Bergenheim, Islanders double up Devils

Hockey Betting Lines

03/13/2010 - Uniondale, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sean Bergenheim scored a short-handed goal late in the third period as the New York Islanders took down the New Jersey Devils, 4-2 at Nassau Coliseum.

Freddy Meyer, Jon Sim and Mark Streit also scored for the Islanders, who ended their four-game losing streak. Dwayne Roloson stopped 38 shots for the win.

Mike Mottau and Ilya Kovalchuk each found the net for the Devils, who had won two straight coming in. Former Islander netminder Yann Danis filled in for the resting Martin Brodeur and allowed four goals on 29 shots in defeat.

After Isles defenseman Dylan Reese was assessed a double-minor for high sticking at 9:15 in the final period, Blake Comeau started a 2-on-1 break, finding Bergenheim wide open in front for the score at 11:33, extending the Isles margin to 4-2.

The goal was reviewed as the net appeared to come off its hinges slightly, but the call stood.

The Devils had a 5-on-3 advantage for almost a minute shortly after the goal, but the Islanders and Roloson were able to stand a furious New Jersey attack.

Danis was pulled with 1:37 left, but the extra skater didn't help the Devils trim their deficit.

Mottau put the Devils on the scoreboard first at 2:52 into the game, as he simply threw the puck on net from the right boards and sailed between a screened Roloson's legs.

The Islanders tied the game on a 3-on-2 break as Josh Bailey dished to Tim Jackman, who lifted a wrister that bounced off of Danis and was tipped in by Meyer with 2:37 left in the opening period.

In the second, Richard Park drove the neutral zone and was sandwiched between two Devils defenders as the puck trickled back to Sim, who blasted it past Danis at 11:59 to give the Isles the 2-1 lead.

Just 50 seconds later, the Islanders added to the lead on the power play when Frans Nielsen fed Streit at the left point, for a slapshot that was deflected by a Devil and trickled past Danis.

But the Devils bounced back 1:41 into the third, when Dean McAmmond left a drop pass for Kovalchuk, who uncorked a slap shot from the right boards for his 36th goal of the year.

Game Notes

Bergenheim's short-handed goal was the sixth for the Islanders this season...Prior to the contest, the Islanders announced that forward Doug Weight will miss the remainder of the regular season following impending surgery on his left shoulder...McAmmond finished with two assists for the Devils...New Jersey next plays on Monday at home against Boston...The Islanders host Toronto on Sunday.

Wwhitbox Hockey Betting News

<< Blues keep rolling, top Blue Jackets
Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Andy McDonald had a goal and a pair of assists, and Chris Mason stopped 24 shots, as the surging St. Louis Blues topped Columbus, 5-1, at Nationwide Arena. Alexander Steen, B.J. Crombeen, David

<< Smith's 11 helpers paced Atlanta over Detroit
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Joe Johnson finished with 26 points, as the Atlanta Hawks used an efficient offensive performance to take a 112-99 victory over the Detroit Pistons. Josh Smith added 18 points and a career-high 11 assis

<< Rafalski's OT tally lifts Detroit over Buffalo
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brian Rafalski's power-play goal 31 seconds into overtime gave Detroit a 3-2 win over Buffalo at Joe Louis Arena. Buffalo's Tyler Myers was called for delay of game late in regulation and the penalty carr

<< Bryzgalov, Coyotes shut out Hurricanes
Raleigh, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ilya Bryzgalov made 29 saves to record his NHL- leading eighth shutout, and the Phoenix Coyotes won their fourth straight game with a 4-0 rout of the Carolina Hurricanes. Lee Stempniak and Martin Hanzal each

<< Magic win eighth straight, top Wizards
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dwight Howard put up 28 points, grabbed 15 rebounds and even dished out five assists, as Orlando overcame a sluggish start to upend lowly Washington, 109-95. J.J. Redick netted 18 points, and fellow

Habs edge Bruins, win fifth straight >>
Montreal, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sergei Kostitsyn scored a pair of goals and Jaroslav Halak stopped 21 shots, as Montreal edged Boston, 3-2, at Bell Centre. Andrei Markov netted the other goal for the Canadiens, who won their fi

Hawks use proficient shooting to beat Pistons >>
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Joe Johnson finished with 26 points, as the Atlanta Hawks used an efficient offensive performance to take a 112-99 victory over the Detroit Pistons. Josh Smith added 18 points and a career-high 11 assis

Kessel helps Leafs edge Edmonton >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Phil Kessel scored two goals and dished out an assist, as the Toronto Maple Leafs outlasted the Edmonton Oilers, 6-4, in a matchup between two teams in the basement in the NHL standings. Tyler Bozak had a

