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02/18/2007 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Vancouver Canucks look to continue their recent winning ways and also regain sole possession of first place in the Northwest Division when they take the ice at General Motors Place tonight against the Colorado Avalanche.
The Canucks held a two-point advantage over second-place Calgary in the competitive Northwest before the Flames came through with a 5-2 victory over Colorado on Saturday. Minnesota currently sits just one point behind the co- leaders in third.
Vancouver returns home fresh off a pair of hard-fought road victories over Minnesota and Chicago and has won three in a row overall. After besting the Wild in overtime during a key divisional clash on Wednesday, the Canucks needed a shootout to put away the pesky Blackhawks two nights later.
Brendan Morrison and Trevor Linden, Vancouver's first two shooters during the deciding phase, each beat Patrick Lalime to lift the Canucks to a 2-1 triumph on Friday.
The Canucks prevailed thanks to a great outing from All-Star goaltender Roberto Luongo, who made 34 saves in regulation and then stopped both skaters he faced in the shootout.
Vancouver's Matt Cooke sent the contest into overtime when he scored with 9:33 remaining in the third period.
Following tonight's matchup, Vancouver will embark on a four-game road trip beginning Tuesday in Anaheim.
The Avalanche rallied for a 7-5 victory over the Flames at the Saddledome on Thursday, but Calgary got its revenge in last night's rematch. Kristian Huselius racked up two goals and an assist to lead the host Flames.
Colorado's Paul Stastny had a goal to extend his scoring streak to seven games. The young forward, who has amassed five goals and four assists over that span, also needs just two points to tie Alex Tanguay's rookie club record of 51 in a single season.
Two other Avalanche players, both of whom were instrumental in the team's win on Thursday, also lengthened individual streaks. Captain Joe Sakic set up Andrew Brunette's second-period goal and now notched a point in seven straight contests (5 goals, 9 assists), while Milan Hejduk assisted on Stastny's score to extend his run to six games (5 goals, 5 assists).
Hejduk had a hat trick in Thursday's triumph while Sakic added a pair of goals, including the 600th of his brilliant career.
Colorado won the first three meetings between the Northwest foes this season before the Canucks claimed a 2-1 win at General Motors Place on December 2. The Avalanche are 7-2-2 in their last 11 games with Vancouver.
The home team has emerged victorious in 10 of the last 12 encounters in this series, including seven of the last eight tilts.
<< Canadiens head to Columbus seeking end to downward spiral
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Montreal Canadiens take to the road in hopes of ending
their recent tailspin, as the free-falling club visits Columbus' Nationwide
Arena tonight for a rare matchup with the Blue Jackets.
Montreal is currently mir
<< Blues face key home showdown with Wild
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Blues have a chance to move closer towards
playoff contention when the improving club hosts the Minnesota Wild tonight at
the Scottrade Center.
The Blues still remain far out of the postseason race, but c
<< Young stars face off as red-hot Penguins entertain Caps
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The NHL's two brightest young stars will go head-to-head as
Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals attempt to cool down Sidney
Crosby's scorching Pittsburgh Penguins in an intriguing matinee from Mellon
Arena.
<< Wounded Rangers look to regroup against Blackhawks
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - One day after suffering a devastating home loss, the New
York Rangers will try to rebound when the Chicago Blackhawks enter Madison
Square Garden for a Sunday matinee.
New York's fading playoff hopes took a seriou
Mauresmo spoils Belgian finale for Clijsters >>
Antwerp, Belgium (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Amelie Mauresmo of France continued her
dominance at the Proximus Diamond Games tennis tournament, winning the title
for the third straight year and beating Belgian native Kim Clijsters for the
crown f
Ajax held by Excelsior, trail PSV by five >>
Amsterdam, Holland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Just when Ajax had climbed to within
three points of league-leaders PSV, the Amsterdam club lost two points over
the weekend to fall five off the pace. PSV recorded a 2-0 over Heracles on
Saturda
Islanders acquire Bergeron from Edmonton >>
Uniondale, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Islanders have acquired
defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron and a third-round pick in the 2008 NHL Entry
Draft from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for defenseman Denis Grebeshkov.
Bergero
Ferguson, Rangers edge Falkirk >>
Glasgow, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rangers continued to play well in the
Scottish Premier League, recording their fifth win in six contests on Sunday,
a 2-1 triumph over Falkirk at the Ibrox Stadium.
After suffering a 2-1 defeat to
Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.
Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.
Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.
If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.
Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.
By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.
In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.
So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.
While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.
There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.
In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:
SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.
XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.
XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.
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Kurt Warner to start, Matt Leinart to watch
Despite the debate that's swirling , Kurt Warner will remain the starting quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals, coach Dennis Green said today. The Arizona Cardinals are the +7 point underdog at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com for this Sunday's game.
Green's comment came in a statement released by the team following an ESPN report that Green decided that rookie Matt Leinart would replace Warner as starter for Sunday's game at Atlanta.
"Generally talking about the starting lineup is not something we do," Green told the AP. "However, given the speculation that was out there we want to make it clear. We're disappointed after last week, but we still expect to be a playoff football team and we fully expect Kurt Warner to be the quarterback that leads us. That has not changed."
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