Thrashers try for home-and-home sweep in Philly

Hockey Betting Lines

03/21/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Thrashers will try to punctuate their newfound success against the Flyers by sweeping the season series in tonight's finale of a home-and-home set at Philadelphia's Wachovia Center.

The Thrashers were swept in all four of their meetings with the Flyers last year, pushing their series losing streak to an eye-popping 14 straight games since a 6-5 overtime win at Philadelphia back on Nov. 18, 2005.

However, 2009-10 has been a different story with Atlanta winning all three meetings against the Flyers, including Saturday's 5-2 decision at Philips Arena. Colby Armstrong notched a pair of goals to lift the Thrashers to the home victory.

Niclas Bergfors, Nik Antropov each posted a goal and one assist for the Thrashers, who have won three in a row overall and moved within a point of Boston for eighth place in the Eastern Conference. The Bruins are in action Sunday against the New York Rangers, who are just two points behind the Thrashers.

Johan Hedberg made 25 stops, 15 in the third period alone, to claim the win Saturday.

"We're just finding ways to win, especially the last couple games, which were big," said Armstrong.

The Flyers, meanwhile, have lost three of their last four games and are currently locked in a three-way tie for the fifth seed in the East. Ottawa and Montreal also have 79 points to place them five points ahead of Boston for the conference's final postseason berth.

Dan Carcillo and Blair Betts provided the offense on Saturday for the Flyers. Brian Boucher struggled in net, allowing all five goals on 28 shots in the loss for Philadelphia.

"You can talk the talk, but it comes down to how you walk," said Flyers head coach Peter Laviolette. "Tonight, they walked with a really good swagger and good pace, and we played like it was just another game."

The Thrashers snapped a six-game road losing streak in this series with a 4-3 win in Philadelphia on Jan. 28. The Flyers have still taken 10 of 12 overall on home ice against Atlanta.

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Super Bowl 2009 Betting

Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions

Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.

Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.

Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.

If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.

Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.

By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.

In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.

So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.

While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.

There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.

In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:

SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.

XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.

XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.

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