Hockey Picks for Tuesday March 1, 2011: Nashville Predators vs. Edmonton Oilers

Online Sportsbook Overview

If plan to bet on March Madness and the like to start getting the best MLB predictions visit www.mlbpredictions.org then you know how important timing can be. It can be a sports betting bonus for a team searching for a better spot in the NCAA tournament to get a weak late-season opponent. The hockey experts know that an NHL team in search of a break during the playoff hunt can welcome a game against a lesser opponent. The only problem is that some teams can take that lesser opponent too lightly and not grab those important points.

The Nashville Predators are right in the middle of the hunt for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. The Predators are tied with three other teams at 72 points, and every win counts. The Edmonton Oilers were out of the Western Conference playoff race when the season started. But that does not mean that the Oilers are not capable of a few surprises.

Nashville Predators

After an impressive showing in last year’s playoffs, the Nashville Predators and their fans expected to be right back in the middle of the playoff mix this season. Nashville got off to a slow start this season, but it has really picked up the pace in the second half of the season. Nashville is second only to conference-leading Vancouver in the number of home losses with seven. But the Predators have fallen to the spot they are in now with a 4-5-1 record in its last 10 games. The other problem for the Predators is that they are 17-16-1 on the road. Nashville is much better at home than on the road, and the Oilers are not a team to fall asleep against.

Edmonton Oilers

Everything about the Oilers indicates that they are not capable of beating a playoff-hungry team like the Predators. In the last 10 games, the Oilers are 4-6-0 and they are riding a two-game losing streak. They are securely in last place in the Western Conference trailing the nearest team by 11 points. The Oilers have a 10-19-4 home record, and the Predators should take the Oilers very seriously. The Oilers have a habit of dropping wins in-between strings of losses that can break the hearts of playoff contenders. Just ask the Atlanta Thrashers.

The Bottom Line

If the Predators play their game, then they should be able to beat the Oilers. But if the Predators come into this game looking ahead to other opponents, then the Oilers will make them pay. The Oilers are a very young team that is still trying to find its way. But even the teams that seem lost can take a right turn once in a while. The Oilers are not getting great goaltending, their defense is slow and inexperienced and they do not have any real capable scoring forwards. But the Oilers do sell their arena out every night, and those fans can sometimes push the Oilers to do great things. The flashes of potential in Edmonton are few and far between, but if the Predators are not careful one of those flashes could knock Nashville down a notch in the playoff race.

Gambling Advisor blog Pick: Nashville Predators

NCAA Basketball Betting – Mountaineers, Panthers Prepare for “Backyard Brawl”

Those betting on March Madness should have an eye on the Big East, which has been acknowledged as the toughest conference in the country and on Thursday, we’ll get another meeting between arguably the two biggest rivals in the Big East. You know it’s heated when a rivalry is called the “Backyard Brawl”, so West Virginia and Pittsburgh should give us a great matchup.

West Virginia Betting – Thursday, 9:00 PM ET

The Mountaineers (17-9, 8-6) would likely roll in another conference as they seem to play a top-15 team every other game, and they flexed their muscles with a 72-58 win over Notre Dame at home on Saturday. Darryl “Truck” Bryant led the way with 24 points, while Joe Mazzulla chipped in with 16 points, seven assists and five boards for the Mountaineers, who shot just 40.7% from the field but they held the Fighting Irish to 35%. They also won this game at the foul line, where they went 20-of-27 while Notre Dame was 8-of-13. Baseball betting players would compare the Big East to the American League East, and West Virginia would probably be Toronto; they could win it, but they would be better off in another conference.

The No.4 Panthers (24-3, 12-2) became the latest team to fall at Madison Square Garden as they were edged 60-59 by St. John’s, and they were done in by 16 turnovers. Ashton Gibbs came off the bench but played 34 minutes, scoring a game-high 26 points, but he was the only Panther to notch more than seven points. Pitt was also brutal at the charity stripe, hitting just 10 of their 18 attempts, and those are the little things that can cost a team when March rolls around.

