On Tuesday, the No. 1 Vancouver Canucks will battle against the No. 2 San Jose Sharks in Game 5 in Vancouver (9 p.m. ET, Versus).
In NHL betting odds, the Canucks are -172 money line favorites against the Sharks.
Heading into Game 5, San Jose has its back against the wall. The Sharks need to win every game to avoid being eliminated in the Western Conference final for the second straight year as they are down 3-1 in the series against Vancouver. Vancouver will be in the Stanley Cup final with just one win. The Canucks now have a shot at returning to the Cup series for the first time in 17 years as they put a stranglehold on their series with San Jose.
The Canucks are applying offensive pressure on the opposing net. The Canucks could not get many quality shots on goal and that is the difference between game three and game four. The price per head Canucks fans can stop worrying about goaltender Roberto Luongo. It is obvious that Luongo has finally found a playoff groove that is conducive to winning, after his performance in game four. Despite giving up two goals, Luongo was brilliant in the third period of game four. The game was already decided and Luongo’s to win by that point.
For San Jose, the keys for game five in Vancouver are the same as they were in game three: stay out of the box or skate much better down two men. While the Sharks were 0 of 5 so a key could also be score on the power play if you are a San Jose backer, the Canucks were three of five on the power play. The Sharks stand at 3-11 all time in the Western Conference finals as they have simply struggled at this level in the playoffs. Especially after watching the last two games just tough to go against this trend.
admin on May 25, 2011 | Filed Under NHL | Comments Off
For the 2011 clay court tennis season the Internazionali BNL D’Italia marks the deep stages. The tournament in Rome which Scheduled to start on Monday, May 9th will be the second to last event before the Roland Garros (the French Open).
This year, a couple of guys have already proven their abilities on the clay courts of Europe. In Monte Carlo and Barcelona, Rafael Nadal has clinched back to back titles. In Munich, Nikolay Davydenko recently captured the title. In Estoril, Portugal, Juan Martin Del Potro won his second title of the year.
By winning the event in his hometown of Belgrade, Novak Djokovic made an impressive debut to his clay court season. Reaching the finals in Monte Carlo and Barcelona, Spaniard David Ferrer has been one of the hottest clay courters so far.
For the trophy in Rome, all of these names will be contenders. Roger Federer is one name that’s been awfully silent this clay court season though. Federer has performed poorly, by his own standards based on the previous years, heading into mid may. With little match experience Federer comes into Rome as the third seed. This season, Andy Murray has limited match experience on the clay as well. Until entering the ongoing tournament in Madrid, both Federer and Murray hadn’t played since their losses at Monte Carlo. By an early loss to Tomaz Bellucci in Madrid, in fact, Murray’s confidence has already been hurt.
Morale of Nadal, Djokovic, Federer, and Murray going into Rome next week as speaking of Madrid, the tournament will play a major factor in the shape. Nadal has made the smart decision to skip some clay court events this season to avoid injuries due to excessive match play as he will be the first seed in Rome. For this tournament on Monday, check out online free sports picks for odds.
admin on May 7, 2011 | Filed Under Tennis | Comments Off
This weekend, the Baltimore Orioles will travel to Chicago for a 4 game series in opposition to the White Sox. Even though their series could serve as a spring board for one of the teams to bounce back from their slow start, these teams are two of the worst teams in the league.
Both teams are long shots to win the World Series or a pennant in MLB Betting as they are in the basement of their respective divisions.
Although over the last 10 games or so, they’ve really crashed both actually looked good a short time ago. Many of the teams in their divisions have picked it up while they have been down as both teams are 2-8 in their last 10 games.
Even though the White sox have not played especially well in front of their home crowd this season, they will be the home team in this game. To this point they are 4-6 at home. to take advantage of their home field Chicago really needs to find a way which could help them get through bad stretches like the one they’ve been in lately.
Although their lineup has been relatively impotent to this point, the Orioles have a number of veteran hitters that they hoped would bolster their lineup. This season, only the Twins have scored fewer runs than the Orioles.
From their pitching staff the White Sox need some help. They have been extremely inconsistent and they have allowed more runs than all but one team in the American League while their pitchers have shown flashes of solid play.
For both teams to try to turn things around, this should be a good series.
admin on April 27, 2011 | Filed Under MLB | Comments Off
The New Orleans Hornets and the Dallas Mavericks will play in the middle of this week. These teams have both clinched spots in the Western Conference playoffs and they are gearing up to make a run towards the NBA Championship.
NBA basketball betting has Dallas at 8-1 to win the NBA championship this season.
