1. Canada — Three previous Olympics have netted two silvers and Brad Gushue's gold in 2006. No country has Canada's depth and passion for the sport. But no country will face greater pressure to perform. It's up to Kevin Martin to deliver gold on the Olympic stage, something he's failed to do in two previous attempts.

2. Great Britain —David Murdoch's battle-hardened crew of Scots will be a stiff challenge to the home team. Gold and two silvers at the world championship, including three victories over Martin to claim a gold medal last April in Moncton, N.B.

3. Norway — Thomas Ulsrud will try to follow the trail blazed by 2002 gold-medallist Pal Trulsen. Ulsrud has plenty of international experience, and has played Canadian teams tough over the years, and certainly isn't intimdated by them.

4. United States — John Shuster has an Olympic medal on his resume, winning bronze as the lead-rock thrower for Pete Fenson in Turin. A year later, he skipped the U.S. to gold at the Winter Universiade, so he's been able to get it done at the international level.

5. Sweden — There was talk as late as last spring that Sweden would surrender its Olympic berth because it didn't believe it had a competitive team to enter. That talk has evaporated with the emergence of Niklas Edin, who won the European championship in December.