New life for Tottenham Hotspur! Aa I was writing an article for the last issue, Juande Ramos was still the manager of the Tottenham Hotspur and they were the only team that had no wins at all in the 2008-09 Season in the English Premier League. But a few days later, the club fired Ramos and his position was filled by a famous British head coach, Harry Redknapp. He was the manager of another club, Portsmouth, in this league for a few years. After the move, Tottenham played much better in front of their fans on October 26". Tottenham defeated Bolton and finally got their first victory this season. Congratulations to them! The Russian newcomer, Roman Pavlyuchenko, scored his first Premier League goal for the Hotspurs. If he continues to play well, he could help this team win more games. On October 29", the Hotspurs visited Arsenal. Most people expected Arsenal to win this one. However, the game ended up in a tie. Surprisingly, the Hotspurs scored four goals. What a fantastic game for Tottenham! This match could be one of the highlights of the season. The Hotspurs will play against Liverpool on November |“. Let’s assume that this game will end up ina tie. If so, the Hotspurs will have one win and two ties since Redknapp became the new head coach. Will they beat Manchester City on November 9"? In all likelihood, they will. They have the momentum and more confidence based on their performance in the previous three games. Hopefully, Redknapp will help Tottenham to win more games this season. Garth McLennan sports@theotherpress.ca By Kevin Wong On Garth McLennan sports editor Canucks lose Pettinger TE Vancouver Canucks lost B.C. native and 28-year- old forward Matt Pettinger on October 21* to the Tampa Bay Lightning when Vancouver attempted to recall him from their American Hockey League affiliate, the Manitoba Moose. Pettinger had to clear re-entry waivers before rejoining the Canucks and was claimed by the Lightning, who are looking to add some more punch to their offense. Pettinger, who was born in Edmonton but raised in B.C., never really worked out in Vancouver after being acquired by the team at last season’s trade deadline from the Washington Capitals. The Canucks, who were \ g mounting an unsuccessful playoff bid and looking to upgrade their forward lines, picked up University of Denver alumnus in exchange for agitating forward Matt Cooke. Pettinger, who was drafted by Washington 43" overall in the second round of the 2000 NHL entry draft, had played five previous successful seasons in America’s capital and had seen his game progress each year. However, last season, Pettinger’s development came to an abrupt halt. He played 56 games with Washington and scored just twice after scoring 16 times in 64 games the year before. Pettinger saw his average ice time decline steadily as the year wore on, and he fell out of favour with the Capitals’ new coach, Bruce Boudreau who shifted Pettinger from a scoring role under previous Caps’ coach Glen Hanlon to a more grinding position on the team. It was assumed that a change of scenery would be good for the 6’1, 205 pound Calgary Hitman veteran. However, Pettinger didn’t produce when put on Vancouver’s top two lines and failed to click in a grittier, grinding role. Pettinger rarely stood out for the right reasons with the Canucks, and had just four goals and two assists in twenty games. When training camp began this year, Pettinger was pushed out by the strong play of youngsters Mason Raymond, Jannik Hansen, Michael Grabner and Cody Hodgson. After a below-average camp, Pettinger was waived and demoted to the Moose. Pettinger seemed to be fitting in well with the Moose in his short time there. In two games he scored three times. When Pavol Demitra, Rick Rypien, Sami Salo and Darcy Hordichuk were all injured against the Chicago Blackhawks, the Canucks recalled Pettinger and Kyle Wellwood. Wellwood cleared waivers while Pettinger did not. In 354 NHL games, Pettinger has scored 56 goals and 49 assists for a total of 105 points. He also has 180 penalty minutes.