Staal set to return as Pens host Jets
Hockey Betting Lines
02/11/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The well-rested Pittsburgh Penguins hope a three-game homestand and the return of Jordan Staal can get them back on track today, as they'll try to avoid losing for the fourth time in five games when they host the Winnipeg Jets at Consol Energy Center.
The Penguins closed last month on a season-high eight-game winning streak, but they opened February with a 1-2-1 road trip. The club is now back home for three straight in the Steel City, where Pittsburgh has won four straight and is 15-7-2 this season.
Pittsburgh's recent lull has allowed New Jersey to move a point ahead of the Pens for third place in the Atlantic Division and the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference.
With Sidney Crosby still sidelined with his head and neck issues, the Penguins should be excited to get Staal back today for the first time since he suffered a knee injury back on Jan. 6. The centerman has 15 goals and six assists in 34 games this year and is one of Pittsburgh's best two-way forwards.
"I expect him to be used significantly in the game," Pens head coach Dan Bylsma told his team's web site about Staal's availability for today. "Maybe not quite totally to the 20-minute mark, but 15-plus minutes and on the second power play. Probably not 100 percent on the penalty kill. That may be a spot where other players may go in front of him where he normally would assume their ice time."
The Penguins last played on Tuesday in Montreal. The Canadiens posted a 3-2 win over Pittsburgh after Tomas Plekanec scored in the eighth round of the shootout. In the decisive round, Plekanec beat Marc-Andre Fleury to the glove side with a wrister and Carey Price sealed the win as he kept out a low forehand shot from Jason Williams.
Pascal Dupuis and James Neal scored for the Penguins, while Fleury posted 28 stops in the loss. Pittsburgh erased a pair of one-goal deficits in the third period to grab a point.
While Pittsburgh will try to get back in the win column today, the Jets will aim for their first three-game win streak since Dec. 27-31.
Winnipeg, which is three points behind Washington and Florida for first place in the Southeast, used a late comeback to shock the Capitals Thursday in D.C. and will try to build off that dramatic win this afternoon.
Bryan Little eventually scored the game-winner in the shootout in the 3-2 decision for the Jets, but that was after Winnipeg rallied from two goals down in the closing minutes of regulation. Trailing 2-0 with less than three minutes to play, Winnipeg got goals from Evander Kane and Dustin Byfuglien in a span of 12 seconds to force overtime.
The tying goal was nothing short of a fluke, as Byfuglien slapped a shot from center ice, which deflected off a Washington defender and awkwardly skipped over the shoulder of Caps goaltender Tomas Vokoun.
"We didn't really quit," said Byfuglien. "We stuck with it and we battled."
Thursday's comeback win improved Winnipeg's weak road record to 10-16-4 this season. After today, the Jets will play nine of their next 10 games at home, where they are 16-8-2.
The Pens have won five of six and 13 of the last 15 encounters with the Winnipeg/Atlanta franchise. Tonight marks the Jets' first trip to Pittsburgh since the club made the move to Manitoba in the offseason. The Thrashers had lost their last nine tests in the Steel City.
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With a lengthy losing streak finally over, the Ottawa Senators hope they can keep heading in the right direction when they host the Edmonton Oilers today at Scotiabank Place. The Senators went 0-6-1 from Jan. 21-Feb. 7, bu
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Starkville, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A good old-fashioned dog fight will take place in Starkville today, as SEC foes Georgia and Mississippi State do battle at Humphrey Coliseum. Georgia comes in with an overall record of 11-12, and the team's
25th-ranked Crimson set sights on Tigers >>
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try to keep pace in the race for the Big East Conference regular-season title,
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Tallahassee, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A battle of Sunshine State foes in the ACC
takes place in Tallahassee this afternoon, as the Miami-Florida Hurricanes do
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Pro Football Odds : NFC SOUTH BETTING ODDS
NFL betting action is back! At MySportsbook, all of the pro football odds are posted for the NFC North. Check out how we see the four teams in this cloudy division stacking up this year in the chase for the playoffs! Green Bay Packers (+125) - With QB Aaron Rodgers leading the offense and DC Dom Capers working his magic on defense, the Packers are a real force to be reckoned with.
