Blackhawks try to end lengthy slide in Nashville
Hockey Betting Lines
02/14/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Blackhawks didn't look like a team ready to break out of their longest slump in four years the last time they hit the ice. Doing so against the Nashville Predators may prove difficult as well.
The Blackhawks hope to avoid a ninth setback in a row in a meeting with the division-rival Predators.
Chicago, just two seasons removed from a Stanley Cup championship, are in the midst of their first eight-game slide since an 0-6-2 stretch from Dec. 30-Jan. 11 during the 2007-08 season. Its current drought includes an 0-5-1 mark on a season-long nine-game road trip.
The Blackhawks suffered their 10th straight defeat on road ice Saturday, falling 3-0 at the Phoenix Coyotes. Mike Smith made 38 saves to shut down Chicago, which got 24 stops from Ray Emery.
A loss tonight would give Chicago its longest losing streak since dropping nine in a row from Jan. 4-26, 2007.
"We need something to give in and make us feel good about ourselves," said Chicago captain Jonathan Toews.
The Blackhawks now sit at 10-14-3 on the road and have dipped into a tie for sixth overall in the Western Conference with the Kings. Both clubs sit five points behind the Predators.
Nashville is 2-0-1 in three meetings with Chicago this season, outscoring the club 8-3 over consecutive wins. The Predators own three victories in their past four encounters at home versus the Blackhawks.
The Preds have secured points in 16 of their last 20 games, going 14-4-2 in that time, but have lost four of their past five. They suffered their third loss in a row on Saturday, falling 4-3 at Boston in a shootout.
Pekka Rinne was peppered with 41 shots through overtime and was bested twice in the shootout. Sergei Kostitsyn and Martin Erat came up empty on their attempts in the tiebreaker.
"They outshot us. Probably outplayed us, too," said Rinne, who made 38 saves. "We gave a point away.
Shea Weber, Patrick Hornqvist and Mike Fisher scored in regulation for the Preds, who saw the Bruins' Milan Lucic force overtime on a goal with 67 seconds left in the third period.
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Anaheim Ducks continue to dig themselves out of an early-season hole that has made reaching the playoffs a difficult task. They'll try to pick up their latest victory over a Minnesota Wild team that continues to move sout
<< Red Wings aim to set new NHL home mark vs. Stars
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Red Wings will try to set a new NHL record for
the longest home winning streak in league history when they host the Dallas
Stars tonight at Joe Louis Arena.
Detroit matched a league standard with its 20th conse
<< West Virginia set to join Big 12 in July
Morgantown, WV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - West Virginia and the Big East have agreed
to settle their lawsuits, enabling the university to leave the conference and
join the Big 12 in July.
West Virginia athletic director Oliver Luck would not d
<< Rangers, Bruins clash in Boston
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Rangers have established themselves as the top
team in the East and the Blueshirts will try to increase their conference lead
when they visit the Boston Bruins tonight at TD Garden.
With 77 points, the Rangers
<< Sens begin road trip in Tampa
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After having little success on a recent five-game
homestand, the Ottawa Senators hope to have more luck when they kick off a
road trip tonight by battling the Tampa Bay Lightning at Tampa Times Forum.
The Senators went 1-2
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Given that Toronto hasn't won in Calgary in over nine years, the club didn't pick the best time to go on a three-game losing streak. The Maple Leafs hope to avoid posting their longest skid of the season this evening and s
Nets waive Bogans; sign Andre Emmett >>
East Rutherford, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New Jersey Nets have waived guard
Keith Bogans, just a day after he underwent surgery that will keep him
sidelined for the remainder of the season.
Bogans had a torn deltoid ligament re
Gators take on Tide in Tuscaloosa >>
Tuscaloosa, AL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 14th-ranked Florida Gators seek a quick
turnaround, as they head to Coleman Coliseum for Southeastern Conference
competition with the short-handed Alabama Crimson Tide.
This game matches up an apprentice
Buckeyes set sights on Gophers in Big Ten brawl >>
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The sixth-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes will
try bounce back from their poorest outing of the season as they head to
Williams Arena to take on Tubby Smith's Minnesota Golden Gophers in a Big Ten
Conference matchu
No.22 Virginia takes on Clemson in ACC affair >>
Clemson, SC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 22nd-ranked Virginia Cavaliers continue
their Atlantic Coast Conference road swing with a visit to the Littlejohn
Coliseum to square off with the Clemson Tigers.
This will be the 119th battle between the Ca
MySportsbook.com refunds all bets on Oakland, Green Bay and Tampa Bay from NFL week one.
(September 14) – Week one of NFL action saw three teams go scoreless for the first time since 1977. Another four were unable to get a touchdown and almost half of the underdogs covered the spread. Those three teams saved bettors at MySportsbook.com from losing out completely, thanks to the company’s unique NFL Shutout Rule -- which ensures that if the team you backed goes scoreless, your wager is refunded.
Sportsbook refunded tens of thousands of dollars to customers who bet on Oakland, Green Bay and Tampa Bay, the three teams that stunk up the field so badly that their fans and backers never had a chance to get up from their couches and cheer. In the spirit of the low scoring start to the season, odds makers at the world’s largest online sportsbook and casino have set odds on how many total shutouts there will be this season.
MySportsbook.com has posted updated sports betting lines for week two of the season. Ben Roethlisberger’s health status is still questionable, so Willie Parker will try to lead Pittsburgh again as they travel to Jacksonville as a one point favorite. After beating up on his little brother last week, Peyton Manning will look to lead the Colts to victory against Houston. Indianapolis is a whopping 13.5 favorite in the match-up.
Seattle, last year’s highest scoring team, showed the power of their defense with their gritty 9-6 win in Motown over the ravenous Lions. They take their act back home to the comforts of Qwest Field where they will face the resurgent Arizona Cardinals. The Seahawks are favored by a touchdown.
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NFL Football Betting
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.