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Bertuzzi, Howard help Detroit move to fifth spotHockey Betting Lines04/09/2010 - Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Todd Bertuzzi netted the shootout winner and Jimmy Howard recorded 22 saves for his third shutout of the season, as Detroit picked up a key two points for playoff positioning with a 1-0 win to close out a home-and-home series with Columbus at Nationwide Arena. As the game moved to a shootout after 65 scoreless minutes, suddenly nobody could miss. Rick Nash deked his way to a nifty backhand tally to start things off, and Pavel Datsyuk answered with a forehand score over the right shoulder of Steve Mason. The goaltenders settled back in to stop the next five attempts, moving into the fourth round, and Bertuzzi flipped a backhander upstairs to grab the win. The Red Wings moved two points clear of both Nashville and Los Angeles for sole possession of the Western Conference's fifth seed. The trio had been tied with 98 points entering play Friday. Detroit will close out its regular season Sunday in Chicago and Nashville will do the same a day earlier at home versus the Blues. The Kings have two games remaining against Edmonton and Colorado. Mason came up with a whopping 45 saves through 65 minutes of action to post his fifth shutout of the season for Columbus, which wrapped up a disappointing season at 32-35-15 and lost five in a row going away. Mason withstood a 19-shot Red Wing barrage in the third period, and denied Darren Helm on a penalty shot. Each team had a chance with the extra skater in overtime but came up empty. Howard was tested with just four shots in the third period and zero in OT, while Mason was busy over the first 40 minutes with 22 saves. Game Notes The Red Wings reached 100 points for a ninth consecutive season to extend an NHL record...Detroit won five of the six matchups with the Blue Jackets this year...The Red Wings moved to 18-14-8 on the road this season, while Columbus ended its season 20-12-9 at home...Both teams went 0-for-4 on the power play...It was Mason's 15th shutout of his career.
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Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carlos Delfino hit five three-pointers on his way to 23 points, as the playoff-bound Milwaukee Bucks held on to top the Philadelphia 76ers, 95-90, at Wachovia Center. Luke Ridnour shot 8-of-12 and had
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Rangers edge Flyers to pull even for East's final playoff berth >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marian Gaborik notched the game-winner late in the second period, as the New York Rangers stayed alive in the race for a playoff berth with a 4-3 victory over Philadelphia in the opener of a crucial home-an
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Betting the NFL preseasonRule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games." When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules. The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night. The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine. “I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.” The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark. “We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.” The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long. “It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.” Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play. “You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt." So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps? “Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says. Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins. Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet. Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter. “If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says. Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider. The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason. “We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003. Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule. To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards. |
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