Lately it seems as if movies from the '80s hopped into the DeLorean alongside Doc Brown and returned to the stratosphere in present-time. In the past few years, we've seen a movie version of Miami Vice, the continuation of both the Rocky and Rambo franchises, a Transformers flick, and we dare not forget the rebirth of '80s movie icons: the Coreys, Feldman and Haim.
But why should this trend be limited to only movies? What are the sports trends from the '80s and early '90s that would be totally tubular to see again?
"Sabre Dance" is obviously number one on this list. The great tune that became synonymous with the Buffalo Sabres and played throughout the Aud as the Sabres would warm up at the beginning of periods, was a tradition for the majority of Buffalo's existence.
Lately, however, it seems that they're phasing the song out. At some point in time, Buffalo decided to revamp the song to have more of a rock feel, and now one of the few ways to hear the song in association with the Sabres is if you listen to the game on WGR550, where they play it when coming back from commercials. The classical version of the song isn't played nearly enough at HSBC Arena anymore.
NBA short shorts - they could be sponsored by Nair! In all honesty, the NBA has an image problem, with many people believing that all players are selfish, thug-like deviants. How could they look so "gangsta" with shorts that could double as tighty whiteys?
It would be like that Scrubs episode where the janitor gets a new uniform of the robin-blue variety. The second he puts on this uniform he turns from menacing and intimidating to sweet and approachable.
We could even do levels of shortness based on how intimidating fans perceive that player to be. For instance, Steve Nash would be allowed to wear shorts that went over his shoes if he so chooses, while players such as Ron Artest, Rasheed Wallace, and Adam Morrison would be forced to wear "Daisy Dukes."
Sports without steroids would be nice, or at least being able to watch sports with your head in the sand towards the steroids issue. How I miss the days when we would find Androstenedione in Mark McGwire's locker, and praise him for going that extra mile to help his team, never thinking about how that drug helped him break Roger Maris' home run record.
Speaking of Big Mac, why don't we bring back nicknames that mean something, or at least involve an ounce of creativity? I can't be the only person sick of the formulaic method that we use now, by combining the first letter of the players first name and the last three letters of his last name. I mean why would Linda Cohn take a great name such as Pudge Rodriguez, and call him "I-Rod?" That's just wrong.
A coherent George Steinbrenner should make a comeback, and less of public attention on Hank Steinbrenner. Say what you want about King George, but he spent hundreds of millions of dollars to make sure his team won. He also was bold enough to hire a private investigator to stalk Dave "Mr. May" Winfield. The man was witty, vindictive, and arrogant, while also being competent.
Meanwhile, the King's son spent his summer nixing a Johan Santana trade that could have guaranteed the Yankees a playoff spot for the foreseeable future.
Hockey players who are not afraid to fight should get back on the ice. We all love Patrick Kaleta. Without a doubt he has provided a spark for the Sabres. But doesn't he need to fight his own battles eventually, instead of allowing Adam Mair to stick up for him? Kaleta can dish-out all the hard checks that he wants, but I think he needs to earn respect from his competitors. You cannot consider Kaleta in the same vein as the great mid-'90s line of Rob Ray, Brad May and Matt Barnaby until he fights his own battles.
Oh, and while we're here, can we bring back the Buffalo Bills? They've been missing for the past eight seasons.
