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02/02/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Devils opened up their second half by picking up a big two points over one of the top teams in the conference. The Canadiens, meanwhile, failed to build off their win against the top team in the NHL right before the All-Star break.
New Jersey looks to wrap a lengthy homestand this evening and deny Montreal a fifth straight victory in the Garden State.
The Devils began a six-game residency with a win over Winnipeg back on Jan. 17, but dropped the next tests of the stay, including a shootout loss to Buffalo on Jan. 24. After the extended break, New Jersey hosted the Eastern Conference-leading New York Rangers on Tuesday and battled back all night for a 4-3 shootout win.
The Devils erased three one-goal deficits in the game and then picked up the extra point when Ilya Kovalchuk scored the lone goal of the shootout in the first round. Martin Brodeur, who made 23 saves through overtime, came up with stops on Derek Stepan, Brad Richards and All-Star Game MVP Marian Gaborik.
"It was an emotional win. We've had our share of issues against the Rangers so to come back the way we (did was great)," said Brodeur after New Jersey moved to 9-2 in shootouts this year.
David Clarkson tied the game on a goal with 48 ticks left in regulation, while Kovalchuk and Zach Parise also scored in the game.
New Jersey sits eighth overall in the Eastern Conference, 12 points behind the Rangers.
"It's a big one for sure," Devils coach Pete DeBoer said of the win over New York. "We're at a time when obviously they're all big, but we really needed a win against obviously a really good team, the best in our conference right now. During a critical homestand here, it's a big two points."
DeBoer would love to see his team end the homestand with two straight wins, but he must find a way to solve the Canadiens. Though the Devils have won 10 of the past 14 encounters overall, the Habs have come out on top in each of their last four visits to New Jersey by a 13-4 margin. That includes a 2-1 win on Dec. 10 in which Montreal netminder Carey Price denied Parise on a penalty shot in the game's final minute.
Price was in solid form again on Tuesday, but didn't get enough offensive support in a 3-1 loss against the visiting Sabres. Price ended with 37 saves on 39 shots faced as Montreal failed to secure a third straight win and instead lost for the 13th time in 19 contests.
"That's a shame because he played great," said defenseman Hal Gill of Price. "He tried to steal one for us and we didn't let it happen."
Max Pacioretty scored at the 4:09 mark of the first period, but the next three goals came off the sticks of Buffalo players.
"I think at the end of the first, we lost a little momentum. They came hard and we didn't do the things that we need to do," said Gill. "We turned it over in the neutral zone, we gave them too many chances outside, we didn't attack them enough."
Montreal had knocked off NHL-leading Detroit by a 7-2 margin in its last game before the break and will seek to avoid its eight loss in its last 10 road games.
<< Jazz and Warriors meet in the Bay Area
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Golden State hopes to wrap up a six-game homestand in
winning fashion tonight when it plays host to a Utah Jazz team aiming to
bounce back from a tough loss.
After losing the first two games of their current residency, the
<< Furman to visit Clemson, host five games in 2012
Greenville, SC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A visit to Clemson and a Homecoming game
against Georgia Southern highlight the 2012 Furman football schedule announced
on Thursday.
Furman will play at Clemson on Sept. 15. The Paladins are Clemson's oldest
<< Bruins try to solve visiting Hurricanes
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Try as they may, the Boston Bruins haven't been able to
solve the Carolina Hurricanes this season. They'll get one more chance tonight
as the two teams clash in Boston.
The Bruins and Hurricanes sit at opposite ends of the
<< Improved Clippers aim for another win over Nuggets
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Clippers seem to grow more imposing by the
day and will aim get the best of Denver for the second time in less than a
week when the two teams square off at Staples Center.
The Pacific Division-leading Clips
St. Louis, Bolts try to stay hot vs. Jets >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With Martin St. Louis heating up to serve as a scoring
compliment to Steven Stamkos, the Lightning seem poised to make a run at a
playoff spot.
Tampa Bay continues that quest tonight and looks to reestablish its dominance
Western Conference powerhouses collide in Vancouver >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top two seeds in the Western Conference will collide
tonight in British Columbia, as the Vancouver Canucks welcome the Detroit Red
Wings for a battle at Rogers Arena.
The Red Wings are tied with the New York Rangers fo
Baffert holds the aces in Robert B. Lewis >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Not only does Bob Baffert have the favorite in this
Saturday's Robert B. Lewis at Santa Anita, but the silver-haired trainer also
has what could be the future Kentucky Derby champion entered in the Grade II
event.
Spurs entertain Hornets in Alamo City >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Antonio Spurs will resume a three-game homestand
tonight versus the New Orleans Hornets at the AT&T Center.
The Spurs have been nearly unstoppable at home and have opened 11-1 in the
Alamo City for the sixth ti
Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.
He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.
"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.
He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.
Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.
Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.
Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.
Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.
With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.
Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).
And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)
The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.
While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.
Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.
One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.
Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.
What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.
That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.
MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.
"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.
"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."
So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.
In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.
MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.
The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.
Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.
MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.
To visit this online football betting got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
Chiefs' Treen Green out for Sunday's game
How long Trent Green will remain sidelined is unknown. Coach Herm Edwards said Monday he will miss a second straight start Sunday when the Chiefs host the San Francisco 49ers.
A two-time Pro Bowler, Green was going into a feet-first hook slide when he was knocked unconscious by a thunderous, head-snapping hit from Cincinnati's Robert Geathers.
Oddsmakers at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com currently have the Chiefs listed as 7-point favorites versus the 49ers.
The 49ers got beat by Philadelphia 38-24 as a 6.5-point underdog last week. The combined score went OVER the posted over/under total (42.5).
Alex Smith completed 27-of-46 passes for 293 yards with a touchdown. Michael Robinson rushed for 29 yards and a pair of touchdowns on five carries.
The Chiefs lost 9-6 to Denver last week as an 11-point underdog. The combined score was well UNDER the posted over/under total (38).
Larry Johnson rushed for 126 yards on 27 carries. Damon Huard completed 17-of-23 passes for 133 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions.
To visit this online sports book got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.
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