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03/14/2009 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Martin Biron stopped 39-of-41 shots to help the Philadelphia Flyers take a 4-2 victory over the New York Rangers in the opener of a home-and-home set at the Wachovia Center.
Aaron Asham had two goals while Scott Hartnell and Mike Richards each lit the lamp for the Flyers, who have won three of their last four games and wrapped up a five-game homestand with a mark of 3-2-0.
Sean Avery and Nik Antropov each had a goal for the Rangers, who had won four of five coming into the game. Henrik Lundqvist was charged with four goals on 25 shots in the loss.
These Atlantic Division rivals will face-off at Madison Square Garden on Sunday.
The Rangers drew first blood off of a Flyers turnover. Holding the puck at the left point, Matt Carle attempted to dump back down low, but Antropov blocked the attempt. Antropov then raced down the other end on a breakaway and wristed the puck into the left corner at the 3:28 mark.
Philadelphia tied the game with 3:26 left in the first on a 2-on-1 break. Jeff Carter skated down the right wing with Hartnell on his left and let fly with a shot that Lundqvist stopped with the right pad. The rebound, though, kicked out to the left side and Hartnell buried it.
At the 6:07 mark of the second period, the Flyers took the lead. With another 2-on-1 rush, Richards sent a pass from the left to the right for Simon Gagne, but Gagne flubbed the shot. However, he did recover the puck in time to center it for Kimmo Timonen, who one-touched the puck over to the left side for Richards who pumped his own rebound into the net.
After a questionable elbowing call on Richards at the 13:14 mark of the second, the Rangers appeared to tie the game. A left circle faceoff win was drawn back to Derek Morris, who let fly with a slap shot that Biron stopped. The puck went into the air and Scott Gomez, who was behind Biron, knocked it home. However, Gomez appeared to knock it in with his glove and the goal was waived off by the on-ice official and a replay upheld the call.
Richards was again the victim of a questionable penalty a little over two minutes after his first when he was called for boarding Avery and the Rangers had another power play chance. This time, Biron came up with a big save as he stopped Nikolai Zherdev down low at the left side to help the Flyers carry the one-goal lead into the third period.
Philadelphia gave itself some breathing space at the 5:47 mark of the third. Claude Giroux had the puck behind the net and centered it to a streaking Asham, who tapped it in from down low for a 3-1 advantage.
Asham netted his second goal of the game with 5:27 left in the game when he picked up a dump along the left boards in the Rangers zone all alone and lasered a shot over the glove of Lundqvist.
Avery got the Rangers back to within two goals as his wrister from the left circle got past a sliding Biron with 3:41 to play.
New York pulled Lundqvist from the net late in the game for the extra attacker, but were unable to put any more pucks into the net.
Game Notes
Hartnell's goal was his 25th of the season, which ties a career-high he set in 2005-06 with Nashville...Giroux and Dan Carcillo each added two assists for the Flyers...Philly has won four of the last five against New York...Neither team scored on the power play with New York having four chances and Philly three.
<< Browns WR Stallworth questioned by police in pedestrian death
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cleveland Browns wide receiver Dante Stallworth
has been questioned by police in Miami after a pedestrian was hit by a car and
killed early Saturday morning.
According to the Miami Herald, Stallworth was coope
<< Red Wings RW Hossa returns to lineup
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Detroit Red Wings right winger Marian Hossa
returned to the lineup for the team's contest versus the St. Louis Blues at
Scottrade Center on Saturday.
Hossa, the Red Wings' leading scorer with 34 goals, m
<< Silva denies Juve link
Valencia, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Valencia midfielder David Silva has
dismissed rumors suggesting that he has his sights set on a move to Italy next
summer.
The 23-year-old Spain international has been strongly linked with a move
<< Thrashers LW Kovalchuk out against Buffalo
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atlanta Thrashers left wing and team captain
Ilya Kovalchuk is out for Saturday's game against the Buffalo Sabres with an
upper-body injury.
The team's leading scorer, Kovalchuk has 36 goals and 42 a
Ohio State moves to Big Ten title game with upset over Spartans >>
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Evan Turner had 18 points, 10 rebounds
and five assists as Ohio State shocked seventh-ranked Michigan State with an
82-70 win in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament.
