AHL Stars ready to shine in Toronto

Hockey Betting Lines

01/23/2007 - Springfield, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 2007 Rbk Hockey AHL All-Star Classic, set for this coming Sunday and Monday, will bring some of the best young players in hockey to Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto to continue a tradition that actually began 65 years ago.

While 2007 marks the 13th installment of the leagues modern All-Star event, the first AHL All-Star Game was held on Feb. 3, 1942, under the support of league president Maurice Podoloff. The game, played at the famed Arena in Cleveland, was a fundraiser for U.S. and Canadian efforts in World War II and featured some of the most notable names in league history, including Les Cunningham and Eddie Shore, two men whose names now grace AHL awards honoring the leagues MVP and outstanding defenseman, respectively.

The AHL All-Star Game was brought back in 1954, and for the next six years the contest pitted the defending Calder Cup champions against a team of league all-stars. Many of the AHLs great players of the era participated, including AHL Hall of Famer Fred Glover, who played in all six of these games. Other AHL All-Stars in the 1950s included future Hockey Hall of Famers Frank Mathers, Emile Francis, Brian Kilrea, Harry Lumley, Pierre Pilote, Gump Worsley and Johnny Bower, who made 47 saves in a 4-0 shutout win in the October 1956 game.

Following the All-Star Game in December 1959, the event was not held again until current league president and CEO David Andrews revived it 35 years later. In Providence on Jan. 17, 1995, a team of All-Stars from the AHLs six Canadian teams faced off against All-Stars from the leagues 11 U.S.-based clubs.

The annual Skills Competition was added in 1996, and the format was changed in 1997 to the current set-up pitting Canadian-born players against those born outside Canada.

Fans in Toronto - regarded as the hockey capital of the world - and a live international TV audience is set to once again witness the AHLs best face off on one of hockeys brightest stages, the 2007 Rbk Hockey AHL All-Star Classic. The AHL All-Star TV network will reach over 100 million households; click here for a schedule of air times.

ALL-STAR RADIO COVERAGE ... In addition to the extensive TV and video webcast coverage of the 2007 Rbk Hockey AHL All-Star Classic, Mondays AHL All-Star Game can be heard anywhere in the world on the official Web site of the AHL, theahl.com.

Toronto Marlies play-by-play voice John Bartlett will provide the call of the All-Star Game on a worldwide audio cybercast courtesy of the Marlies flagship radio home, AM640 Toronto.

The 2007 AHL All-Star Game will also be carried live on XM Satellite Radio and XM Canada, with more than six million subscribers, on Home Ice XM 204, the networks all-hockey channel.

CHERRY TO SPEAK AT ALL-STAR LUNCHEON ... Former American Hockey League All- Star defenseman and long-time Canadian broadcasting legend Don Cherry will serve as the guest speaker at the 2007 Hockey Hall of Fame AHL All-Star Classic Luncheon, Jan. 29 in Toronto.

The Luncheon, which is annually attended by 1,000 guests, will also feature the induction of four new members into the American Hockey League Hall of Fame. The Class of 2007 includes Fred "Bun" Cook, Dick Gamble, Gil Mayer and Mike Nykoluk.

ALL-STAR OFFICIALS NAMED ... The AHL has named the on-ice officials for the 2007 AHL All-Star Game in Toronto. Steve Kozari will serve as the games referee, while John Campbell and Scott Cherrey will be the linesmen.

It will be the first AHL All-Star appearance for all three.

500 FOR SLANEY ... Philadelphia Phantoms captain John Slaney, who has more career points in AHL All-Star Game play than anyone in league history, on Sunday became the first defenseman - and the 72nd player overall - ever to record 500 points in an AHL career.

With his second-period assist against Norfolk, Slaney now has 160 goals and 340 assists in 597 career AHL contests.

ETC. ... Omahas All-Star goaltender Curtis McElhinney is 0-6-0 this season against Chicago and Peoria, and 18-2-0 against the rest of the American Hockey League... Norfolk All-Stars Brandon Bochenski (4g, 5a), Troy Brouwer (3g, 4a) and Martin St. Pierre (2g, 6a) combined for 24 points in five games last week... All-Star Wade Dubielewicz set a Bridgeport team record with 51 saves in Saturdays 4-3 shootout win at Hershey... Toronto rookie Robbie Earl, a native Chicagoan and a University of Wisconsin product, scored at Milwaukee on Saturday night before potting the decisive shootout goal in Chicago on Sunday... Mark Hartigans hat trick against Albany on Friday gave him 106 career goals with Syracuse and made him the Crunchs all-time leading goal scorer, surpassing Lonny Bohonos (104)... After going 29 games without a goal, Lowell rookie Stephen Gionta scored in back-to-back games for the Devils over the weekend... Yan Stastny scored two goals and was a plus-4 in Peorias 5-4 win at Iowa on Saturday... Springfield is 6-1 this season in games decided after regulation (1-0 in overtime, 5-1 in shootouts)... Chicago snapped a seven-game home winless streak with a 7-2 victory over San Antonio on Saturday night, with 14,927 fans in attendance at Allstate Arena... Average attendance at 32 weekend games in the AHL was 6,431... With the annual San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo taking over the AT&T Center, the Rampage kick off a 16-game, 28- day road odyssey covering nearly 7,500 miles on Thursday night with a game against the Marlies at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto.