The Mavericks are currently in the 3rd spot in the Western Conference standings and the Hornets are in the 7th spot. The Hornets are in the 7th spot in the standings, but could finish anywhere between the 6th spot and the 8th spot as the teams are all within one game of each other.
There is a decent chance that these teams will end up playing each other in the first round of the playoffs as the Mavericks will likely end up in the 2nd or 3rd spot in the standings and a win over the Hornets will likely improve their NBA playoff picks. This would actually be a favorable matchup for both teams. The Grizzlies and Blazers are much scarier for the top teams to face than the Hornets and the Mavericks are not nearly as intimidating as the Lakers or the Spurs.
This game should have a playoff type of atmosphere as both teams try to gain some momentum before the first round commences. Look for Chris Paul to begin to assert himself more offensively as the team will need him to carry even more of the scoring load during the playoffs.
The Mavericks need to find some help for Dirk Nowitzki. There have been times in his career that he has disappeared for stretches during the playoffs and they need someone to rely on in case he doesn’t come through.
admin on April 12, 2011 | Filed Under NBA | Comments Off
On Sunday the Detroit Red Wings will take on the Minnesota Wild in a nationally televised NHL matchup and NBC will broadcast the match at 5 pm ET.
With only six games remaining on their schedule, the Wild find themselves ten points out of the last playoff position the Western Conference. The Wild will more than likely find themselves disappointed and on the outside of the playoffs looking in after a good start to the season.
The Detroit Red Wings gear up for a long playoff runs for now as they will be looking to clinch another Central Division title on Sunday. The Red Wings will be looking to put together a complete game on Sunday as they prepare for the playoffs with a rash of recent uninspired performances. The Red Wings will have another crack at it on Sunday evening if they do not clinch the division title the night before in Nashville. With a victory over the Wild Detroit will also be looking to secure the number two seed in the Western Conference. By making for an exciting finish to the end of the year, right now San Jose trails the Wings by only one point.
The team will have to play much better than it has recently if Detroit hopes to have that number two seed. The Red Wings have seen injuries to several key players play a major role in their recent slump with a 5-3-2 record in their last ten games. To prepare for the physical nature of a playoff game the team will be trying to play a spirited contest on Sunday. In NHL Odds the Red Wings are at 8-1 to win the Stanley Cup.
admin on April 1, 2011 | Filed Under NHL | Comments Off
With Uncle Mo extending his lead while The Factor jumped five spots, the National Thoroughbred Racing Association released its latest three-year-old poll Monday.
In Kentucky Derby betting Odds, at +350 Uncle Mo is the early favorite.
At Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, the Kentucky Derby, the first of Horse Racing’s Triple Crown, takes place May 7 and NBC will broadcast the event at 5:30 pm ET.
Mike Repole owned Uncle Mo which won the Eclipse Award. The colt added 17 points in the latest NTRA balloting as he gained a top vote. The 2010 champion two-year-old received 19 first-place votes and 205 total points that is trained by Todd Pletcher.
At Aqueduct on April 9, Uncle Mo will likely make its next start in the $1 million Wood Memorial.
With one top vote and 160 points, Fountain of Youth Stakes winner Soldat continues in the second spot.
After its big win in the Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park, the Factor moved up five places to third. The Factor picked up the remaining first-place vote and 133 points, who Trained by Bob Baffert.
In Horse Racing Odds, the Factor is at +500 to win the Kentucky Derby.
By garnering 116 points, San Felipe Stakes champ Premier Pegasus climbed one spot to fourth.
Dialed In (113), Stay Thirsty (101), Mucho Macho Man (94), To Honor and Serve (39), Flashpoint (38) and Jaycito (24) are completing the three-year-old poll.
admin on March 22, 2011 | Filed Under HORSES | Comments Off
Before they tackle the toughest and wildest half mile track on the circuit, the Jeff Byrd 500 on March 20, the NASCAR Sprint Cup series will rest up. The old Bristol may make a comeback for the Jeff Byrd 500 as the new concrete on the track is beginning to age.
The drivers that know the subtle nuances of driving the fast short track will have the edge as the cars that arrive with the best engine package. As the favorite over Jimmie Johnson (7-1) based on last August’s sweep of all three NASCAR events, Kyle Busch (5-1 in Auto Racing Odds) will go off. At Bristol, Kyle Busch has four wins in the last nine Cup events as well as three of the last four to his credit.
While Busch is +600, Johnson is the favorite to win the 2011 Sprint Cup Championship at +275 in NASCAR Odds.
Jeff Gordon, the other driver who has four wins on the track but has not won since 2002, will have a good day on Bristol. As the dominator on the Bristol half mile, Kurt Busch (10-1) preceded his brother. Three in a row, the older Busch won four of seven Bristol Cup races.
