Corvo, Walker lead Caps against Hurricanes

Hockey Betting Lines

03/10/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Both Joe Corvo and Scott Walker were given a chance to compete on a championship-caliber team when they were traded by the Hurricanes to the Capitals before the trade deadline. One week later, they get to show off in front of their old club.

Corvo and Walker will square off against their former mates tonight when Washington tries to avoid a second consecutive defeat at Verizon Center versus a Carolina squad that is making a late playoff push despite being sellers at the deadline.

The Capitals have been on fire since early January, going 20-2-3 over their last 25 games while jumping out to a 31-point edge over the second-place Thrashers for the top spot in the Southeast Division. They also lead the Penguins by 13 points for the top spot in the Eastern Conference and the Sharks by four points for the most in the NHL.

Washington has also earned a point in six of its last seven games, going 3-1-3 in that span. That includes Monday's 4-3 shootout loss to Dallas that halted the Caps' home winning streak at 11 games.

Tom Poti and Alex Ovechkin scored in the first and second periods respectively, but the Stars scored three times in the third frame. Ovechkin, though, netted the game-tying goal with 3:16 left in the third before the team's five-round shootout loss to the Stars and goaltender Marty Turco, who stopped a career-high 49 Washington shots.

Semyon Varlamov stopped 23 shots in the loss, Washington's first at home since December 28 to Carolina.

"It's not everyday you throw 52 shots on net," said Washington head coach Bruce Boudreau. "We've seen what [Turco] can do when he's at the top of his game, and tonight he was at the top of his game."

Ovechkin snapped a season-long six-game goal drought and moved into a tie with Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby for the league lead in goals with 44. Ovechkin is also tops in the NHL with 92 points and posted his fifth consecutive 300-shot season.

The Hurricanes had lost their first two games versus the Capitals this year before that victory at Verizon Center on December 28 behind two goals and three assists from Eric Staal. It was only Carolina's fourth win in its last 11 versus Washington overall and its third in nine trips to D.C.

Despite entering this game nine points back of playoff spot, the Hurricanes still opted to deal defenseman Corvo and winger Walker to the Capitals last week in separate trades, just a few of the handful of deals Carolina made before the deadline.

The club has yet to slow down, winning seven straight prior to Saturday's loss to Florida. However, Carolina got right back in the win column on Sunday with a 4-0 triumph over Atlanta for its first shutout of the season. Manny Legace made 27 saves for his 24th career shutout and first since April 5, 2008 while with St. Louis.

"[The Thrashers] are so talented you just got to be on top of your game all night," Legace said. "My defense played phenomenal in front of me all night long."

Jussi Jokinen had a goal and an assist while Brandon Sutter, Joni Pitkanen, and Rod Brind'Amour also lit the lamp for the victors. Sutter now has four goals and four assists over a six-game point streak.

Wwwfreekobe Hockey Betting News

<< Stars shoot for rare win in Buffalo
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After losing its first three games after the Winter Olympics, Dallas is coming off a victory that could very well turn its luck around. Now all it has to do is pick up its first victory at Buffalo in over 12 years. The St

<< Surging Jazz shoot for another win over Pistons
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Keeping up with Denver in both the Northwest Division and Western Conference standings could get a bit easier tonight for the Utah Jazz, who will shoot for their 10th straight win over the Detroit Pistons. Utah has won 11

<< Spurs, Knicks square off in Alamo City
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Antonio Spurs will have to continue their playoff push tonight against the New York Knicks without star guard Tony Parker. The team did receive some good news on Monday, however, when it was learned that Park

<< Heat begin key homestand with visit from Clippers
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Miami Heat are fighting for their playoff lives and hope to gain some ground during a six-game homestand that starts with tonight's matchup versus the Los Angeles Clippers at AmericanAirlines Arena. The Heat have won t

<< Bobcats hope to end road woes in Philadelphia
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Robert Frost's poem "The Road Not Taken" easily coincides with how the Charlotte Bobcats have been playing this season. The road less traveled would be the one headed towards Charlotte, and that's made all the difference for

Smith cools Rangers title talk >>
Glasgow, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Walter Smith is refusing to entertain suggestions that his Rangers side have effectively wrapped up the Scottish Premier League title after restoring their 13-point lead at the top of the table.