Betting services will likely favor the Panthers at home, where they have won five in a row SU, posting a 2-2-1 ATS mark. Three of those wins have come by three points or less, and it’s usually a close affair when these rivals get together. The Panthers will be going for the season sweep after a 71-66 win in Morgantown on February 7t in which they outrebounded the Mountaineers 39-25, and Gibbs wasn’t even in the lineup because of a knee injury. The Mountaineers will need Bryant to play like he did against Notre Dame as he has been cold shooting the rock this season, because we know Pitt has a proven scorer in Gibbs. This game will likely be won on the interior like the last meeting, and we think the Panthers will come out hungry because of the St. John’s loss, not that they needed any added motivation with West Virginia coming to town. Go with Pitt in your sports betting picks.

Hockey Picks Preview for Tuesday February 22, 2011: Boston Bruins vs. Calgary Flames

Betting Online Overview

The novelty of outdoor NHL games is wearing off. Once the novelty wears off you are left with the quality of hockey. When players are shivering from sub-zero temperatures and the ice is twice as hard as it should be, the quality of the game suffers. While some people were looking over the college basketball lines for the weekend, NHL fans were gearing up for the second outdoor game of the season – the Heritage Classic between the Calgary Flames and the Montreal Canadiens.

The betting services expected the Flames to win the game, but not by the margin that wound up being the final score. In a 4-0 win over the Canadiens, the Flames showed speed and strength throughout the game. But they did so in sub-zero weather on bad ice. Now the Flames need to see how they can handle a high-flying team like the Boston Bruins on good ice and indoors.

Boston Bruins

The Boston Bruins were happy to see the Flames beat the Canadiens in the Heritage Classic, because the Montreal loss kept the Boston lead in the Northeastern Division at four points. The Bruins are 6-4-0 in their last 10 games and are currently riding a two-game winning streak. It was goaltending that was the Bruins undoing last year and, to this point, it has been goaltending that has put the Bruins on top. This year it is goaltender Tim Thomas with the hot hand in Boston, but his hand has been a bit cold lately.

In his last four decisions, Thomas is 1-3. In his one win in that stretch he allowed six goals against. So he has not exactly been sharp lately. His most recent losses were back to back four-goal games against the Detroit Red Wings and then the Toronto Maple Leafs. As Thomas goes so go the Bruins, and right now Thomas is not going so good.

Calgary Flames

It is nearly impossible to judge how a team is playing by one of the outdoor games. The Flames played well in the Heritage Classic, but because of the conditions the game seemed to be played in slow motion. The reality is that the Flames are 7-1-2 in their last 10 games and have a current winning streak of three games. They have a balanced scoring attack and are getting good goaltending from Miikka Kiprusoff. The Flames are just a good team playing good hockey.

The strength of the Flames is at home where they are 18-9-3. But the Bruins are better on the road than at home, and are sporting an 18-7-4 road record. This sets itself up as a good game, but the Bruins recent goaltending problems could make this a blowout for the Flames if Jarome Iginla and the rest of the Flames scorers start to find their groove.

The Bottom Line

The Bruins are getting some help in maintaining their lead in the Northeast Division by the slumping Canadiens. The Flames will never catch the Vancouver Canucks for the Northwest Division lead, but Calgary is definitely building momentum heading into the playoffs.

Gambling Advisor Pick: Calgary Flames

NCAAB Betting – Buckeyes Rebound With Big Win Over Spartans But Questions Remain

Three nights after falling to Wisconsin 71-67 for their first defeat of the online sports betting season, the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes blasted the Michigan State Spartans 71-61 to pick up from right where they left off before their 24-game winning streak came to a sudden halt. While it will take a couple of more days to figure out just how significant the win was, and see if the Buckeyes can parlay that result, Ohio State’s victory was big for a couple of reasons.