Jon Diebler had 17 points an
Mississippi State downs No. 20 LSU, gains SEC final >>
Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jarvis Varnado scored 19 points and Barry Stewart
added 17, as Mississippi State continued its push toward an unlikely NCAA
Tournament berth with a 67-57 win over 20th-ranked LSU in the semifinals of
the SEC
Lions acquire Peterson from Seahawks for Redding >>
Allen Park, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Lions and Seahawks swapped defensive
players on Saturday, with Detroit acquiring linebacker Julian Peterson from
Seattle in exchange for defensive tackle Cory Redding.
Detroit also sent Seattle a
Datsyuk helps Red Wings dump Blues >>
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pavel Datsyuk scored twice as the Central
Division-leading Detroit Red Wings defeated the St. Louis Blues, 5-2, at
Scottrade Center.
Tomas Kopecky, Brett Lebda and Henrik Zetterberg also tallied
BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting.
In any football or basketball game (the main sports that use point spreads) there are two teams playing against each other.
Those teams, though, are rarely exactly evenly matched – meaning that typically one team has a better chance than the other to win the game. If bettors were allowed to bet on who was simply going to win the game, smart ones would obviously bet on the better team (likely winning more than 50% of the time in the process).
If winning were that easy the Las Vegas and online sportsbooks would stop taking any bets! This is where the point spread comes in: the basic function of the point spread is to balance the likelihood of each team “winning” by adjusting the final score by the point spread. After this adjustment is made you get the Against The Spread result (ATS result for short).
Let’s look at Super Bowl XXXIX, New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles. Most people believed the defending champ Patriots to be the better team – so if betting were simply based upon which team would win the game, an uneven majority of people would have wagered on New England. But, by using the point spread, the bookmakers adjusted the terms of the bet, evening the proposition so about half the people believed the Pats to be the smart bet, while the other half considered Philly to be the smart bet.
New England Patriots -7 vs. Philadelphia Eagles
The better team, called the Favorite, is expected to win the game and must “give” or “lay” points to the weaker team. The favorite is listed with a minus sign and the number of points they are favored by (e.g., New England -7)
In the case of our example, New England must not only win the game, but they must win by more than 7 points for Pats bettors to have a winning ATS result. An Eagles bettor wins his bet either if:
There was also the possibility that the final score could land exactly on the spread number (for example, the Pats winning 28-21 when -7), which is called a “push” or “no action” and a refund is then issued to bettors of both teams.
The same game with the same point spread can be considered from the weaker team’s perspective: The Underdog (Philly in the case of our example) is not expected to win the game and online football betting thus receives or “gets” points given by the stronger team. When a game is stated from the underdog’s perspective the team is listed with a plus sign and the number of points they are underdogs by:
Philadelphia Eagles +7 vs. New England Patriots
Keep in mind that Philadelphia +7 and New England -7 is the same point spread on the same game, simply stated differently. The first is from the underdog’s perspective; the later is from the favorite’s.
Not a must, but for some a mathematical approach is insightful. You can determine the ATS winner by either:
Let’s look at the actual result of Super Bowl XXXIX: New England 24 Philadelphia 21
The favorite, New England, won the game but not by more than the point spread they were favored by (7), so the ATS result was a LOSS for Pats bettors.
Looking at it from the underdog’s perspective, Philly did not win the game, but they lost by less than the point spread (7), so the ATS result was a WIN for Eagle bettors.
Mathematically considered, 24 for the favorite Pats minus 7 equals 17, which is less than the 20 the Eagles scored, so the underdog Eagles win the ATS result (or you could figure 20 plus 7 equals 27 for the Eagles, which is more than 24 for the Pats).
Emily’s boyfriend understood the point spread and wagered $100 on the Eagles at +7. The Eagles may not have gotten a Super Bowl ring, but since they won the ATS result Emily’s boyfriend cashed his bet – giving him money to take her out to a nice dinner.
And now hopefully you understand how to read point spreads, putting you one step closer to joining the fun of sports betting.
To visit this internet sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting and World Series odds.
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