Sharks use Clowe's third period goal to beat Leafs
Hockey Betting Lines
02/08/2010 - Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryane Clowe's goal in the third period lifted the San Jose Sharks to a 3-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs at Air Canada Centre.
Dan Boyle and Joe Pavelski each had a goal for the Sharks, who have won four of their last five games. Evgeni Nabokov made 32 saves in the win.
Phil Kessel had a goal and an assist while Tyler Bozak scored for the Maple Leafs, who have dropped eight of their last 10. Jean-Sebastien Giguere, who posted shutouts in his first two games after being acquired by Toronto from Anaheim last week, gave up three goals on 26 shots.
With the score tied in the third period, San Jose took the lead with 6:39 to play. Devin Setoguchi sent a pass from the left side that hit off the skate of a Maple Leaf in front and went right to Clowe, who buried it for a 3-2 lead.
From there the Sharks defense shut down the Maple Leafs, who pulled Giguere with 1 1/2 minutes to play but were unable to net the equalizer.
The Maple Leafs got the only goal of the first period as Kessel got the puck at the right circle, skated down low and sent a pass across the ice to Bozak, who one-timed it home with 9:24 to play in the frame.
San Jose scored a pair of goals in the second period to grab the lead.
The first goal came off a right circle faceoff win as Joe Thornton won the draw and the puck came back to Boyle, who fired a shot on net that bounced past Giguere at the 3:17 mark.
Just 2:24 later, the Sharks made it a 2-1 game when Pavelski fired a wrister on net using the defender as a screen to sneak the puck past Giguere.
Toronto, though, tied the game in the final minute of the second with a power- play marker as Dion Phaneuf's wrister from the right point was kicked out to the left side where Kessel buried it for his 21st goal of the year.
Game Notes
Tomas Kaberle's assist on Kessel's goal was the 400th helper of his career...Toronto plays its final game before the Olympic break at St. Louis on Friday...San Jose continues its six-game road trip in Columbus on Wednesday...San Jose has won four straight against Toronto and has not lost a game to the Maple Leafs since January 29, 2002.
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Seattle Mariners lefty Cliff Lee underwent surgery last Friday to remove a bone spur in his left foot. Lee, who was acquired from Philadelphia in December, is not expected to be ready for workouts wh
<< Reynolds leads Villanova past West Virginia in Big East showdown
Morgantown, WV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Scottie Reynolds scored 19 of his 21 points
in the second half, as No. 4 Villanova handed fifth-ranked West Virginia an
82-75 defeat in a Big East showdown at WVU Coliseum.
The Wildcats (21-2, 10-1 Bi
<< Butler at the top of the Horizon again
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Matt Howard went 12-of-14 from the free
throw line in a 20-point effort, and 18th-ranked Butler used a big second half
to down Loyola-Chicago, 62-47, and clinch a share of the Horizon League title.
Will
<< Danica, have at it and have a good time
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - NASCAR officials originally set the theme
for this year's Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway last month when
they told Sprint Cup Series drivers, "boys, have at it and have a good time."
Officials s
<< Cardinals avoid arbitration with Schumaker
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Cardinals avoided salary
arbitration with Skip Schumaker, agreeing to terms with the second baseman on
a two-year contract.
The 30-year-old Schumaker became the first Cardinal since
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mike Richards tallied the game-deciding power-play goal late in the third period, as Philadelphia recovered from a two-goal deficit to top New Jersey, 3-2, at Wachovia Center. James van Riemsdyk a
Duke uses balanced attack to dismantle UNC >>
Durham, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Keturah Jackson and Bridgette Mitchell each
scored 12 points in a balanced attack for eighth-ranked Duke, which crushed
18th-ranked North Carolina, 79-51 at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Krystal Thomas added
No. 25 Pitt breezes past Robert Morris >>
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ashton Gibbs scored a game-high 20 points,
and 25th-ranked Pittsburgh crushed non-conference foe Robert Morris, 77-53, at
Petersen Events Center.
Jermaine Dixon added 18 points for the Panthers (18-6), w
Bryant sidelined for second straight game >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Los Angeles Lakers All-Star guard Kobe
Bryant missed Monday's game against San Antonio due to a sprained left ankle.
It's the second straight game Bryant has sat out. He was also absent on
Satur
Muse, Boston College top BU in Beanpot final >>
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Barry Almeida picked up the game-winning goal
early in the third period, as Boston College held off a late Boston University
rally to post a 4-3 victory in the championship game of the 58th annual
Beanpot
Albert Pujols to be This Year's Home Run Champ Says Online Sportsbook
Barry Bonds is a 50-1 long shot to be this year's home run champ odds. The favorite to be this year's home run champ is none other than Albert Pujols, however.
Now that Barry Bonds is signed and in Giants camp, it is on to his pursuit of all of sports most prestigious records: the all-time home run mark. Bonds sits just 21 homers shy of tying Hank Aaron for the career mark at 755. Word out of Giants’ camp is that Bonds is the healthiest he has been in a few years. Bonds is just two seasons removed from his injury riddled 2005 campaign where he played in only 14 games and hit only 5 home runs. He did come back last year and had a solid season hitting .270 with 26 bombs. All eyes will be on Bonds this spring and summer not only because of his home run chase but his highly publicized steroid abuse allegations. If and when Bonds breaks the record, he surely will not get the positive attention one should for breaking a record that was once thought of as “unbreakable”. Despite Bonds decent season last year, he is just 50-1 at MySportsbook.com to lead the MLB in long balls this season.
Not surprisingly, the favorites to go deep the most times this season are Albert Pujols 5-1, Ryan Howard 6-1, David Ortiz 8-1 and Alex Rodriguez 12-1. With 49 homers, Pujols finished second in the National League behind Howard (58). Pujols is considered the favorite due to the consistent power numbers that he has posted since breaking into the league in 2001. Also one must consider the fact that he played in 16 fewer games then Howard did due to an injury. Howard smashed 58 homers in his first complete season of big league play en route to the National League MVP odds award. He silenced his critics by successfully hitting left-handed pitching. Howard also displayed the ability to use his power to the opposite field. Two attributes which should keep Howard amongst the league leaders in long balls for years to come. From the American League representatives, David Ortiz leads the field. Ortiz was second in the majors last year with 54 home runs. Except for 1999 when he only played in 10 games, Ortiz has improved on his home run numbers each year he has been in the majors (1997).
Be sure to log onto online sports betting site MySportsbook.com to check out the odds for who will lead the MLB in home runs this season. Below is just a sample of the players listed. With the highest credit card rates in the industry, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on baseball this summer.
World Series odds
Adam Dunn 15-1
Albert Pujols 5-1
Alex Rodriguez 12-1
Alfonso Soriano 15-1
Andruw Jones 25-1
Barry Bonds 50-1
Carlos Delgado 40-1
David Ortiz 8-1
Jermaine Dye 40-1
Ken Griffey Jr. 100-1
Lance Berkman 40-1
Manny Ramirez 20-1
Richie Sexson 40-1
Ryan Howard 6-1
Travis Hafner 20-1
Vladimir Guerrero 40-1
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting
NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.
That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.
A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."
It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.
The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.
So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."
Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.
Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.
Seriously.
The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.
The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.
Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."
The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts MasterCard needs.