William Buford led four Buckeyes’ scorers that finished with double-digit point totals, scoring 23 points in the victory. Although it doesn’t make up for the loss to the Badgers, the win is significant because it gets Ohio State back on track and keeps them as one of just two teams in the nation that have only one loss. The Buckeyes have now won 19 straight home games, and the argument will once again come up about just how good this team is. While Buford decided to take the spotlight for a change, leading pay per head scorer Jared Sullinger scored 11 points on just 3-of-8 shooting, a concern for the coaching staff. While the positive is that he didn’t need to be the team’s best player, Ohio State will only go so far unless he can come up with a better performance on a more consistent basis. David Lighty and Jon Diebler also finished in double digits for the Buckeyes, with Diebler’s two three-point shots tying him with Shawn Respert for the second most in Big Ten history at 331. The record is 332, which was set by Pete Lisicky of Penn State.

While Sullinger struggled, the team did a lot of things right and that should make an impact when the votes are tallied after next week. While the No. 3 Texas Longhorns have already garnered recognition ahead of the Buckeyes in the USA Today Coaches Poll, there has to be an issue of whether they and the No. 1 Kansas Jayhawks deserve to be seeded so high. The Jayhawks have already garnered concern after falling to the unranked Kansas State Wildcats on the same day that they were awarded with the top sports betting bonus position in the country, and that will be weighed in when the rankings are updated next weekend.

Still, there are big NCAA basketball betting question marks about whether or not the Buckeyes are the team that deserves that top spot. There is still the No. 4 Pittsburgh Panthers and the No. 5 and reigning national champion Duke Blue Devils that will also get consideration. All five teams have earned the right to have arguments made in their favor for the upcoming March Madness tournament, which is right around the corner. However, the question remains about just where the Buckeyes should stand right now, and where they will finish when it is all said and done.

NHL Betting Preview for Tuesday February 15, 2011: Philadelphia Flyers vs. Tampa Bay Lightning

Sports Betting Overview

Even people that are only involved in NCAA basketball betting are trying to figure out how the Philadelphia Flyers got shut out at home by the Los Angeles Kings over the weekend. As the NHL trade deadline approaches, it is doubtful that the Flyers will be buyers or sellers in the open market. But the betting services are thinking that the shut out loss to the Kings will be more of a wake-up call for Philadelphia than a foreshadowing of bad things to come.

The last time the Tampa Bay Lightning stepped on the ice, they won a very important divisional game over the Carolina Hurricanes. But that was three days ago. Sustaining momentum can be difficult with more than a day or two off in between games. The Lightning trail the Flyers by four points in the Eastern Conference standings, and this game can go a long way to helping to determine who will take the top spot as the playoffs get closer.

Philadelphia Flyers

The only thing the Flyer have to worry about when it comes to the shut out loss to the Kings is that the Kings were really on a roll and the Flyers could not stop them. It is the same problem the Flyers has in the playoffs last year. The Chicago Blackhawks were really on a roll, and the Flyers could not stop them. But the Flyers know how important this game is, and they intend to put some space between themselves and the Lightning. Despite the loss to the Kings, the Flyers are 7-3-0 in their last 10 games. Even more impressive is the fact that the Flyers are 17-6-3 on the road. The Flyers have a better road record than home record. A team that is that comfortable on the road has a very good shot at getting back on track in an opponent’s building.

Tampa Bay Lightning

The Lightning are an extremely tough team at home. This season, Tampa Bay is 19-6-2 at home. The Lighting are also 3-0 this season against the Flyers, and the Lightning have been able to score against the Flyers while shutting the Philadelphia offense down. Tampa Bay is the one team that the Flyers do not want to play in the regular season or in the playoffs. As the trade deadline approaches, the Lightning are not looking to make any moves at all. That means that the Flyers may have to deal with this Tampa Bay team in the playoffs, and it could be Philly’s Achilles heel.

