Crosby gets SO winner as Pens top Caps for sixth win in a row

Hockey Betting Lines

03/08/2009 - Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sidney Crosby scored the lone goal of the shootout and added a goal and an assist in regulation as the Pittsburgh Penguins edged the Washington Capitals, 4-3, at Verizon Center.

After a scoreless, but spirited overtime, Crosby beat Jose Theodore with a wrist shot high to the glove side in the second round to give the Penguins the advantage.

Alex Ovechkin then needed to score to keep the game alive for the Capitals, but the Russian star was stopped on a pad save by Marc-Andre Fleury and Pittsburgh prevailed.

Bill Guerin added a goal and two helpers, while Sergei Gonchar lit the lamp for Pittsburgh, which has won six straight and eight of nine overall.

Fleury turned aside 29-of-32 shots for the Penguins, who have won six in a row for the first time since November 1-15, 2008.

Brooks Laich had a goal and an assist and Ovechkin tallied his league-leading 47th of the year for the Capitals, who have dropped four straight, all coming on their four-game homestand. Alexander Semin also scored in defeat.

Ovechkin returned to the lineup after sitting out the Caps' 2-1 loss to Toronto on Saturday with a bruised heel.

Theodore allowed three goals on 22 shots for Washington.

Trailing 3-1 after two periods, Washington quickly came back to tie the contest. Ovechkin's power-play marker from the right circle drew the Caps to within one only 29 seconds into the third.

Pittsburgh then got caught in a line change less than a minute later and Laich's breakaway tally tied it. There would be no further scoring the rest of the third and the game went into overtime.

Crosby opened the scoring 4:29 into the contest when he took a feed from Guerin on a 2-on-1 down low and put it home to give the Penguins the early lead.

Washington would even things with 7:14 left in the stanza on a giveaway by Kris Letang. The Pittsburgh defenseman tried a clearing attempt up the middle from beside his own net, but hit Nicklas Backstrom in the backside. Semin then picked up the loose puck and beat Fleury with a backhander from in close.

The Pens tallied twice within 3 1/2 minutes apart in the second. Gonchar's power-play blast from the point got through several players and went over Theodore's shoulder to make it a 2-1 game at 7:25.

Guerin then lit the lamp on a quick wrist shot off a feed from Crosby with just under nine minutes left in the frame to put Pittsburgh up by a pair.

Game Notes

Washington will play at Nashville on Tuesday, while the Penguins host Florida...Despite the loss, the Capitals won the season series with Pittsburgh this year 3-1-0, and have taken four of six overall...Pittsburgh improved to 18-14-4 as the visiting club this season...Washington dropped to 25-9-2 at home.

Foxaports Hockey Betting News

<< Dominant day for Kurt Busch at Atlanta
Hampton, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kurt Busch grabbed the lead from Carl Edwards with one lap remaining and then held off a hard-charging Jeff Gordon to win Sunday's Kobalt Tools 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Busch put on a dominating performan

<< Parker helps Spurs down Suns
San Antonio, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tony Parker had a game-best 30 points and doled out nine assists to lead the San Antonio Spurs to a 103-98 win over the struggling Phoenix Suns at the AT&T Center. Tim Duncan added 17 points and

<< Danis strong between the pipes as Isles tame Coyotes
Uniondale, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Yann Danis made 40 saves as the New York Islanders completed a successful weekend by clipping Phoenix, 3-2, at Nassau Coliseum. Jeff Tambellini, Josh Bailey and Kyle Okposo scored for the Islanders, wh

<< Avs snap six-game skid, crush Blackhawks
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Peter Budaj was solid between the pipes, making 24 saves, and Colorado used an avalanche of goals to bury the Chicago Blackhawks, 5-1, and put to rest a six-game losing streak. Milan Hejduk, Ryan Smy

<< Yang earns first PGA Tour title
Palm Beach Gardens, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Y.E. Yang birdied three straight holes on the front nine Sunday, then hung on to defeat John Rollins and win the Honda Classic by a single stroke. Yang, who entered the event ranked 460th in the worl

UNC wraps up ACC crown with sweep of Duke >>
Chapel Hill, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tyler Hansbrough fittingly ended his career at the Dean Dome with a team-high 17 points and eight rebounds, as the battle for Tobacco Road once again went to second-ranked North Carolina thanks to the Tar Hee

Brewers release Gagne >>
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Milwaukee Brewers released relief pitcher Eric Gagne from his minor league contract on Sunday. The 33-year-old Gagne, who will now undergo conservative rehab, had an up- and-down 2008 campaign, going

Report: Red Sox give Lester five-year extension >>
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Red Sox have reportedly extended pitcher Jon Lester's contract for five years through 2013 with a team option for 2014. According to Yahoo! Sports, the first five years of the deal are wort

Cards agree to terms with CB McFadden >>
Tempe, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Arizona Cardinals agreed to terms with cornerback Bryant McFadden to a two-year contract on Sunday. McFadden compiled 54 tackles, two interceptions and one sack in 10 games, including eight starts

Romero wins tight Toshiba Classic >>
Newport Beach, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Eduardo Romero shot a three-under 68 on Sunday to win the Toshiba Classic by one shot over Mark O'Meara and Joey Sindelar. Romero scrambled for a bogey at the 18th hole to secure his fifth Champions Tour

2007 NFL Football Betting Preview


“You play to win the game!”

Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.

The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.

The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.

Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?

Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.

New York Giants betting lines

Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.

Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.

Dallas Cowboys betting lines

Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.

The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.

Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.

Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.

Oakland Raiders betting lines

This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.

First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”

The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason. 

Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football wagering needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.

Pacific-10 Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Stanford

Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.

Should be in:

Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.

Southeastern Conference odds
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State

It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.

Work left to do:

Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney.

Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson.

Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable.

Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile.

For more College Basketball betting lines go to MySportsbook.com

Additional sports lines can be found at: www.Sportsbooks.com

To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards.