Five NHL Teams To Switch The Channel On In 08’

By Joshua Khan…

After informing you about which teams you should pay attention to, it seems only fair to note the less fortunate ones. These teams have went through another tough off-season and are likely to turn into an underdog favourite….in a year or three.

Atlanta Thrashers

All they needed was a center. Bobby Holik was definitely not the answer and now the Thrashers are hurting in a big way. With Marian Hossa gone, the team can no longer build one of the best lines in NHL history. Iyla Kovalchuk could score 60 goals a season by himself if he wanted to, but the Thrashers would still have a below-average offence. Aside from Tobias Enstrom, their defence is pretty hideous too. In order for Atlanta to improve, they’re going to need to find or produce some scoring threats as well as get some outstanding help from their goalies.

Buffalo Sabres

It seems like no one wants to play in Buffalo anymore except Ryan Miller. Brian Campbell left and in return the Sabres got Steve Bernier, a potential threat who also left. Since witnessing their dynamic duo leave a few years ago, all Buffalo has done is breakdown and with no signs of rebuilding. There is hope with players such as Thomas Vanek, Jason Pominville and Derek Roy, but the team’s better off learning how to create a logo than hunt down a playoff spot.

Los Angeles Kings

The tools have been there for the past few years, but the Kings have just not been able to use them. This year is going to be a truly horrific site to see as the team bodes farewell to a few star players and sulks at the lame washouts that won’t go away. There is a lot of young talent in Los Angeles, but their goaltending situation is going to hurt them in the long run. Both Jonathan Bernier and Erik Ersberg are green and Jason LaBarbera is all flash and that’s pretty much it. Don’t believe how much the Kings suck? Well click over to their website and you’ll see the hot topic this off-season is the fact they’re celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Wayne Gretzky trade.

Nashville Predators

Like many others during last year’s playoffs, I nearly wet myself thinking the Nashville Predators could eliminate the Detroit Red Wings in the first round. But instead, the Preds couldn’t hang on to the glorious thought and ended up seeing their rivals take home hockey’s prestigious trophy. The only interesting thing fans will want to follow when it comes to the Predators is Dan Ellis’ career. The unknown goalie had an amazing playoff series and tried everything to keep his team in it. Hopefully this season he can make a great impression on the league despite playing for a team that’s going to have a season uglier than their past third jersey.

Toronto Maple Leafs

Rebuilding, John Tavares-hunting and placing almost dead last. Need I say more?

The Dream Scheme

by Michelle C. Williams… The 1992 Summer Olympics was indeed a dream when it allowed men’s basketball teams to use NBA players for the first time ever.  In came Bird, Jordan and Johnson (Magic that is) for the U.S. men’s team.  They went on to win all of their games by at least a 30 point margin.  Their stardom on the courts even had them being approached by opposing teams for autographs.

But that was 1992 and now it’s 2008 and the team, after winning a measly bronze medal in 2004, is now on the quest to redeem themselves.

If by chance though that they are unable to do this expect them to do what Americans sometimes do best, make excuses*.

There are a lot for them to choose from but they will most likely stick to their favourite one from the past, our big stars declined to be on the team.

The question is though, how many stars does it take to win gold?  So what if all-star Tim Duncan and no one from champion winners Boston Celtics plays for the U.S.  Does that mean they can’t compete against teams like Angola and Iran who have no NBA players?  Nope.  It just means that if they don’t even get bronze, we (the rest of the world) will have to put up with their whining because apparently having more medals than everyone else at practically every Olympics is not enough.

All insults aside, the U.S. is the most dominating team in summer Olympics men’s basketball and have won 12 gold medals to date.  Therefore I would be shocked if they don’t win gold.  But if they don’t at least they qualified, more than I could say about Team Canada and our crappy Canada Basketball initiative.

*for examples of excuses please refer to every and all things President Bush

Wake Up With Gabrielle Union

To put it bluntly, Gabrielle is stacked. She is an all-around, bona fide babe. Her list of amazing features reads like the “after” part of a plastic surgery advertisement: tight body, long legs, beautiful face, and so it continues…

Catch her at a movie premiere appearance and you will have to force yourself to blink.