Habs try to bounce back in Game 2 against Flyers

Hockey Betting Lines

05/18/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Montreal Canadiens will try to bounce back from an embarrassing loss in the opener of the Eastern Conference finals when they visit the Philadelphia Flyers for Game 2 tonight at Wachovia Center.

The Flyers notched a 6-0 victory on home ice in Game 1 to take the early lead in the best-of-seven series. For the Canadiens, it was their worst loss to start a series since 1919.

It was a lopsided start to a surprising conference finals matchup, as Philadelphia and the Habs are battling for the East title despite being the seventh and eighth-seeded teams in the conference, respectively. This series marks the first time since the NHL adopted its current playoff format in 1994 that the bottom two seeds in either conference will play a series with a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals on the line.

Michael Leighton made 28 saves on Sunday to earn his first career playoff shutout, and six different Flyers scored in the blowout victory.

Leighton, who has played in four games and started three since Brian Boucher went down with a knee injury in Game 5 of the conference semifinals against Boston, improved to 3-0 in this postseason. Philadelphia, which remarkably recovered from an 0-3 series deficit to defeat the Bruins in Round 2, has now ripped off five straight playoff wins for the first time since a six-game stretch in 1995.

"I'm obviously happy the way things went. It makes it easier when we score that many goals," Leighton said. "I was seeing a lot of the pucks. They don't have a big presence like Boston did...I just had to make the saves I should make in the first (period), and we kind of went from there."

Braydon Coburn, Scott Hartnell, James van Riemsdyk, Claude Giroux and Danny Briere each posted a goal and an assist in the resounding victory. Simon Gagne also scored for the Flyers, who will look to take a two-game series before the series shift to Montreal for Games 3 and 4.

"You have to stay grounded," Briere said. "It's just one game. We know (the Canadiens are) going to come back a lot stronger in their next game. The goal was to keep home-ice advantage, so we're halfway there. We need to win the next game at home, and we need to concentrate on that. We have to clear our minds -- we're happy about (this win), but let's move on and concentrate on the next one."

Jaroslav Halak, who helped the Habs notch unlikely series victories over Presidents' Trophy-winning Washington and defending champion Pittsburgh, was scorched for four goals on only 14 shots. Carey Price made nine saves in relief of Halak, who was pulled midway through the second period.

"It's a matter of adjusting our game and raising our level of intensity," said Habs head coach Jacques Martin. "Tonight, we didn't play a team game. We played an individual game, and you can't be successful that way."

Halak, who still has an excellent .927 save percentage in the playoffs, had his worst outing since giving up five goals in the opener of Montreal's conference semifinals series against Pittsburgh. Despite the shaky performance in Game 1 of this series, Halak is expected to get the start tonight.

The Flyers are 5-1 as the host in this year's playoffs after going 24-14-3 in Philadelphia during the regular season. This matchup marks the first time the Flyers have begun a series with home-ice advantage in the post-lockout era.

Montreal was 19-17-5 on the road prior to the start of the playoffs and 5-4 as the guest in the postseason. The Canadiens will host the Flyers in Game 3 on Thursday.

On the injury front, there have been rumors flying around about the possible return of key players for both Philadelphia and Montreal.

Reports out of Canada are saying the Montreal's top defenseman Andrei Markov, who has been out since injuring his right knee in Game 1 against Pittsburgh, will not be able to return for this series.

For the Flyers, there had been rumors that forward Jeff Carter, who had foot surgery on April 23, would be back for Game 2 or 3 of this series, but Philadelphia GM Paul Holmgren denied those reports, saying it was "a stretch" that the sniper could return for this series. Carter, the club's leading goal- scorer during the regular season, has been sidelined since April 20, when he broke his foot in Game 4 of the conference quarterfinals against New Jersey.

Philadelphia forward Ian Laperriere could also be close to returning from a brain contusion suffered in Game 5 against New Jersey. He has resumed skating, but still needs to be cleared by doctors before seeing game action.

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NCAA Football Betting

Many fans thought it was the best side in the nation by the end of last season. This year, the polls have built on Georgia's momentum and granted it the No. 1 preseason ranking, followed by Ohio State and USC. (The Associated Press has the Buckeyes at No. 2; USA Today took the Trojans.)

"To have people believing we have one of the best teams in the nation going into this thing, it's exciting for us," Bulldogs coach Mark Richt told the AP. "I don't think anything is guaranteed, but we certainly have put ourselves in position where at least the college football world thinks we're pretty good."

Georgia Bulldogs - 9.5 wins

There's no question they're good, but the Bulldogs have one of the toughest 12-game schedules in the nation, mostly because they play in the powerhouse Southeastern Conference. Away games at No. 15 Arizona State, No. 7 LSU and No. 10 Auburn loom large, with contests between the hedges versus No. 24 Alabama and No. 18 Tennessee as well as the World's Largest Cocktail Party in Jacksonville versus No.5 Florida.

Ohio State Buckeyes - 10 wins

Like the Bulldogs, the Buckeyes also have a number of tough road contests in 2008. After two scrimmages dressed up as real games versus Youngstown State and Ohio, it's off to face USC. Other tough away games include No.13 Wisconsin in October and No. 20 Illinois in November. Granted, it should be pretty easy sledding at the Horseshoe. In fact, the only ranked team that travels to Columbus is No. 22 Penn State, in October.

