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Devils continue quest for division title versus IslandersHockey Betting Lines04/10/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New Jersey Devils went into Thursday with a chance to clinch the Atlantic Division title, but things didn't work out as planned. The Devils will continue their fight for a second straight division crown when they host the New York Islanders tonight at Prudential Center. New Jersey needed a win Thursday against Florida coupled with a Pittsburgh regulation loss versus the Islanders to claim the title. Instead, the Devils dropped a 3-2 regulation decision to the Panthers and the Penguins destroyed New York, 7-3. As a result, the Devils and Pens enter Saturday with identical 46-27-7 records, leaving them tied for the Atlantic lead with two games left in the regular season. Pittsburgh plays in Atlanta tonight and will visit the Islanders on Sunday. However, having swept the season series with the Penguins, the Devils can still clinch the division this evening with a victory and a Pittsburgh regulation loss to the Thrashers. The Devils are ending the regular season on a two-game homestand and will complete their schedule Sunday against Buffalo. New Jersey has an excellent 25-10-4 record as the host this year, but has lost its last three games at Prudential Center. Jersey was dealt a close loss Thursday in Sunrise as Nathan Horton scored the game-deciding goal in the third period and Scott Clemmensen made 42 saves against his former team in Florida's 3-2 victory. Clemmensen was 25-13-1 for New Jersey last year and was credited by many for saving the Devils' season while Martin Brodeur missed most of the year due to injury. Patrik Elias and Mike Mottau scored for the Devils, while Brodeur, who was coming off back-to-back shutouts of Atlanta and Carolina, was beaten three times on 18 shots in the loss. "Very frustrating, especially when you've got 45 shots on net," said Devils forward Ilya Kovalchuk. "That means [we're doing] something right, but not enough. So we have to work a little harder." The Islanders were relishing their spoiler role before getting slammed in Pittsburgh on Thursday. The 7-3 drubbing, which featured a goal and three assists from Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby, ended a three-game winning streak for the Isles. It was the final regular-season game played at Pittsburgh's Mellon Arena. Matt Moulson, Kyle Okposo and Josh Bailey tallied for the Islanders. Martin Biron started and took the loss after he allowed four goals on 10 shots in the first period. Dwayne Roloson finished the contest by making 22 saves. "We gave up a lot in the first period," Islanders coach Scott Gordon said. "Four goals in the first period is a pretty hard road to come back from." The Islanders have an awful 11-22-7 record on the road this year and have lost four of their last five away from Long Island. New Jersey has won three of five versus New York this season, as well as eight of the last 12 in the series overall. The Islanders have also dropped their last five trips to the Garden State.
<< Kings play host to Oilers
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The playoff-bound Los Angeles Kings will play their final home game of the regular season this afternoon, when they host the lowly Edmonton Oilers at Staples Center. The Kings have qualified for their first postseason sinc
<< Bruins hope to claim playoff spot versus Hurricanes
<< Twins go for fifth in a row in showdown with White Sox
<< Bonderman aims to extend Tigers' win streak over Tribe
<< Jones leaves Columbia for spot on BC staff
Pens hope to keep division title hopes alive against Thrashers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Penguins have little margin for error if they hope to win a tight race for the Atlantic Division title. Good thing Pittsburgh has been perfect when playing the Thrashers over the last two seasons. Still locked in a tie
Sabres visit Senators in battle of playoff teams >>
Hawks hope to snap road skid in Washington >>
Bobcats and Pistons tangle in Charlotte >>
Nets and Pacers collide in Indy >>
Sportsbooks to bet on footballRecently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it. He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games. "Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote. He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games. Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk. Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible. Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines. Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy. With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season. Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas). And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.) The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors. While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger. Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under. One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it. Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami. What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5. That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well. MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple. "The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money. "At the end of the day, we liked the home team." So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams. In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish. MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover. The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing. Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed. MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash. To visit this online football betting got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards. |
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