Flyers visit sizzling Pens for key battle

Hockey Betting Lines

03/22/2009 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A key Eastern Conference playoff battle is on tap today in the Steel City, as the scorching Pittsburgh Penguins welcome the rival Philadelphia Flyers for an Atlantic Division battle at Mellon Arena.

The Penguins and Flyers come into today's game tied for fourth in the East with 86 points each. The clubs are also 11 points behind New Jersey for first place in the Atlantic.

Philadelphia has been in the fourth spot for much of the season, while Pittsburgh has vaulted up the conference standings in recent weeks after sitting just outside the playoff picture for a large part of the 2008-09 campaign.

Pittsburgh has won three in a row and has recorded at least a point in 12 straight games, going 10-0-2 over that stretch. The Penguins were last handed a regulation loss on February 22 at Washington.

The Penguins have taken four of five from Philadelphia this season and has dominated their Keystone State rivals in recent years. Pittsburgh has won seven of nine and 15 of the last 21 encounters overall and has taken five in a row and 10 of its last 11 against the Flyers at the Igloo.

Pittsburgh's latest victory came Friday evening in a home test against Los Angeles. Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby both registered a goal and picked up an assist as the Pens downed the Kings, 4-1.

Bill Guerin and Tyler Kennedy also lit the lamp for Pittsburgh, while Marc- Andre Fleury made 24 saves to notch his 30th win of the season.

Malkin is leading the NHL with 104 points, while Crosby is tied for second in the league with 94 points. Crosby, the Penguins captain, has recorded a point in eight straight games, notching five goals and 10 assists over that span.

The Penguins are 3-0-1 so far on a season-high eight-game homestand and have a 21-12-3 record as the host this year. Pittsburgh hasn't suffered a regulation loss on home ice since losing to Detroit on February 8 and has recorded at least a point in eight straight at the Igloo.

The Flyers, meanwhile, avoided a three-game losing streak with Friday's victory in Buffalo. Former Sabres captain Danny Briere scored two goals late in the second period to help Philadelphia edge Buffalo, 6-4, at HSBC Arena.

Mike Richards had a goal and two assists while Simon Gagne, Jeff Carter and Mike Knuble each lit the lamp for the Flyers, who had dropped three of four coming into the contest. Martin Biron made 39 saves in the win.

The Flyers, who are 17-12-6 as the guest this year, are capping a four-game road trip this afternoon. Philly will play its next two games on home ice, as it hosts New Jersey on Monday before welcoming Florida on Thursday.

Flyers defenseman Randy Jones has missed the last two games with a hip injury, but practiced on Saturday and is a game-time decision for today's contest.

Victoriasvegas Hockey Betting News

<< Heat pay a visit to Pistons at The Palace
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The recently-struggling Miami Heat will try to salvage the finale of a four-game road trip Sunday against the Detroit Pistons at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Miami has dropped the first three tests of the road swing a

<< Southwest Showdown: Rockets try to pass Spurs in division
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top spot in the Southwest Division is up for grabs this afternoon, as the Houston Rockets try to inch closer to the San Antonio Spurs in a showdown at the AT&T Center. Houston has won three straight games and

<< Raptors, Clippers square off up north
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two of the NBA's worst teams get together Sunday in Toronto, as the struggling Raptors welcome the lowly Los Angeles Clippers to the Air Canada Centre. Toronto has lost two straight, nine of 10 and opened a f

<< Wolves welcome Thunder to Target Center
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bottom feeders in the Northwest Division get together this afternoon at the Target Center, where the Minnesota Timberwolves will host the Oklahoma City Thunder. Minnesota just lost all three tests on its recent road

<< LeBron, Cavs visit playoff-hopeful Nets
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - LeBron James and the Central Division-champion Cleveland Cavaliers will take their eight-game winning streak to the road this evening for a showdown against the New Jersey Nets at the Izod Center. Cleveland posted it

Sliding Blackhawks welcome Kings to town >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The stumbling Chicago Blackhawks will try to end a five- game losing streak when they host the Los Angeles Kings in an afternoon clash today at the United Center. With the regular season winding down, the Blackhawks have p

Oilers visit Wild with shot at fourth straight victory >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Edmonton Oilers will try for their first four-game winning streak since the early stages of the season when they visit the struggling Minnesota Wild for today's Northwest Division battle at Xcel Energy Center. The Oil

Ducks take aim at third straight win in home test vs. Coyotes >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Anaheim Ducks will shoot for their first three-game winning streak in nearly four months when they welcome the Phoenix Coyotes for today's clash at the Honda Center. The Ducks last won three in a row during a four-game

Sharks eye West's top seed in home test against Avalanche >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Having already clinched the Pacific Division title, the San Jose Sharks can regain the top seed in the Western Conference when they host the lowly Colorado Avalanche tonight at HP Pavilion. The Sharks have 104 points on th

Surging clubs meet as Rangers host Sens at MSG >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A pair of hot teams will meet tonight in the Big Apple, as the New York Rangers welcome the Ottawa Senators for an Eastern Conference battle at Madison Square Garden. The Senators have won four straight and eight of their

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.