Caps try for rare win against Sharks

Hockey Betting Lines

02/13/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Capitals found themselves leading the Southeast Division a week ago, but consecutive losses have them outside of the playoff picture once again.

The Caps look to avoid losing three straight for the first time in over two months this evening and yet another setback to the Pacific Division-leading San Jose Sharks, who are going though their own struggles as they try to hold onto first place.

Washington moved a point past Florida for the division lead with a 4-0 win over the Panthers last Tuesday, but consecutive defeats to Winnipeg (in a shootout) and the New York Rangers have dropped the Capitals four points behind the Panthers for that top spot.

Even worse, Washington sits ninth overall in the Eastern Conference, a point behind Toronto.

After earning a point versus the Jets last Thursday, the Capitals were edged by the Rangers 3-2 yesterday. The game-winning goal for New York came early in the third on Brandon Prust's short-handed tally.

John Carlson had a goal and an assist for Washington and Alexander Semin also scored. Semin has four points in his past three games, while Alex Ovechkin has five in that span.

Michal Neuvirth made 25 saves for the Capitals, who are 3-4-3 in their past 10 games and will try to avoid dropping three in a row for the first time since a four-game slide from Nov. 25-Dec. 1.

"The shorthanded one was the critical goal," said Capitals head coach Dale Hunter. "That was the big one where we gave up a shorty and it ended up being a game-winner."

Washington hasn't had too many game-winning goals when facing San Jose. The Sharks posted a 5-2 win over the visiting Capitals on Jan. 7, handing Washington its fourth straight loss in this series and 15th in the past 16 encounters.

San Jose, which has won seven of its past eight at Washington, got the game- winning goal from Patrick Marleau to go along with two assists, while Dan Boyle added three helpers as 10 Sharks skaters logged a point. Antti Niemi made 28 saves.

Dennis Wideman and Joel Ward had the goals for the Capitals and Tomas Vokoun was touched for four goals on 38 shots.

Tonight's meeting should once again feature some firepower as no skaters in the league have more points in the NHL since the 2005-06 season than Ovechkin and the Sharks' Joe Thornton. Ovechkin is tops with 657 points since his rookie season, while Thornton is second in that time with 627.

Thornton and his teammates were shut down by the Blues on Sunday, dropping a 3-0 decision after failing to get any of their 25 shots past St. Louis goaltender Jaroslav Halak. The Sharks lost for the third time in four games, getting blanked for the fifth time this season, but still lead the Kings by a point for the lead in the Pacific Division.

Niemi allowed a pair of goals on 27 shots, with both goals against coming with the Sharks skating on a two-man disadvantage.

"I liked our start," Sharks head coach Todd McLellan said. "We played the right kind of game at least for the first 10 minutes until we took the three penalties. After that, they got a little momentum back and started to play their game."

San Jose also went 0-for-4 on the power play as it lost the opener of a season-long nine-game road trip. It was the Sharks' fifth loss in their past six road games overall.

Logan Couture had his career-high eight-game point streak end with the shutout loss. The Sharks forward had logged five goals and seven helpers over his run.

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Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.

MySportsbook.com week 1 NFL lines


Now that the 2008 NFL schedule is finally out, it is only matter-of-course for lines on “Week 1” to follow.  Of course MySportsbook.com is the first to churn out odds for the NFL’s inaugural week for the upcoming season.   Expect a lot of fireworks the first Thursday night of the season as the defending champion Indianapolis Colts face off against the surprise of the 2008 season, the New Orleans Saints.  These teams were ranked #1 and #3 in the NFL respectively a season ago so a high scoring affair could be in order.  As of now, the Colts will be giving 6 points to the Saints; keep in mind the Saints were one of the better road teams last season going 6-3 SU and 7-2 ATS.  The first Monday night of the season will again provide a “double feature”. Coming off a disappointing season, the Cincinnati Bengals will look to get back to playoffs and improve their public image as they take on the AFC North favorite Baltimore Ravens.  The second game features a couple of teams that haven’t had too much success recently but each could make some noise if the NFC is as weak as it was last year as the San Francisco 49ers host the Arizona Cardinals. The most interesting game of the opening week will feature the NFC champion Bears as they hit the road to take on the NFL’s top team during last year’s regular season, the San Diego Chargers.

MySportsbook.com Week 1 odds:

Saints +6 @ Colts -6

Falcons @ Vikings (pick ‘em)

Panthers @ Rams (pick ‘em)

Broncos -3.5 @ Bills +3.5

Chiefs -1 @ Texans +1

Dolphins +3 @ Redskins -3

Patriots -5 @ Jets +5

Eagles -3.5 @ Packers +3.5

Steelers -4 @ Browns +4

Titans +6 @ Jaguars -6

Bears +6 @ Chargers -6

Lions +3 @ Raiders -3

Bucs +6.5 @ Seahawks -6.5

Giants +4 @ Cowboys -4

Ravens +3 @ Bengals -3

Cardinals +3 @ 49ers -3

 Super Bowl line (2008)

NFC +6.5 vs. AFC -6.5

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