Virtually nothing changed on this offense for Green Bay from last year to this year, save for the addition of rookie OT Brian Bulaga to the bunch. Expect more huge numbers from the Pack, and a relatively favorable schedule should get them over the hump and into the playoffs once again this season. My NFL Betting Predictions: 11-5, 1st place in NFC North Minnesota Vikings (+130) - There are still too many unknowns about the Vikes this year. There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not.
There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.
Chicago Bears (+350) - The Bears are probably a bit of an overhyped team once again this year.No, we don't think it is plausible for QB Jay Cutler to have as bad of a season as he did last year, and we do think the additions of RB Chester Taylor and DE Julius Peppers are going to help immensely, but there's still something in the water in the Windy City that we aren't so sure about. Maybe Chicago finds its way to .500... but then again, maybe it doesn't. If Favre comes back, Cutler might be the worst quarterback in this division this year.
Detroit Lions (+1500) - The Lions are probably once again going to be the whipping boys for the rest of the teams in the NFC North, but they aren't just going to roll over and die once again. There is some real talent amassing on this team offensively, as the combination of QB Matt Stafford, RB Jahvid Best, WR Calvin Johnson, and TE Brandon Pettigrew should put a bunch of points on the board if the offensive line can even remotely hold up. The questions really lie on defense, where it feels like DT Ndamukong Suh is going to be trying to stop opposing teams all by himself. This year should show some marked improvement in the Motor City.
The Patriots will make NFL betting fans a lot of money this season, get in early and enjoy the cash.
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FOOTBALL BETTING LINES
NFL Football Sports BettingTwo playoff teams from 2007 take center stage on the NFL Network Sunday night in a Week 2 NFL betting match-up when the (0-1) New England Patriots betting head south to Florida for a contest with the (1-0) Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
New England HC Bill Belichick couldn’t care less about the way his team plays in the preseason. With a chance to tie last week’s game with the Baltimore Ravens betting, He elected to go for the two-point conversion and outright victory. The conversion failed, and the Pats ended up falling to the Ravens by a 16-15 final count.
New England rolled off twelve unanswered points to give it a chance at securing the victory, but it never threatened to cover the 3.5-point spread. NFL bettors saw this one coming, as they bet the Ravens down from +6 to +3.5 as the week progressed. QB Tom Brady didn’t take part in the Patriots first preseason clash, but could see action this weekend.
His three replacements all put up embarrassing numbers. They went a combined 17 for 33, and threw three interceptions and no touchdowns. The New England defense was encouraging, as they held the Ravens to 2/12 third down conversions and surrendered just ten first downs. That ‘D’ should be bolstered with the addition of former Bucs and Denver Broncos betting safety John Lynch, who could make his Patriots debut on Sunday against his former mates.
HC Jon Gruden had to be impressed with the way his Bucs played on both sides of the ball in their dominating 17-6 victory over the Miami Dolphins in Week 1’s NFL pre-season betting action. Bucs bettors were quite happy with the effort, as they made a mockery of the fact that they were underdogs in the game.
The logjam at the quarterback position didn’t get any easier to separate for Gruden, as all four of his QBs had positive experiences in the first exhibition of 2008. The four combined to complete 28 of their 40 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown, and that was without starting QB Jeff Garcia in the lineup.
RB Michael Bennett had 19 carries and four receptions, totaling 90 yards and a touchdown. Expect to see more of Bennett, Kenneth Darby, and Earnest Graham, as they all compete for playing time with Warrick Dunn in the backfield this season. Defensively, the Bucs recorded four sacks and held the Fins offense in check all day.
First round draft pick Aqib Talib was impressive in the secondary, recording a tackle and two pass defenses in his debut. Don’t be surprised to see Talib in the starting lineup opposite Ronde Barber for the Bucs in ’08.
The betting trends suggest that NFL bettors should be backing the Bucs in this intra-conference exhibition.
These two teams hooked up last year in Tampa Bay, with the Bucs winning that game 13-10. The Buccaneers have only lost one preseason game at home dating back to the beginning of the ’05 preseason. The Patriots have had a mixed bag of results in their recent exhibitions. They have gone 2-2 ATS and SU each of the last three years.
New England currently sits as modest 1-point favorites in this preseason showdown with the ‘total’ now sitting at 34.5.
You can find these lines and all of the NFL betting lines , so be sure to login and get your wagers down before kickoff!
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines .
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