Games Win Edge Disable In Ottawa

Hockey Betting Lines

Tim Connolly had two assists and James Reimer made 30 saves as Toronto won back-to-back games for the first time since a three-game win streak from Nov. 22-27.

 

Defenseman John-Michael Liles missed the win with a sore neck and is questionable for tonight.

 

Versteeg was dealt to the Maple Leafs on June 30, 2010 after winning a Stanley Cup with Chicago, but the Leafs dealt him to the Flyers in February of that season after falling out of contention. He landed in Florida in an offseason trade this past summer and has been a key reason that the Panthers lead the division by six points over the Jets.

 

Injuries may have played a factor as Florida was without second-leading point generator in Stephen Weiss. He became the seventh Panther forward to suffer an injury and four of those skaters, including Weiss, have all been hurt within the last four games.

 

The Panthers have gone 9-3-1 versus the Maple leafs over the past 13 meetings and have taken three straight and five of the last six at home in this set.

 

Kessel had the lone goal for the Maple Leafs in the most recent loss.

 

Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist was sharp in the Winter Classic preview, turning aside 28 shots in the win for New York. Andrej Meszaros and James van Riemsdyk each had a goal for the Flyers, who have dropped their past three games in Madison Square Garden. Ilya Bryzgalov was tagged for all four goals on 24 shots.

 

The Flyers, who are playing five straight on the road leading up to the Winter Classic, fell to 13-4-2 as the visiting team this season. Philly has one more road game before the outdoor contest, as it's set to visit Pittsburgh on Thursday.

 

On the injury front for Philly, forward Danny Briere expects to return tonight after sitting out Friday with a bruised hand. Centermen Sean Couturier and Brayden Schenn are day-to-day after missing time with head injuries. Schenn has sat out the last nine games with a concussion, while Couturier has missed three tests since getting hit in the back of the head with a puck shot by teammate Kimmo Timonen on Dec. 17.

 

"We're lucky to get the point tonight," said Garon.

 

The Lightning have played the last two games without Nate Thompson, but the centerman could return tonight from his lower body injury.

Sportskine Hockey Betting Blog

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Football Betting

NFL Football Betting Online

The San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago.

Thursday, August 21

NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37

NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007
KEY NFL BETTING TREND: SF has lost its last seven SU on pre-season road

In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points.

Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):

* SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU
* SF has covered three of its last 11 games
* SF has lost six of its last seven road games SU
* SF has covered one of its last seven road games
* CHI has covered five of its last eight games
* CHI has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* CHI has covered four of its last 13 home games
* SF has lost its last seven pre-season road games SU
* CHI has covered two of its last seven home pre-season games

Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp.

Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled.

Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too.

That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm.

Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds.

CHICAGO -3 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

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