Gaming: NHL back in business
Hockey Betting Lines
02/26/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With the Olympic break just about over, it's nearly time to return our thoughts to the 2009-10 NHL season, specifically which teams are the best bets to reach the Stanley Cup Finals.
With just six weeks remaining to sort out the playoff picture, every team has at least 20 games left except for Ottawa, Montreal, Phoenix and Columbus who all have 19.
Washington and San Jose are the current conference leaders but both clubs have issues, albeit different ones. Chicago, another top contender, also could be on the outside looking in come the Stanley Cup Finals due to questionable postseason goaltending.
Even though these three clubs look to be head-and-shoulders above the rest, don't be shocked if two other squads square off for the Stanley Cup.
BREAKING DOWN THE EAST
One thing is certain in the Eastern Conference - Washington will be the number one seed, as the Capitals own a 13-point advantage over second place New Jersey.
In their favor is a powerful 23-3-3 home record. However, the team that ended the season with the best home mark has won just one of the last three Stanley Cups. More importantly, the number one seed in the East has failed to reach the finals in all three of those campaigns. One has to go back to the pre-lockout era to find the last top-seed from the East to play for the Stanley Cup.
Despite being the league's overwhelming scoring leader holding a 43-goal edge on their nearest competitor, the Capitals are weak in the most important position on the ice: goaltending.
Jose Theodore, who has started the majority of the games this season due to Sergei Varlamov's groin injury, has never posted an above .500 record in five postseason trips. Additionally, his goals-against average over the last 21 "second-season" games is over 3.00.
Given Theodore's playoff history, look for Varlamov to get the bulk of the starts heading into the postseason. Nevertheless, he's even a bigger risk than his mate since the second-year pro might not even be 100% healthy come April and May.
Given the fact that the Caps are the heavy 9-5 favorites to come out of the East, it's best to put your money elsewhere. But on whom?
When trying to pinpoint a Stanley Cup contender, it pays to follow recent history. The Eastern representative has finished no worse than fourth in each of the last four seasons. That pretty much eliminates Philadelphia (12-1), Boston (20-1), Montreal (24-1) and the other clubs behind the Canadiens.
That leaves Pittsburgh (3-1), New Jersey (4-1), Buffalo (15-2) and Ottawa (10-1) as the only other alternatives.
Right off the bat, New Jersey and Ottawa can be dismissed, as the former has not been able to get past the first-round each of the last two years, while the latter has been playing way over its head this year and will most likely fall from the top four slots as the season progresses.
Buffalo is the long shot pick at odds of 15-2. Since the Sabres struggled leading up to the break with just one win in February, look for them to pick up their play down the stretch and come into the playoffs a team to be reckoned with. All it takes is a hot goalie and timely scoring, and Buffalo has both ends covered.
The Penguins, though, are the choice to reach their third straight Stanley Cup Finals. They always seem to supplement their roster at the trade deadline and this season will be no different. The time is now to wager on the Pens, especially at 3-1.
WHICH TEAM WILL BE BEST IN THE WEST?
I mentioned earlier that Washington and San Jose both have their Achilles' heel. For the Caps, it's goaltending. For the Sharks, it's the inability to get out of their own way come playoff time.
San Jose has finished first or second in the West three of the last five regular seasons, with only a single pre-lockout trip to the conference finals to show for its efforts.
Despite a poor showing in the Olympics, goalie Evgeni Nabokov is having the best season of his career, so there is a chance the Sharks can turn their fortunes around, but at 5-2 odds to reach the finals, it's best to look elsewhere.
The other alternative is to lean on Chicago as the top play. In fact, most folks have done just that as the Blackhawks are the betting choice in the West at 2-1. However, don't be surprised if they don't even reach the conference finals.
Like Washington, Chicago has major concerns in net. Cristobal Huet has been a stud in regular season play, posting a 113-67 record since the lockout. On the other hand, he's never won a playoff round, going a combined 6-10 in three separate stints, with a 2.99 goals-against-average in the last two.
The veteran netminder has also been relegated to the bench of late, as rookie Antti Niemi has gotten the bulk of the team's recent starts. If head coach Joel Quenneville decides to roll the dice and go with Niemi in the postseason, it's doubtful the Blackhawks will get past the second round.
The third choice in the wagering is the team to hit hardest at the windows. The Vancouver Canucks (11-2 odds), losers in last year's conference semi-finals to Chicago in six games, will ride goalie Roberto Luongo all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals.
Luongo is only 11-11 lifetime in postseason play but his other numbers (2.09 GAA and .930 save percentage) are top-notch. In addition, the team should be stronger this year, especially mentally, after dealing with a 14-game road trip in between Olympic play.
The Canucks do not have many holes on their roster as they are currently third in the West in goals, and second behind Chicago in goals allowed. Secondary scoring has not been a problem this season and it could be even stronger if veteran Pavol Demitra can parlay his excellent Olympic play into the rest of the NHL regular season and beyond.
When it comes to wagering on the Stanley Cup Finals, the number one choice is the Penguins at the healthy odds of 6-1.
