Sedin leads Canucks past Ducks in OT

Hockey Betting Lines

02/21/2007 - Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Daniel Sedin scored 2:19 into overtime, as the Vancouver Canucks won their fifth straight game with a 3-2 decision over the Anaheim Ducks at the Honda Center.

Kevin Bieksa and Markus Naslund also scored for Vancouver, which now holds a three-point lead atop the Northwest Division over Minnesota. Dany Sabourin was very strong and allowed just two goals on 40 shots for the Canucks, who will stay in town and continue their four-game road trip against the Kings on Thursday.

"It was a good character win for us," said Naslund. "We struggled against them in the first two games this season, and we wanted to play a strong game. It was a good win."

Tim Brent and Chris Kunitz scored for the Pacific Division-leading Ducks, who have earned a point in each of their last four games (2-0-2). Jean-Sebastien Giguere made 28 saves in the losing effort.

With the score tied 2-2 in overtime, a questionable hooking penalty was called on Anaheim's Scott Niedermayer and the Canucks used the extra skater to win it. The visitors gained the blue line and set up in the offensive zone before a blazing slap shot from the point by Sami Salo sailed five feet over the net. However, the puck deflected sharply off the rear glass and caromed directly onto the stick of Sedin, who batted the bouncing puck into the cage from the right post.

"Sometimes the bounces don't go your way, but I think we battled pretty hard tonight," said Giguere. "You have to look at the positive side - we got one point."

With the win, Vancouver halted a five-game skid against the Ducks.

Brent's first career goal gave the Ducks a 1-0 lead at the 6:51 mark of the opening period. Anaheim cycled the puck to maintain control in its offensive zone before a stuffer attempt at the left post by Dustin Penner. Sabourin made the save, but the puck sat along the goal line and Brent punched it home.

Although he gave the Ducks the lead, Brent's holding penalty in the second period led to a 1-1 tie. Vancouver skated 5-on-4 and Sedin carried the puck over the blue line along the right side. Sedin stopped high along the half- wall, spun around and passed into the high slot for Bieska, whose wrist shot bounced off Giguere and trickled over the goal line at 7:05.

Late in the second period, a cross-checking penalty called on Brendan Morrison allowed the Ducks to skate with the man advantage and they cashed in with 6.2 seconds to play. A centering pass by Kunitz from the left side deflected off the stick of Vancouver blueliner Willie Mitchell and caromed into the net. Kunitz was given credit for the goal, his 21st of the season.

Naslund's 20th goal 4:06 into the third knotted the contest.

Game Notes

The Canucks are now 16-12-2 on the road this season...The Ducks dominated in the faceoff circle, 33-22 (60 percent)...Sabourin made 16 saves in the second period...The visitors ended 2-for-4 on the power play, while Anaheim was 1- for-4 with the extra skater...Attendance was 17,467.

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Betting the NFL preseason

Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."

When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules. 

The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.

The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.

“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”

The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.

“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”

The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.

“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”

Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.

“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."

So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?

“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.

Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.

Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.

Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.

“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.

Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.

The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.

“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.

Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.