(Courtesy of AHL)

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Eastern Conference Playoff Betting Trends

We all know by now that the “public” loves to put their money on the FAVORITES and the OVERS.  Just by taking a quick glance at Sportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends” it appears as is this tendency will continue as far as the Eastern Conference games are concerned.  For the inaugural games of the first round, 69% of the early money is on Toronto -4.5; 59% of bettors prefer Chicago -4.5; 84% are backing Detroit -9; and 56% think Cleveland -11.5 is the way to go.  As far as TOTALS are concerned, the only UNDER the “public” is backing is the Cleveland/ Washington game in which 83% are pounding the UNDER (190).  Remember, there is no better way to predict a possible line change than by monitoring MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”.   By determining who the “public” is backing, you can get the most ideal line for your bet.  For example, if you are siding with the public you better place your bet before the line moves in the wrong direction.  On the other side of the coin, if you prefer the team that the “public” is betting against; you might be able to get and extra ½ or even more by placing your bet a bit later.  Under the “Betting Trends” section, Sportsbook.com also provides plenty of statistical data and trends in order for the bettor to make the most informed pick.  Below are some extremely important trends for the first round opponents of the Eastern Conference match-ups, more can be found at MySportsbook.com

New Jersey Nets vs. Toronto Raptors

Toronto was the most reliable covering team this season with a 48-33-1 ATS record but covered the OVER only 41.5% of the time.
The last 20 times these teams have played, the TOTAL has gone UNDER 16 times.
Versus Eastern Conference teams, Toronto is 33-19 ATS including 17-9 at home.
 New Jersey has covered four games in a row while Toronto has failed to cover their last four games.
When playing a team with a winning record during the second half of the season, New Jersey was just 5-13 ATS this season.
After scoring 105 points or more, Toronto has covered the OVER only 28% of the time this season. 
 
Miami Heat @ Chicago Bulls

Miami has failed to cover their last 7 games whereas Chicago has covered 6 out of their last 8 games.
Miami has covered the UNDER in four of their last five games whereas Chicago has covered the UNDER in five out of their last six.
When playing on Saturdays, Miami covered 80% of their games this season.
Away from home, Chicago is just 16-25 ATS this season.
At home, Miami covered the UNDER about 66% of the time whereas Chicago covered the UNDER about 61% of the time.
The last 13 times these teams have played each other, Chicago has covered 9 times.
In Miami’s last 11 road games, the UNDER covered 9 times. 
 
Orlando Magic @ Detroit Pistons

Detroit has covered 5 out of their last 6 games.
Away from home, Detroit is 28-13 ATS but just 14-26-1 ATS at home.
At home, Orlando covered the UNDER 64% of the time while Detroit covered the UNDER in 63% of their away games.
The last five times these teams have played in Detroit, the OVER covered each time.
Versus Eastern Conference teams, Detroit is 8-17-1 ATS at home but 17-9 ATS away.
Detroit covered the spread 5 out of the last 6 times they played Orlando.
After a Division game, Orlando covered the UNDER 87% of the time this season. 
 
Washington Wizards @ Cleveland Cavaliers

In a home game where the TOTAL is between 190 and 194.5 points, Cleveland is 9-1 ATS this season.
Washington has covered the UNDER in their last 6 games and in 8 of their last 9 games.
The last 6 times these teams have played each other, the UNDER covered each time.
When playing on 3 or more days of rest, Washington is just 18-37 ATS since 1996.
Since 1996, Washington is 28-16 ATS versus Cleveland including 11-5 over the last 3 seasons.
In their last 7 road games, Washington is 6-1 ATS.
Versus Eastern Conference teams at home, Washington is just 6-18-2 ATS. 
 
For even more betting trends for not just the NBA but for all of the major sports, log on to Sportsbook.com and click on “Trends”.  With only two months left in the NBA betting season it is important to be as well informed as possible in order to maximize your profit.  Also for all of you poker players, check out MySportsbook.com’s “WSOP Low Bid Auction”. You could be on your way to Vegas to play against the world’s best poker players for under a buck.

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How did changes to college football betting rules affect bettors?

The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.

While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.

For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.

1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.

2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.

How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.

Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.

Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.

How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).

Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.

Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.

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