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Online Sportsbook Football Betting
LaDainian Tomlinson Favorite to be 2007 NFL MVP
With the first NFL preseason game less than two weeks away, it is time to start thinking about football once again at MySportsbook.com. Reigning NFL MVP LaDainian Tomlinson is currently the 5-1 co-favorite to win the award again alongside Super Bowl MVP Peyton Manning.
This shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone after his all out assault on the record books last season. For those suffering from amnesia or were under a rock last football season, all L.T. did last season was set the NFL record for rushing touchdowns (28), total touchdowns (31) and total points scored (186) to go along with his 1815 rushing yards and 508 receiving yards. At 6-1, Tom Brady is next in line which isn’t surprising considering all of the firepower the Pats added over the off-season. With the addition of Randy Moss, Donte Stallworth and Wes Welker; it would be quite difficult for Brady’s numbers not to improve from last years 3529 yards and 24 touchdowns. There appears to be some decent value in Drew Bees at 10-1 considering he probably would have won the award last year if it wasn’t for L.T.’s record breaking season.
There is no reason to think the Saints will come back to earth this season and playing in a weak NFC, they should have as good a shot as any to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. At 15-1, Donovan McNabb could also be worth a look. Remember, many felt he was the MVP of the first half of the season before going down with a season ending injury. Reportedly, he is in great shape and well ahead of schedule to return to form. Also, he could have some added motivation to put up big numbers this season with the Eagles using their first pick in the draft on McNabb’s future successor Kevin Kolb.
Be sure to log on to MySportsbook.com to check out the complete odds for NFL MVP as well as all of the new football related futures. With the popularity of NFL futures, these betting lines will be sure to change as the money comes in; get the early sports lines now.
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American Idol Betting Season 6 Strategies
It's that time of year folks. Betting on American Idol Season 9. And we have plenty of American Idol Season 6 strategies appearing below. With the Top 24 finalists revealed, online gambling sites will be offering betting odds on each of them, including MySportsbook.com.
No other “event” has been growing as fast as wagering on American Idol. It has turned into a huge betting event with reasonably high limits and all sorts of profit-making potential for sharp bettors. Last year, MySportsbook.com experienced unprecedented traffic as a result of the American Idol betting craze.
Every week there will be odds to win American Idol, various elimination props and contestant versus contestant match-ups at the MySportsbook.com website.
Whether a fan of America’s top-rated show or watching only because of a wife or girlfriend, here are some of basic strategies to use when betting American Idol.
Odds to Win
There are a few things to consider when looking for the right win bet. First off, remember that this bet is for the long haul. Many people make the mistake of picking the performer who sang the best the previous week. This strategy leads to an underlay situation – betting a price, which is less than what it should be.
All Idol contestants struggle at some point in the competition, so you should always look for value. In last year’s competition alone, two performers who had some of the best performances early in the series were subsequently bet down to low prices - Lisa Tucker and Ace Young. After just a few weeks, Tucker had already been eliminated, while Young quickly became a huge long shot to win America’s largest talent search.
A better strategy is to look for performers who don’t necessarily get the praise from the judges, but show flashes of the talent necessary to go the distance.
Another important thing to remember when betting any contestant to win is the demographic breakdown of the voters, the viewing public and potential future CD purchasers. Unlike sporting events, American Idol is not decided on the field of play – it’s decided by the American public under the guiding influence of the shows producers.
Understand that the great state of Alabama has a mighty edge when it comes to American Idol.
Therefore, to be successful betting on American Idol, put any personal opinions or prejudices aside and think like the majority of the voting public. Remember that the typical voter is young, female and quite often, Southern.
If a contestant cannot appeal to this demographic, no matter how much talent he or she possesses, they’ll struggle for votes. Looks, demeanor and charisma are extremely important. And it’s no coincidence that every Idol winner so far has hailed from a Southern state.
Elimination Props
Every week MySportsbook.com anticipates offering a prop on who’ll be eliminated from the show each Wednesday night. A suggestion to handicap this is to gauge an overall feel for who’s the least popular contestant left in the competition. Generally the least popular performers have recently appeared in the bottom three and will have been the target of repeated criticism from the judges.
Last year, resources included dialidol.com and votefortheworst.com. Dialidol.com measures the volume of each contestant’s voting line. While by no means a perfect science, it does give a good indication of who is generating votes and who isn’t. Meanwhile, votefortheworst.com is a site that attempts to build support for the worst competitor to keep them in the competition for ‘entertainment’ value. The site has a proven track record of keeping performers around who most feel should have been voted off a long time ago.
Contestant vs. Contestant Match-ups
The best strategy for doing well on match-ups is to assess how close either of the contestants is to being eliminated. If neither is expected to be voted off of the show in the coming weeks, the value is almost always on the underdog. If both are expecting an imminent exit in the near future, the favorite in the match-up might offer value.
Watch for American Idol betting odds on each of the contestants shortly and good luck with these American Idol betting strategies.
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