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02/01/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Florida Panthers' first game following the All-Star break is an important one, as they host the rival Washington Capitals in tonight's Southeast Division clash at BankAtlantic Center.
The Panthers, who are attempting to make the playoffs for the first time since 2000, enter tonight one point behind Washington for first place in the Southeast Division. The clubs were tied heading into the All-Star break, but the Capitals took over the top spot after gaining a point in Tuesday's overtime loss in Tampa.
Florida, which is also one point in back of Toronto for the eighth seed in the East, will try to bounce back from a rough January that saw the club go 2-3-4 over nine games. The Panthers have won just four times in their last 15 trips to the ice.
The Capitals and Panthers have each won a game against each other this season and the clubs have split the last eight meetings overall. Florida has taken three of the last four matchups in Sunrise and posted a 5-4 regulation win when the clubs met on Dec. 5 in South Florida. Stephen Weiss, Brian Campbell and the now-injured Dmitry Kulikov each had three-point nights in that last contest between these Southeast Division foes.
Campbell was Florida's lone representative at Sunday's All-Star Game in Ottawa and he posted an assist and had a plus-seven rating to help Team Chara record a 12-9 win over Team Alfredsson.
Florida opened a three-game homestand just prior to the All-Star break and it suffered a 3-2 shootout loss to the Philadelphia Flyers. The Panthers have lost their last three home games, dropping them to 11-5-7 as the host this year.
Panthers leading scorer Kris Versteeg has been bothered by the flu bug recently, but is expected to play tonight. Florida also expects to have forward Marco Sturm back this evening for the first time since he suffered a concussion on Dec. 21.
Meanwhile, the Capitals will not have superstar winger Alex Ovechkin tonight, as he serves the final portion of a three-game suspension for a hit on Pittsburgh's Zbynek Michalek. The Panthers won't miss Ovechkin, who has 47 points in 40 career games against Florida.
Washington lost for the third time in four games Tuesday evening in Tampa, but the Caps also posted a point in their third straight outing. The Caps dropped a 4-3 decision to the Lightning, as Steven Stamkos scored the winner at the 2:45 mark of overtime. Washington had tied the game at 3-3 when Troy Brouwer scored the only goal of the third period.
Brouwer, Matt Hendricks and Mathieu Perreault all scored for the Capitals, while Tomas Vokoun finished the game with 27 saves.
"We created chances very well tonight," said Hendricks. "We were able to come back from a couple of goals and those are the positives we can take out of this game."
Vokoun played the previous four seasons with Florida before signing a one-year deal with Washington in the offseason. It's unclear if the Czech veteran will get his first start in Sunrise since leaving the Panthers tonight, or if head coach Dale Hunter will use Michal Neuvirth rather than let the 35-year-old Vokoun play on back-to-back nights.
Vokoun went 101-108-30 with a 2.57 goals-against average and a .923 save percentage in 248 games with the Panthers.
<< Clippers search for success in Utah
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Clippers hope to record a season-high
fourth consecutive win tonight by turning around their fortunes in Utah.
Playing the Jazz in Salt Lake City has traditionally been a non-starter for
the Clips. LA has d
<< Lowly Bobcats meet Blazers in Rip City
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The hapless Charlotte Bobcats will try to avoid a 10th
straight loss tonight when they resume a four-game road trip against the
Portland Trail Blazers in Rip City.
Halting the skid tonight, however, figures to be exceeding
<< Streaking Pens shoot for home-and-home sweep in Toronto
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tuesday was a pretty good day for the Penguins all around.
Pittsburgh will try to keep the good times going this evening and extend its
eight-game win streak with a home-and-home sweep of the hosting Toronto Maple
Leafs.
<< Spurs and Rockets meet in the Alamo City
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bragging rights for South Texas are on the line Wednesday
when the San Antonio Spurs play host to the Houston Rockets.
The Spurs earned a rare road victory this season by snapping a two-game skid
on Monday in Memphis. Matt
Pistons finish road trip against Nets >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Pistons hope to solve their road issues tonight
in the finale of a four-game trek against the New Jersey Nets.
Detroit is 0-3 so far on the road trip and has lost six straight as the guest,
including Tuesdays 1
Celtics kick off homestand vs. Raptors >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It appears the Boston Celtics are back on track and will
commence a five-game homestand tonight versus the Toronto Raptors at TD
Garden.
Boston will also host the Knicks, Grizzlies, Bobcats and Lakers, and is 6-6 in
Beant
Improved Wolves entertain Pacers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Indiana Pacers target their third straight win tonight,
when they take on the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center.
Indiana has won two in a row and five of its last seven games, including
Tuesday's 106-99 triumph o
Suns and Hornets tangle in the Big Easy >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Phoenix Suns will hit the road to the Big Easy tonight
for a showdown with the New Orleans Hornets.
The Suns have lost four of five games and are coming off Mondays 122-99 loss
to the Dallas Mavericks. Marcin Gortat le
(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).
The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.
"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."
Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.
"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."
When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:
CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.
DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.
PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.
You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.
"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."
Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.
(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)
Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."
But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."
Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."
Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."
All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.
In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.
"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."
To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.
Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.
Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.
Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.
If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.
Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.
By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.
In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.
So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.
While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.
There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.
In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:
SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.
XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.
XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.
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