The Bottom Line

The Flyers need this game, but after getting shut out by the Kings the Flyers are vulnerable. They are especially vulnerable against a Tampa Bay team that just shut Philadelphia out two weeks ago. Flyers fans may have to accept the fact that the Lightning has their number and that this could be a big problem for the Flyers. The Lightning are coming off of an emotional win just a few days ago, and they will find a way to use that to their advantage against the best team in the Eastern Conference.

BSN Sports Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning

NHL Betting Preview for Tuesday February 8, 2011: Buffalo Sabres vs. Tampa Bay Lightning

Betting Online Preview

The Buffalo Sabres have been beating the lower-ranked teams in the NHL without much problem. The last Sabres game was a 6-2 win over the lowly Toronto Maple Leafs. But when it comes to teams with speed and skill, the Sabres are often found standing around in their own end watching their goaltender Ryan Miller taking a barrage of shots. For a team with the speed that the Sabres have, their one weakness seems to be playing against teams with speed.

The Tampa Bay Lightning have gone from the basement to the penthouse in just one season. Last year, it was not fun to watch a Tampa Bay Lightning game if you were a Tampa Bay fan. This year, the team is tops in the Eastern Conference and look poised to make an impressive playoff run. There have been changes in Tampa Bay that have caused this transformation, but many of the key players remain the same as they have always been. It is still all about Martin St. Louis and Vincent Lecavalier in Tampa Bay, and with leadership like that it is no wonder the Lightning are succeeding this year.

Buffalo Sabres

The long wait for Sabres players and fans is finally over as it was officially announced that billionaire Terry Pegula will buy the team as soon as the NHL approves the sale. Pegula has already given GM Darcy Regier a list of players he does not want traded. While the sale to Pegula should be a good thing, it has been a sort of a distraction in one area. Darcy Regier signed a contract extension before the season started, but head coach Lindy Ruff did not. There is a great deal of speculation as to what the future of the longest-tenured head coach in the NHL will be, and that has to be weighing on the Sabres.

Buffalo is getting NHL scores from some unexpected places this season. Rookie Tyler Ennis has 28 points so far this season, and tough guy Cody McCormick has scored seven goals this season. Power forward Paul Gaustad, known more for his checking than scoring, has scored three goals in the last four games. But until the Sabres get consistent results from highly paid goal scorers such as Thomas Vanek and Jason Pominville, the Sabres will have problems beating the better teams in the league.

Tampa Bay Lightning

The Lightning are a potent team. They have several key pieces that fit together very well. Steven Stamkos is having another sports online betting blockbuster year with 40 goals and 32 assists in 54 games played. Veteran Martin St. Louis has 20 goals and 44 assists so far this season and has put up points in three of his last five games.

Tampa Bay is 7-3-0 in its last 10 games and 18-5-2 at home. Tampa has the best home record in the Eastern Conference, and they are battling Philadelphia for the overall lead in the conference standings.

The Bottom Line

The Lighting are a good home team and the Sabres are a good road team. But the Sabres defense has been lousy all season long, and they constantly look out of position. With the speed that the Lightning has, the Sabres may not stand much of a chance in this game.

BSN Sports Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning

Bet On Super Bowl – Lots of MVP Candidates in Dallas

Those who bet on Super Bowl odds will definitely be looking at the vast amount of props available, and the most popular prop will likely be the Most Valuable Player Award, where there are plenty of candidates on both sides of the ball. Here are the top contenders, and who we think will come out on top.

Bet On Super Bowl –Sunday, 6:00 PM ET

Aaron Rodgers (+130)

The Green Bay quarterback has been the postseason MVP so far, and if the Packers win, it’ll be a tremendous upset if he does. Rodgers is looking to become the 24th quarterback to win this award, and he’ll have a major say in Green Bay’s fate, given that they have a rookie at running back in James Starks, who just emerged about a month ago.

