Devils hold off Flyers for 6-4 win

Hockey Betting Lines

02/04/2012 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kurtis Foster scored two power-play goals and collected an assist, as the New Jersey Devils fended off a valiant comeback effort by the Philadelphia Flyers to escape the Wells Fargo Center with a 6-4 win Saturday afternoon.

When Foster struck on another two-man advantage, his tally gave the visitors a 6-0 cushion. And the contest hadn't even reached the midway point.

New Jersey goaltender Johan Hedberg made 17 saves through the first two periods, but was beaten four times on 24 shots in the third. Ultimately, the Flyers rally fell short.

Ilya Kovalchuk registered a goal and two assists for the Devils, who have won three in a row after going into the All-Star break with three consecutive losses.

Sergei Bobrovsky surrendered six New Jersey goals on 23 shots and was replaced by Ilya Bryzgalov in the second period. Bryzgalov finished with eight saves -- he needed to make only one in the third -- for Philadelphia, which had gained at least a point in its previous five games (3-0-2).

Wayne Simmonds put the Flyers on the board 3:58 into the third and they scored their next three goals in a 4:08 span to create doubt in the game's outcome.

After Jaromir Jagr notched his first goal since December 29 at Pittsburgh, Claude Giroux scored a power-play goal on a one-timer from the slot. Jakub Voracek buried a rebound at 13:31, and the Flyers relentless pressure led to New Jersey defenseman Andy Greene tripping Jagr with 23 seconds remaining.

But the Devils overcame a flurry with Bryzgalov on the bench.

New Jersey was scoreless in 14 power-play chances in three previous meetings this season against the Flyers, but snapped its drought on a two-man advantage as Patrik Elias fed Foster for a one-timer at the 3:05 mark of the first period.

Later in the frame, the Devils appeared to catch a break with the Flyers on a power play as no whistle blew when Dainius Zubrus knocked down Giroux at the point. The non-call led to an odd-man rush, and Kovalchuk wound up scoring New Jersey's NHL-leading 12th short-handed goal with 57 seconds remaining.

Zubrus lit the lamp with just 0.4 seconds remaining to give New Jersey a 3-0 lead after 20 minutes.

To make matters worse for Philadelphia, Scott Hartnell took a high-sticking penalty just as Zubrus scored, and Devils captain Zach Parise banged home his own rebound for a power-play goal 38 seconds into the second period.

Alexei Ponikarovsky beat Bobrovsky 59 seconds later, and Foster put New Jersey up 6-0 at 8:22 of the middle stanza.

Game Notes

Ponikarovsky registered his 300th career point with the secondary assist on Zubrus' goal...New Jersey was 4-for-7 on man advantage and now has scored a power-play goal in a season-high four consecutive games...The Flyers were 1- for-7 on the power play. They have at least one power-play goal in six straight...The Devils have won their last three games in Philadelphia.

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Football Betting

NFL Football Betting Online

The San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago.

Thursday, August 21

NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37

NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007
KEY NFL BETTING TREND: SF has lost its last seven SU on pre-season road

In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points.

Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):

* SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU
* SF has covered three of its last 11 games
* SF has lost six of its last seven road games SU
* SF has covered one of its last seven road games
* CHI has covered five of its last eight games
* CHI has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* CHI has covered four of its last 13 home games
* SF has lost its last seven pre-season road games SU
* CHI has covered two of its last seven home pre-season games

Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp.

Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled.

Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too.

That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm.

Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds.

CHICAGO -3 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

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