated, serious athletes at a young age.

Q: There was a time when the Russians dominated almost every figure skating event. What happened to their stranglehold on the sport?

Wilson: The fabric of their training just started to fall apart. A lot of the coaches started leaving and [finding work] in other countries around the world - meaning young Russian skaters suffered. Also, the [financial] support and the way the system was run is not the same.

Q: Can they regain their place among the elite countries?

Wilson: Yes they can. The great coaches have returned. So if the coaches go back, it helps the development. But they have to go back to the grassroots and fund it. They need to go back to the local programs and build that sort of sports machine concept. The hunger factor also comes into play.

Q: Do you think the American program has dropped off a bit?

Wilson: I wouldn't say totally. I say for sure for the women, ice dance and even the men. Their weakest area right now is with the pairs. It's like everything still is in a state of flux and change. It looks like there's going to be a new world order [with Japan]. I think Skate Canada and the U.S. perhaps are to a degree, rebuilding.