USC Trojans - 10.5 wins

A similarly light schedule awaits the Trojans of Southern California, which is why the oddsmakers' total is one win more and the over is currently commanding -150 odds. Pete Carroll's troops only play three ranked teams in 2008, and all of those games are at home. After what should be an easy trip to Virginia to start things off on Aug. 30, the Trojans get two weeks to prepare for Ohio State in Los Angeles. Their two other ranked opponents, No. 21 Oregon and No. 15 Arizona State, visit in consecutive weeks to start the month of October. After that, the competition eases up. Of course, this is the same highly-touted school that lost to Stanford in 2007 and Oregon State in 2006. And don't discount the fact that USC plays its biggest rivals, Notre Dame and UCLA, back-to-back to close out the regular season. On paper, the Trojans are far superior, but motivation will be high for the Irish and Bruins, especially if their historic foes are in national-title contention.

Odds to Win the Heisman Trophy

Tim Tebow, Florida - 7/2
He won it last year, so it's no surprise he's the favorite to do it again, making him just the second player to go back-to-back. Ohio State's Archie Griffin turned the trick in 1974 and 1975, and Tebow's coach, Urban Meyer, is pretty sure his star quarterback can match the Buckeyes legend.

"There has never been anyone quite like him," Meyer told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I am very lucky to be his coach."

Chris Wells, Ohio State - 5/1

The man they call "Beanie" was a star recruit out of high school, so it's not like nobody knew who the star tailback was before he rushed for 576 yards as a freshman in 2006 and 1,609 as a sophomore. But perhaps his finest moment came last year versus Michigan when he rumbled for 222 yards and two touchdowns in the Buckeyes' 14-3 victory over the hated Wolverines.

Knowshon Moreno, Georgia - 8/1

If the Bulldogs are to live up to expectations, they'll need a huge effort from their sophomore running back. This might be the last year of college ball for Moreno, who rushed for 1,334 yards and for 14 touchdowns as a freshman, while adding 253 receiving yards on 20 receptions, so expect big things for the man from Belford, N.J.

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Super Bowl XLIV Odds

Super Bowl XLIII isn't even a week old yet and oddsmakers have already released Super Bowl XLIV odds.

Despite the Pittsburgh Steelers winning Super Bowl 43, the New England Patriots are 8/1 favorites to win Super Bowl 44.

Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds

With their 27-23 victory over the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII, the Steelers became the latest NFL champion. But believe it or not, oddsmakers from online sports book MySportsbook.com don't have the Steelers the favorites to win Super Bowl XLIV next season.

That honor belongs to the New England Patriots, who are 8/1 favorites to win despite not even qualify for the postseason in 2008. The Pats also have a major decision to make regarding what to do with Matt Cassel, who played well in Tom Brady's (knee surgery) absence last year but is also a free agent this offseason.

Ironically, the Steelers aren't even oddsmakers second choice to win Super Bowl 44, as the Dallas Cowboys are listed right behind the Patriots at 9/1 despite not making the playoffs themselves. Clearly oddsmakers think the public will hop back on the Cowboys' bandwagon considering the immense talent they have and the opening of a brand new stadium.

After Dallas, then comes Pittsburgh at 10/1, but they share those odds with the New York Giants, who won Super Bowl XLII. The Indianapolis Colts and San Diego Chargers round out the top six teams at 12/1, while the Baltimore Ravens (14/1), Tennessee Titans (16/1), Carolina Panthers (18/1) and Philadelphia Eagles (18/1) complete the top 10.

The NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals got no love from oddsmakers as they were established as a 30/1 long shot to win next year's Super Bowl. They share those same odds with the Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers – two teams that didn't even qualify for the postseason. Other long shots are the Kansas City Chiefs (100/1), Detroit Lions (100/1), St. Louis Rams (75/1) and Oakland Raiders (75/1).

To see a complete list of all the team's odds to win Super Bowl XLIV, check below.

NFL TEAM FUTURE ODDS TO WIN SUPER BOWL XLIV

New England Patriots 8/1

Dallas Cowboys 9/1

New York Giants 10/1

Pittsburgh Steelers 10/1

Indianapolis Colts 12/1

San Diego Chargers 12/1

Baltimore Ravens 14/1

Tennessee Titans 16/1

Carolina Panthers 18/1

Philadelphia Eagles 18/1

New Orleans Saints 20/1

Atlanta Falcons 25/1

Denver Broncos 25/1

Green Bay Packers 25/1

Jacksonville Jaguars 25/1

Minnesota Vikings 25/1

New York Jets 25/1

Arizona Cardinals 30/1

Chicago BearS 30/1

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30/1

Buffalo Bills 35/1

Houston TexaNS 35/1

Miami Dolphins 35/1

Washington Redskins 35/1

Seattle SeahawkS 50/1

Cleveland Browns 55/1

Cincinnati Bengals 60/1

San Francisco 49ers 60/1

Oakland Raiders 75/1

St. Louis Rams 75/1

Detroit Lions 100/1

Kansas City Chiefs 100/1

Odds as of: 2/2/09

Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds

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