Sharks continue homestand with battle against Predators

Hockey Betting Lines

03/11/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Having rallied in the third period in each of its last two victories, the San Jose Sharks wrap their season series with the Nashville Predators this evening at HP Pavilion.

Even though it is getting later in the season, the Sharks have been able to finish strong in their last two games. Dany Heatley and Manny Malhotra scored in the third period of a 3-2 win over Montreal last Thursday before Heatley and Joe Pavelski lit the lamp in the final frame of Saturday's 2-1 triumph against Columbus.

Evgeni Nabokov made 21 saves for the Sharks, who are 2-1-0 on a five-game homestand and have won seven of their last 10 as host.

"I think the offense is going, but we're just running into some hot goalies in this league," said Heatley, who has scored in back-to-back contests after going five games without a tally. "Especially down the stretch here, we're going to face hot goalies every team we play. The good things are we're creating a lot and getting a lot of chances."

The Sharks now find themselves tied with the Chicago Blackhawks for the most points in the Western Conference with 93, though they have a game in hand. Both clubs trail the Washington Capitals by six points for the most in the NHL.

While San Jose has needed to rally in its last two games, Nashville comes in off a great defensive effort that made an early lead stand up. Ryan Suter and Colin Wilson both scored first-period goals Tuesday in Atlanta, and Dan Ellis made it stand up with 30 saves in a 2-1 victory.

"The first period I thought we played real well," said Nashville head coach Barry Trotz. "I know they were playing with a lot of urgency. I thought we played a real good road period to start."

In halting a two-game slide and winning for the fourth time in six games, the Predators gave Trotz, who has been the team's coach since its inception in 1998, his 400th career victory. He became just the seventh coach in NHL history to reach that mark with one team.

Nashville, which is two points up on Calgary for the seventh spot in the West, played its second game in a row without Shea Weber. The defenseman has 12 goals and 24 assists this year.

The Predators, who won the opener of a four-game road trip, now head out West and will also play in Anaheim and Los Angeles. Tuesday's win was just the club's third in its last 10 games as the guest.

San Jose has won two of three versus Nashville this year -- with each game decided by just one goal -- and eight of the last 11 in the series.

The Sharks notched a 4-3 road win when the clubs last met on February 6. Heatley had two goals and an assist, giving him five goals and six helpers in eight career games versus the Preds. Joe Thornton had two assists for San Jose in that game, and he has 30 career helpers in 27 games versus Nashville.

The Predators have dropped two straight, four of five and nine of their last 11 at San Jose.

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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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