Tony Stewart (12-1), the other points leader should not be count out. As evidenced by his performance in Las Vegas, Stewart has a fast car. Even though the old dirt tracker has what it takes to run up front, Stewart’s last win at Bristol came in 2001.
Las Vegas winner Carl Edwards (8-1) is another driver to consider. Even though Edwards’ both wins came in the August event he has two wins at Bristol and he is still a solid pick at 8-1.
admin on March 12, 2011 | Filed Under Nascar | Comments Off
In the English Premier League, two of the most powerful teams are set to renew their rivalry. In a huge showdown, Manchester United will visit Chelsea. Chelsea looked like they would run away with the EPL title, after a hot start. They slipped to fifth as they have struggled a bit though. Manchester has lost only one game so far this season as for now they have taken over the top spot.
At online sports betting sites, soccer betting odds are available for this matchup.
For Manchester, Edwin van der Sar has been strong in goal. For the team he has allowed 23 goals in 24 starts. In every game they play his stellar play keeps the team. Manchester has relied on Dimitar Berbatov, offensively. So far this season, he has scored a remarkable 19 goals. With over a hundred shots on goal, Nani also provides a big offensive boost.
Peter Cech has been reliable goal for Chelsea. By yielding only 22 goals on the season, he has made every start for the team. Chelsea has a lot of big names offensively. With nine goals each, Didier Drogba and Florent Malouda lead the team. Fernando Torres, who has appeared in two games since coming over from Liverpool, they have him in their team.
Both these teams are used to winning championships. Chelsea can never be counted out despite their struggles. Between the rivals this is the first meeting of the season. Last year Chelsea won both meetings. This is a different Manchester team for sure. For a while now, they have looked like one of the most dominant teams in the world. This game should lives up to the hype.
admin on February 26, 2011 | Filed Under Soccer | Comments Off
At the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championship, the world’s top women tennis players compete this week. Besides Grand Slam and Masters Events, the urban oasis of the United Arab Emirates growing city has become a venue for one of the most prestigious tournaments on the WTA tour. On regular WTA events, the $360,000 prize money is one of the largest sums offered.
For the title in Dubai, eight of the world’s top tennis ladies came to compete. This year Venus Williams could not defend her title, who was last year’s champion. From the event, Australian Open champion and current world number 1 Kim Clijsters will also be absent. Coming from the game’s other stars however; there is plenty of excitement in Dubai.
In their first round matches the top seeds received byes as well as enjoyed some time off the court exploring Dubai. In the first round of action featuring the lower ranked players there weren’t any surprising victories. Even though Ivanovic has a history of inconsistent results, 14th seeded Ana Ivanovic lost her first match to the lefty veteran Patty Schnyder. Sania Mirza of India a wildcard contender, won her first match 6-3 6-1 who is also a fan favorite in Dubai.
As the top seeds got to show off their form the competition heated up in the second round. As Anna Chakvetadze retired in the second set, first seed Caroline Wozniacki won her match. Even though Vika prevailed in a tough third set tiebreak, 7th seed Victoria Azarenka was challenged by Chinese qualifier Peng. By 6-3 6-1 sets second seed Vera Zvonareva comfortably won. Australian Open runner up Li Na lost to Yanina Wickmayer in three sets after two and a half hours on court, which is the upset of the tournament so far.
admin on February 19, 2011 | Filed Under Tennis | Comments Off
This weekend in a game between two solid teams, the Phoenix Coyotes will battle against the Chicago Blackhawks. Both teams have hopes for the Stanley Cup as these teams have winning records on the season. The Blackhawks are 27-22-4 whereas the Coyotes are 27-19-9.
For this matchup, in NHL betting lines get Odds at sportsbooks.
Although the Blackhawks are a statistically superior team, it is interesting that the Coyotes have a superior record to the Blackhawks. The Blackhawks are 4th in the NHL in goals per game and they are 16th in the NHL in goals against per game with having an excellent offense and a solid defense.
Blackhawks’ power play is the key to their offense. In the NHL they have the best power play percentage of any team. The Blackhawks’ penalty kill percentage is very bad and that is the problem for them. At stopping the power play, they are just the 26th best team in the NHL. Which has made them vulnerable to teams that they should beat is their inability to stop teams on the power play.
Phoenix is very bad offensively on the power play and that is the problem for them in this matchup. About 16 percent of the time they are only able to convert. They will be in big trouble in this game if they are unable to capitalize on the main weakness of the Blackhawks.
By keeping all of their players on the ice, the Blackhawks will just need to make sure that they stay out of trouble. It is anyone’s game if they go down a man.
admin on February 9, 2011 | Filed Under NHL | Comments Off
