Blues, Preds clash in likely defensive battle
Hockey Betting Lines
02/04/2012 -
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Blues have an All-Star goaltender who might
not even be his club's starter come playoff time.
The Nashville Predators are likely to start a netminder this evening who is on
the longest winning streak in club history.
That could make goals at a premium Saturday night in this big Central Division
matchup between the Blues and Predators in Nashville.
St. Louis has posted a 9-1-2 record since a 3-0 loss in Detroit on Dec. 31 and
sits fourth overall in the West, four back of the Red Wings for first place in
both the division and conference. Nashville, winners in 13 of its past 16, is
a point behind St. Louis.
The Blues recorded their NHL-leading 10th shutout of the season last night
with a 1-0 win over the Kings, getting the fifth of the season from Jaroslav
Halak to snap a two-game slide. The St. Louis netminder made 22 saves for his
21st career whitewash, getting all the support he would need at the 8:38 mark
of the second on Jamie Langenbrunner's goal.
"You've got to get 100 points to make the playoffs and we knew that coming
in," Langenbrunner said of the always-competitive Western Conference playoff
picture. "If you win one you feel good about it and you move on. If you lose
one you forget about it and move on. No one is going to win every game, but
you've got to make sure you give yourself a chance every night."
Halak is 12-1-3 in his last 16 starts, posting a 1.57 goals-against average
and .937 save percentage over that span. Four of his last seven starts have
resulted in shutouts.
Still, Halak has made 28 starts to Brian Elliott's 22. The latter also has
five shutouts this year and leads the NHL with a 1.69 GAA. The All-Star
selection is second in the league with a .938 save percentage and it is
unknown who will get the start tonight.
Nashville is likely to turn to Pekka Rinne, who is in the midst of a personal
10-game win streak. Rinne hasn't lost since Jan. 5 and has allowed two goals
or less in all but one contest over his current win streak. He is also 13-1-0
with a 1.77 GAA and .941 save percentage since Dec. 28 and became the third
goaltender since the start of the 2005-06 season to win more than 10 wins in a
month after going 11-1-0 in January.
After giving up four goals in a 5-4 win at Minnesota on Tuesday, head coach
Barry Trotz gave his No. 1 goalie a rest on Thursday and started backup Anders
Lindback, who allowed three goals on 27 shots in a 4-1 defeat to hosting
Philadelphia.
Ryan Suter had the lone Preds goal, his first since Nov. 23, while Craig Smith
logged an assist to give him two goals and three helpers over a five-game
point streak. Nashville, though, had a five-game win streak halted.
"Yeah, we haven't given him enough support in terms of offense," Trotz said of
Lindback bearing the brunt of an offensive drought. "Sometimes that happens.
He's had some good teams we've played him against in the [Eastern
Conference]."
The Predators have won all three meetings with the Blues so far this season,
including consecutive 2-1 shootout victories. Nashville has won nine of the
last 13 encounters overall and four of the past six played at home.
<< Lightning wrap season series with Panthers
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Lightning could very well be chasing the
Florida Panthers for a playoff spot for the rest of the season, but tonight
will be the final time that they get to help their own cause in this series.
The two Southe
<< Sabres hope to move past Islanders
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - If the Buffalo Sabres want to get into the playoff mix,
they are going to have to beat teams like the New York Islanders. However,
that is not something they have been able to do on a consistent basis as of
late.
The Sabr
<< Sens aim to break out versus Maple Leafs
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Ottawa Senators have matched their longest losing
streak of the season, but the Toronto Maple Leafs could play the role of
slump-buster this evening.
The Sens try to avoid a sixth defeat in a row as they take on a Mapl
<< Avalanche seek rare successful trip to Vancouver
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The sliding Colorado Avalanche will try to post a rare win
over the first-place Vancouver Canucks when the Northwest Division rivals meet
this afternoon at the Pepsi Center in Denver.
Colorado has lost four straight -- all
<< Ovechkin returns as Capitals visit Canadiens
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alex Ovechkin will try to help the Washington Capitals
avoid their first three-game slide in over two months, as the star forward
returns from suspension today to battle the Montreal Canadiens at the Bell
Centre.
Ovechkin
Wild seek to hold off Stars in Dallas >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Wild are coming off one road victory over a team that
is chasing them in the Western Conference standings. Minnesota hopes for
similar results tonight, but to do that it will have to beat the Stars in
Dallas for the first
Sharks, Coyotes engage in the desert >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Jose Sharks aim to push their win streak to four
straight games this evening as they begin a tough stretch of road games with a
matchup against the Phoenix Coyotes.
The Sharks halted a three-game slide with a 1-0 w
Minus Howard, Red Wings visit healthy Oilers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Red Wings seem to finally be hitting their
stride on the road, but they'll be without the league's leader in wins for the
rest of their swing.
Minus goaltender Jimmy Howard, the Red Wings look for their third s
Bulls charge into D.C. to take on 14th-ranked Hoyas >>
Washington, D.C. (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With the postseason rapidly approaching, a
pair of Big East Conference teams hoping to improve their prospects meet in
the nation's capital this morning, as the South Florida Bulls take on the
14th-ranked Geo
Ward, Hurricanes try to shut down Kings >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Carolina Hurricanes may be tied for the fewest points
in the Eastern Conference, but they showed again on Thursday that they can
still hang with the best the NHL has to offer.
Hoping to win two in a row for just the se
Big East Conference odds
Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence
 Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.
Work left to do:
Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.
Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.
DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...
West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.
Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.
For more March Madness odds go to MySportsbook.com
For more College Basketball betting lines go to BettingExpress.com
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Bonds nearly hits HR 751, SF wins
4 and drove in
a pair of runs, and Barry Bonds nearly hit homer No. 751 as San Francisco beat
1, in the middle contest of three at AT&T Park.
6) allowed five hits and one run over 6 2/3 innings, fanning
eight and walking three.
game slide.
Bonds, who came within five homers of Hank Aaron's record on Friday, went
1 with three walks, an RBI double and scored twice. The double ...
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