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03/06/2009 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Blues play the first part of their two-game Sunshine State trip tonight, when they visit the Tampa Bay Lightning at St. Pete Times Forum.
The Blues, who will also visit the Florida Panthers on Saturday, had won a season-high tying three straight games prior to Tuesday's 5-0 setback versus Detroit.
Chris Mason had yielded just one goal per game in each of his previous five starts (4-0-1) before allowing all five goals on 36 shots faced versus the Red Wings. With the loss, the Blues are now four points back of a playoff spot.
St. Louis, which is 12-15-3 on the road this year and has won three straight as the guest, had outscored its opponents by an 8-3 margin over its three- game win streak, but was shut out for the fifth time this season.
Leading-goal scorer Brad Boyes failed to light the lamp for an eighth straight game. Boyes leads the Blues with 25 goals and 51 points, but has just one assist over his scoring drought. He does have five goals and seven assists in nine career games versus Tampa Bay.
St. Louis has three losses and a tie in its last four trips to Tampa, where it hasn't won since March 24, 2000. The Blues have also lost two straight overall in the series, including a 5-4 home loss on February 5 of last season.
Tampa Bay, which has lost seven of its last nine, will take the ice for the first time since Tuesday's 3-1 loss to Pittsburgh with a bit of a new look.
One day after the loss to the Penguins, a contest in which Vaclav Prospal scored the lone goal and Karri Ramo made 30 saves, the Lightning were involved in three trades prior to Wednesday's deadline. The biggest deal sent veteran winger Mark Recchi to Boston along with a 2010 second-round pick for defenseman Matt Lashoff and forward Martins Karsums.
Recchi turned 41 years old last month, but was having a solid season with 13 goals and 45 points in 62 games with the Lightning.
The Lightning also dealt netminder Olaf Kolzig, defensemen Jamie Heward and Andy Rodgers and a 2009 fourth-round pick to Toronto for defenseman Richard Petiot. The 26-year-old Petiot had three goals and 14 points in 45 games this season for the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League.
Kolzig wasn't expected to play again this season after having surgery to repair a torn distal biceps tendon in his left arm. Heward has been out since January 2 due to a concussion.
Finally, the Lightning dealt defenseman Steve Eminger to the Florida Panthers in exchange for defenseman Noah Welch and a third-round pick in the 2009 draft.
Tampa Bay plays the middle portion of a three-game homestand tonight and is 11-13-8 as the host this year. The club has dropped four of its last five at St. Pete Times Forum.
<< Bulls welcome Bucks to Windy City
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Something more than just area bragging rights will be on
the line when the Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks renew their rivalry
tonight at the United Center.
These two Central Division foes, separated by just 90 miles, en
<< Pistons welcome Warriors to The Palace
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After enduring their longest losing streak in 14 years, the
Detroit Pistons have suddenly looked like their old selves again.
The resurgent club aims for its fourth win in a row when it welcomes the
Golden State Warriors t
<< Eastern Conference heavyweights meet as Cavs visit Celtics
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - One of the biggest showdowns of this year's regular season
takes place tonight at TD Banknorth Garden, where the reigning world champion
Boston Celtics square off against the Cleveland Cavaliers in a clash of the
Eastern Conf
<< Raptors hope to snap skid vs. Heat
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The struggling Toronto Raptors still have a chance at a
playoff spot and will try to put the brakes on a three-game losing streak
this evening against the Miami Heat in the opener of a two-game homestand.
The Raptors will
Ducks, Stars clash in Anaheim >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Minus a few familiar faces, the Anaheim Ducks will host a
Pacific Division foe tonight when they welcome the Dallas Stars for a battle
at Honda Center.
Anaheim is tied with Edmonton and Dallas for the eighth and final play
Streaking Bobcats host Hawks in Southeast showdown >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Charlotte Bobcats will be shooting for their longest
winning streak in almost a year when they host the Southeast Division-rival
Atlanta Hawks Friday night from Time Warner Cable Arena.
Charlotte is riding a season-hig
New Flame Jokinen shoots for encore performance against 'Canes >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Olli Jokinen made a big splash in his first game with the
Flames and will try to stay hot as Calgary visits the Carolina Hurricanes in
tonight's interconference battle at RBC Center.
On Thursday, Jokinen celebrated his fir
Suns continue trek with key clash in Houston >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Phoenix Suns, currently on the outside looking in at
the Western Conference playoff picture, hope to gain some ground as they
resume a four-game road trip by visiting the Houston Rockets Friday at the
Toyota Center.
T
Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?
I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.
Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.
There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.
Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.
For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.
A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.
The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.
Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.
So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.
Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.
“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.
Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.
“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.
It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.
Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.
The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.
“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.
“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”
Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.
The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.
“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”
Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?
“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.
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