Ben Roethlisberger (+325)

Rodgers’ counterpart in Pittsburgh is going for his third Super Bowl in seven seasons, but he’s never won the Super Bowl MVP. Those doing some NFL betting online will say that Roethlisberger should have won the award in 2009, but he gets another chance and Roethlisberger has shown he can put the team on his back.

Rashard Mendenhall (+650)

Roethlisberger’s load will be substantially less if the Steelers can get Mendenhall off and running, and that would be a good thing; the burly running back has four 100-yard games this season, and the Steelers are a perfect 4-0 in that time. Some making NFL predictions think that Mendenhall is the most important factor in Pittsburgh’s success, and they’re probably not that far off.

Greg Jennings (+1200)

Much like Santonio Holmes in 2009, Jennings is in a great position because if Rodgers has a good game, Jennings will likely have a good game. Jennings may be the best receiver in the league that no one talks a lot about, but we’re sure the Steelers will be going over their gameplan to stop the versatile wide receiver who seems to get better each and every game.

Any Defensive Player (from +1200 up)

Only seven defensive players in 45 Super Bowls have won the MVP award, and this year’s candidates are led by Pittsburgh’s Troy Polamalu, who just won the Defensive Player of the Year award. His main challengers should be Green Bay’s Charles Woodson, who was last year’s DPOY, and Clay Matthews, who many feel should have won this year. On the Pittsburgh side joining Polamalu, James Harrison is looking to have another big Super Bowl after his 100-yard return became the longest play in the game’s history in 2009. It’s a longshot that a defensive player will actually win the award, but these are all good choices if you’re looking to make a darkhorse online sports bet.

A Look at This Year’s Super Bowl Props

The sports wagering sites love to add interest to big events such as Super Bowl 45 betting by throwing in a long list of props bets. Aside from the usual action on NFL scores each week, betting enthusiasts should check out the props bets for some fun side wagers that could result in extra winnings. This year the pay per head sportsbook experts have a long list of interesting prop bets to choose from. Here is a preview of some of the best props bets this year.

Will Aaron Rodgers Throw An Interception?

It is rare that you will find the odds on a props bet like this in favor of the quarterback avoiding an interception. The odds are -160 that Rodgers will throw an interception, and +130 that he will not. Considering the fact that safety Troy Polamalu will be wandering the secondary causing a long list of problems for Rodgers, the chances are very good that Aaron Rodgers will throw at least one interception in Super Bowl XLV.

Will Rashard Mendenhall Score A Touchdown?

Pittsburgh running back Rashard Mendenhall has scored a rushing touchdown in each of the Steelers two playoff games this year. He also has at least one touchdown in 11 of the Steelers 16 regular season games. The odds that Mendenhall will score a touchdown in Super Bowl XLV are -170 and the odds that he will not are +140. Go with the odds on this one. The Steelers will turn to Mendenhall a lot to move the ball in this game, and he will score at least one touchdown in Super Bowl XLV.

Will Hines Ward Score A Touchdown?

The odds are +155 that Pittsburgh receiver Hines Ward will score a touchdown and -190 that he will not. The odds are stacked against Ward because he has been all but invisible in these playoffs. Ward has a total of 39 receiving yards in the playoffs, but he does have one touchdown. In 2005, Hines Ward was a major component of the Steelers win in Super Bowl Xl over Seattle. But in 2008, Ward only had 43 receiving yards against the Arizona Cardinals. The Packers will find ways to hide Hines Ward in the secondary, and that means no touchdowns for Hines Ward in Super Bowl XLV.

Will Mike Wallace Score A Touchdown?

Pittsburgh wide receiver Mike Wallace is only in his second year in the NFL. The kid is young and had an outstanding regular season. But in the playoffs, he has been shut down. The odds that Mike Wallace will score a touchdown in Super Bowl XLV are +120, and the odds that he will not are -150. Wallace is due. He is too explosive to be kept in check for the entire playoffs. In the 2010 post-season, Wallace has a grand total of 26 receiving yards. Look for Wallace to break out of his slump and put a touchdown on the board in Super Bowl XLV.