Hurricanes go for eighth straight in visit to Florida

Hockey Betting Lines

03/06/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A fire sale at the trade deadline has yet to slow down the Carolina Hurricanes, who'll be taking aim at an eighth consecutive victory in tonight's clash with the Southeast Division-rival Florida Panthers from the BankAtlantic Center.

Carolina was one of the NHL's most active sellers at Wednesday's deadline, shipping out defensemen Aaron Ward (Anaheim), Joe Corvo (Washington) and Andrew Alberts (Vancouver) as well as veteran forwards Scott Walker (Washington) and Stephane Yelle (Colorado) in separate deals. The Hurricanes are unlikely to reach the playoffs despite their current tear, with the club ranked 14th in the Eastern Conference with 59 points at the moment.

The roster modifications didn't have much effect on the red-hot Hurricanes on Thursday, as Carolina cruised to 11-2-0 over its last 13 games with a 4-1 triumph over visiting Ottawa. Manny Legace stopped 25-of-26 shots to lead the way, while Rod Brind'Amour, Tom Kostopoulos, Brandon Sutter and Chad LaRose all scored goals to help support the seasoned goaltender.

Zach Boychuk, promoted from Albany of the AHL as a result of Wednesday's moves, contributed a pair of assists to Carolina's latest win.

The Hurricanes' streak is their longest since a nine-game tear from March 18- April 7 of last season, and they've won three in a row on the road entering a stretch of three straight away outings that begins tonight.

Florida's postseason chances are rather dim as well following a recent season- long seven-game slide, but the Panthers head into this divisional showdown on a very high note after coming through with a 7-4 home win over previously- surging Philadelphia on Thursday.

David Booth and Bryan McCabe each had a goal and three assists as Florida matched its highest scoring output of the season, with Michael Frolik lighting the lamp twice in the much-needed victory. Goaltender Tomas Vokoun did his part as well, registering 38 saves to help the Panthers halt the Flyers' five- game win streak.

"It was a nice night. We haven't had a win in a while," Panthers head coach Peter DeBoer said. "Some good things happened. We deserved to enjoy a good night for a change."

Florida, which is one point ahead of the Hurricanes in the Southeast and conference standings, has outscored Carolina by a 9-3 margin in taking both previous matchups between these teams held at the BankAtlantic Center in 2009-10. The Hurricanes has won all three 2009-10 encounters with the Panthers in Raleigh, though, and dealt Florida a 4-1 setback on February 9.

Wwwasurebet Hockey Betting News

<< Bruins visit Isles in first stop of long trip
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Bruins closed out their pre-Olympic break schedule with excellent play on the road, something the team hopes carries over when it opens up a season-long seven-game trek with this afternoon's matchup with the New Yo

<< Jazz host Clippers in Salt Lake City
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Utah Jazz hope to keep the pressure on Northwest Division-leading Denver when they get back to work on Saturday by hosting the Los Angeles Clippers. The Jazz, who are 1 1/2 games behind the Nuggets in the Nor

<< Bobcats hope to stay on track vs. Warriors
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Charlotte Bobcats are coming off a huge win over the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers, and hope to stay within striking distance of a playoff spot when they resume a three-game homestand tonight versus

<< Hawks, Heat get together in south Florida
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Southeast Division rivals meet in Miami Saturday night as the Heat play host to the Atlanta Hawks. The Heat, who are currently holding on to the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, are coming off th

<< Nets begin road swing at New York
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After losing all three games on a recent homestand, the New Jersey Nets kick off a five-game road trip tonight against the local rival New York Knicks at historic Madison Square Garden. New Jersey will also make stops in M

Rangers brace for test from high-powered Caps >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After struggling to keep the opposition off the scoreboard their most recent time out, the New York Rangers now have to face the NHL's most potent offense in tonight's showdown with the powerful Washington Capitals from the V

Thrashers' playoff push resumes in Tampa >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Thrashers will shoot for a third straight victory when they visit the struggling Tampa Bay Lightning tonight at St. Pete Times Forum. The Thrashers have won two straight since the NHL came back from the Olympic

Revamped Coyotes host Ducks in Pacific clash >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Phoenix Coyotes will try to record consecutive wins when they welcome the Anaheim Ducks for tonight's Pacific Division battle at Jobing.com Arena. The Coyotes were dealt their third straight loss when they emerged from

Blues hope to keep flying high in trip to Colorado >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Blues are in position to record their longest winning streak in over six years, but to reach that mark they'll have to find a way to halt their struggles versus the Colorado Avalanche this season. St. Louis g

Kings vie to bounce back against Canadiens >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Coming off just their second regulation loss in 14 games, the Los Angeles Kings will try to post their first victory over the Montreal Canadiens in seven years tonight in a meeting at Staples Center. The Kings came out of

SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting

NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.


That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.

A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."

It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.

The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.

So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."

Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.

Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.

Seriously.

The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.

The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.

Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."

The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts MasterCard needs.