Arkansas-Pine Bluff wins SWAC title for first NCAA bid >>
Bossier City, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tavaris Washington had 14 points and five rebounds as the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions took home the Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament title with a 50-38 win over Texas Southern, giving

Knicks pound Dallas to snap Mavs' 13-game win streak >>
Dallas, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bill Walker scored a career-high 23 points and the New York Knicks were an efficient 16-of-30 from beyond the arc, helping them snap Dallas' 13-game winning streak with a resounding 128-94 victory at America

College Football Betting Tips From a Pro

While the NFL is the sport wagered on the heaviest, college football betting lines has become more and more popular as people realize it’s a game that can be beat. The NCAA football season gets longer each year with the addition of numerous bowl games and with that comes more opportunities for more money in your pocket, if handled correctly.

Betting on college football is not the same as with the NFL, so make sure you separate the two. Because of the vast number of teams, the parity between college football programs is slight and thus, you are going to see some high numbers in the NCAA. Teams favored by more than 40 points are not uncommon especially early in the season when teams playing their non-conference schedules.

The best advice when trying to tackle these enormous spreads and is to just stay away. A team that is favored by 40 points is favored by that many for a reason while teams getting 40 points are bad enough that they shouldn’t be touched. Set yourself a spread limit. Getting rid of these games will cut down on the number of contests that you need to handicap while staying away from backdoor or front-door covers.

What is a backdoor and front-door cover you ask? A backdoor cover is a team that is getting beat by more than the spread, but scores late to get within that number thus covering the spread. A front-door cover is just the opposite where the favorite scores late and covers the number they are favored by.

These front-door and backdoor covers are common when second and third string players enter games in college football and it can be the worst nightmare for some bettors. These players can also be your best friend, but ask any bettor and he will give you more instances on losing in this situation than winning. It just seems to work out that way even though everything evens out in the end.

College football betting has some of the softest lines of any sport and it’s being able to find these lines that will make you a successful college football handicapper. The NFL and NBA have the tightest lines around and while those sports can be beat by looking at situations and systems, college football doesn’t quite work that way. It’s much more manual, but when done correctly, it’s much more gratifying as well.

Getting into the nuts and bolts of college football means looking at the many stats in order to beat the number. As opposed to pro football, college football is less dependent on situations and angles and more on certain statistics. Rushing offense and defense, pass efficiency offense and defense and turnover margins are huge. These are vital in the NFL, but even more so when it comes to college football.

Being able to run the ball in college football has always been a key factor in the overall success of a team. The same adage also goes for teams who have the ability to stop the run. Putting these two factors together can produce some positive results in a team’s record both straight up and against the spread. These numbers show huge differences in teams and the spread may not take those into effect, which is where the value comes into play.

Passing yardage numbers both for and against can be a misinterpreted statistic. However, pass efficiency has always been one of the best ways to look at a teams’ passing game ability both offensively and defensively. But is it really a true indication of how they perform? I wouldn’t say so since they are raw passing numbers with nothing else taken into consideration.

I use pass efficiency ratings when doing my handicapping but I adjust my numbers based on a number of factors including power ratings, strength of schedules, personnel and injuries. This gives a much better picture of a team’s ability to pass effectively and also being able to defend the pass. Tweaking pass efficiency stats instead of raw passing yards is the key.

Turnovers are the single most frustrating, and at times the most gratifying, aspect of a college football lines, mostly because they are so unpredictable. They are part of the game and most of the time nothing can be done to control them. However, turnovers are contagious and they can carry over from game to game and season to season.

It’s important to know how to forecast these unforeseen events and how to use them to your advantage. You can find ways to give yourself an edge by looking at past histories of teams and coaches and how they have fared in turnover wars in the past. Instead of turnovers hurting you at the wrong times, find ways to use them to your advantage.

As you can see, college football handicapping is very labor intensive and isn’t just based on where teams are ranked in the AP and coaches polls. Experience, coaching and match-ups are all important since unlike the NFL, college teams turn over much more often with new personnel at most positions every single year. Keeping current on this information is vital.

Betting NCAA football can be lucrative if done correctly, but more importantly, it’s just plain enjoyable because it can be beat. College football is one of the best sports to watch with some of the best rivalries taking place in all of sports. The only downfall is that a championship isn’t decided on the field but on a computer-based system that is the Bowl Championship Series. That will change someday and we will all be better off for it.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your NCAA college football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard 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.