Canucks end record road trip in Phoenix >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The longest road trip in NHL history will come to an end tonight when the Vancouver Canucks visit the Phoenix Coyotes at Jobing.com Arena. The Canucks are playing their 14th straight road game this evening, having last pl

Grant wants decision on points penalty >>
Portsmouth, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Avram Grant has called on the Premier League to make a swift decision over any points penalty his Portsmouth side will receive after claiming the uncertainty is filtering down onto the pitch. Pompe

Totti unsure over Azzurri return >>
Rome, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Veteran Roma forward Francesco Totti remains uncertain whether to come out of international retirement to feature for Italy at this summer's World Cup. The 33-year-old called time on his Azzurri career in t

Buffon drops retirement hint >>
Turin, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon has stated that he will retire from football as soon as he drifts out of the international picture. The 32-year-old, who has completed a century of appearance

College Football Betting Tips From a Pro

While the NFL is the sport wagered on the heaviest, college football betting lines has become more and more popular as people realize it’s a game that can be beat. The NCAA football season gets longer each year with the addition of numerous bowl games and with that comes more opportunities for more money in your pocket, if handled correctly.

Betting on college football is not the same as with the NFL, so make sure you separate the two. Because of the vast number of teams, the parity between college football programs is slight and thus, you are going to see some high numbers in the NCAA. Teams favored by more than 40 points are not uncommon especially early in the season when teams playing their non-conference schedules.

The best advice when trying to tackle these enormous spreads and is to just stay away. A team that is favored by 40 points is favored by that many for a reason while teams getting 40 points are bad enough that they shouldn’t be touched. Set yourself a spread limit. Getting rid of these games will cut down on the number of contests that you need to handicap while staying away from backdoor or front-door covers.

What is a backdoor and front-door cover you ask? A backdoor cover is a team that is getting beat by more than the spread, but scores late to get within that number thus covering the spread. A front-door cover is just the opposite where the favorite scores late and covers the number they are favored by.

These front-door and backdoor covers are common when second and third string players enter games in college football and it can be the worst nightmare for some bettors. These players can also be your best friend, but ask any bettor and he will give you more instances on losing in this situation than winning. It just seems to work out that way even though everything evens out in the end.

College football betting has some of the softest lines of any sport and it’s being able to find these lines that will make you a successful college football handicapper. The NFL and NBA have the tightest lines around and while those sports can be beat by looking at situations and systems, college football doesn’t quite work that way. It’s much more manual, but when done correctly, it’s much more gratifying as well.

Getting into the nuts and bolts of college football means looking at the many stats in order to beat the number. As opposed to pro football, college football is less dependent on situations and angles and more on certain statistics. Rushing offense and defense, pass efficiency offense and defense and turnover margins are huge. These are vital in the NFL, but even more so when it comes to college football.

Being able to run the ball in college football has always been a key factor in the overall success of a team. The same adage also goes for teams who have the ability to stop the run. Putting these two factors together can produce some positive results in a team’s record both straight up and against the spread. These numbers show huge differences in teams and the spread may not take those into effect, which is where the value comes into play.

Passing yardage numbers both for and against can be a misinterpreted statistic. However, pass efficiency has always been one of the best ways to look at a teams’ passing game ability both offensively and defensively. But is it really a true indication of how they perform? I wouldn’t say so since they are raw passing numbers with nothing else taken into consideration.

I use pass efficiency ratings when doing my handicapping but I adjust my numbers based on a number of factors including power ratings, strength of schedules, personnel and injuries. This gives a much better picture of a team’s ability to pass effectively and also being able to defend the pass. Tweaking pass efficiency stats instead of raw passing yards is the key.

Turnovers are the single most frustrating, and at times the most gratifying, aspect of a college football lines, mostly because they are so unpredictable. They are part of the game and most of the time nothing can be done to control them. However, turnovers are contagious and they can carry over from game to game and season to season.

It’s important to know how to forecast these unforeseen events and how to use them to your advantage. You can find ways to give yourself an edge by looking at past histories of teams and coaches and how they have fared in turnover wars in the past. Instead of turnovers hurting you at the wrong times, find ways to use them to your advantage.

As you can see, college football handicapping is very labor intensive and isn’t just based on where teams are ranked in the AP and coaches polls. Experience, coaching and match-ups are all important since unlike the NFL, college teams turn over much more often with new personnel at most positions every single year. Keeping current on this information is vital.

Betting NCAA football can be lucrative if done correctly, but more importantly, it’s just plain enjoyable because it can be beat. College football is one of the best sports to watch with some of the best rivalries taking place in all of sports. The only downfall is that a championship isn’t decided on the field but on a computer-based system that is the Bowl Championship Series. That will change someday and we will all be better off for it.

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