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04/09/2009 - Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mark Recchi scored two goals, including the game-winner in overtime, and dished out two assists, as the Boston Bruins outlasted the Montreal Canadiens, 5-4, in a battle between Northeast Division rivals at TD Banknorth Garden.
Despite the loss, Montreal secured a playoff spot. The Canadiens needed just one point coming into the tilt to secure a trip to their second straight postseason. By forcing overtime on Thursday, Montreal did just that.
Patrice Bergeron stole the puck at the Montreal blue line and made his way toward the net. He found an open Recchi in front of the net with a beautiful pass. Recchi chipped the disc into an empty half of the net with 2:18 left in OT for the win.
Boston, which has already clinched the top-seed in the Eastern Conference, won the season series with the Canadiens, 5-0-1. The Bruins won their first season series with Montreal since 2003-2004.
This was Boston's final home game of the regular season. The Bruins will close their schedule with road tests against Buffalo and the New York Islanders.
Zdeno Chara, Bergeron, and Phil Kessel also lit the lamp for the Bruins, who bounced back from a loss to Ottawa on Tuesday. Bergeron added two helpers and Chara one. Tim Thomas stopped 35 shots to pick up his 35th win of the year.
Matt D'Agostini scored twice, while Alex Kovalev and Mathieu Schneider scored once for the Canadiens, who have dropped three in a row. Carey Price turned aside 28 shots in the loss.
Montreal (93 points) is tied with the Rangers for the final two spots in the East. The Rangers beat Philadelphia on Thursday.
Montreal ends the regular season at Pittsburgh on Saturday.
Trailing 4-3, Boston tied the game at four on a power-play goal from Chara at the 5:27 mark of the third period. Chara lifted a backhander top shelf after collecting a rebound in front of the net.
The Canadiens were given a golden opportunity when Steve Montador was whistled for roughing with 1:01 to play. Montreal failed to capitalize on their power play that extended into overtime.
The Bruins drew first blood just 2:02 into the tilt on a goal from Bergeron. Matt Hunwick carried the puck into the Montreal zone and hit Recchi with a cross-ice pass in front of the net. Recchi quickly dumped a pass to Bergeron, who fired a shot into an open right side of the net.
Kovalev scored a power-play goal just 1:25 into the second frame to tie the game at one. Mathieu Dandenault hit Kovalev with a pass at the right circle, and Kovalev fired a shot from the bottom of the right circle to beat Thomas glove side.
Kessel lit the lamp for the 33rd time this season at the 3:12 mark to give Boston a 2-1 edge. Kessel's shot from the right circle beat Price top shelf. A power-play goal from Recchi just over two minutes later extended the Bruins' margin to 3-1, but Montreal came roaring back.
The Canadiens cut the gap to 3-2 on a power-play goal from D'Agostini with 12:33 to go in the second. Schneider deadlocked the contest at three with 9:32 left.
D'Agostini lit the lamp with 3:07 remaining in the second to give the Canadiens their first lead of the game. D'Agostini won the puck at his own blue line and charged down the left side of the ice before beating Thomas stick side.
Game Notes
There was a combined total of 76 penalty minutes in the game...Boston went 2- for-4 on the power play, while Montreal went 3-for-7...The Bruins recalled forward Vladimir Sobotka from Providence (AHL) on Thursday...Boston improved to 29-6-6 at home.
<< Capitals double-up Lightning
Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brooks Laich scored twice and Mike Green
registered a goal and two assists as the Washington Capitals held on to edge
the Tampa Bay Lightning, 4-2, at St. Pete Times Forum.
David Steckel also tallied
<< Lundqvist helps Rangers clinch playoff spot, down Flyers
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Henrik Lundqvist stood tall down the stretch
and finished with 37 saves to help the New York Rangers clinch a playoff spot
for the fourth straight year with a 2-1 victory over Philadelphia at
Madison
<< Molina helps Giants crush Brewers
San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bengie Molina drove in four runs in San
Francisco's 7-1 thumping of Milwaukee -- a game overshadowed when a rocket off
the bat of the Brewers' Mike Cameron caught Giants pitcher Joe Martinez in the
head du
<< Buffalo halts Carolina's nine-game win streak
Raleigh, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jason Pominville scored twice as the Buffalo
Sabres routed the Hurricanes, 5-1, ending Carolina's nine-game winning streak.
Matt Ellis, Jochen Hecht and Derek Roy also tallied for the Sabres, who were
comi
Blazers forward Webster done for the season >>
Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Portland forward Martell Webster will miss
the remainder of the season after re-aggravating a left foot ailment.
Webster had surgery October 9, 2008 to repair a stress fracture, and after
being sideli
Devils clinch Atlantic in shootout win over Senators >>
Ottawa, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brendan Shanahan scored the shootout winner, and
the New Jersey Devils wrapped up the Atlantic Division title in a 3-2 win
against the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Place.
The Devils needed just a point to
Lakers' Bynum returns to action >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Andrew Bynum is back, and not a second
too soon for the Lakers as the playoffs near.
Bynum stepped foot onto the floor in game action during the first quarter of
Los Angeles' game against Denver on
Bulls draw closer to playoffs with thumping of Philadelphia >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tyrus Thomas and Ben Gordon each scored 24
points as Chicago inched closer to a playoff berth with a 113-99 victory over
slumping Philadelphia.
Derrick Rose added 16 points and eight assists, Brad Mille
The NFL preseason is approaching. Time for players, coaches and teams to turn over a new leaf. General managers have hired some new coaches, while coaches have added some offensive and defensive assistants to try and improve things. Here’s a look at some changes to look for in the preseason.
New York Jets: The Jets were one of the surprise teams in the NFL last season, making the playoffs under hard-driving first-year coach Eric Mangini. Mangini rebuilt the offensive line with rookies D'Brickashaw Ferguson (the No. 4 pick in the 2007 Draft) and Ohio State center (the 29th pick in the first round). This season he upgraded the defense with rookie linebacker David Harris (Michigan) while the secondary picked up a much needed top-notch corner in Pitt CB Darrelle Revis (No. 14 overall).
The Jets have added balance to the offense for QB Chad Pennington with RB Thomas Jones, essentially stolen from the Bears. He will upgrade a New York ground game that was 20th in rushing with a weak 3.5 yards per carry. They have their first true feature back since Curtis Martin. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer prefers ball control, like his father Marty. In preseason, behind Pennington you’ll see second-year QB Kellen Clemens and mobile newcomer QB Marques Tuiasosopo.
Jacksonville Jaguars: The heat is on Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville as the Jaguars flopped last season despite a ton of talent. Keep in mind that under Del Rio the Jaguars have been outstanding in preseason with a 12-4 SU, 11-5 ATS August mark. online football betting Their defense is loaded, it’s the offense that has been stuck in first gear the last few years.
Enter a new offensive coordinator in Dirk Koetter, the former Boise State and Arizona State pass-happy coach. He will try and upgrade a passing game that ranked 24th last season. Del Rio has criticized wide receivers and Matt Jones this summer, both of whom have battled injuries. It will be interesting to watch the “new” Jaguars passing game in preseason.
Arizona Cardinals: Word out of Arizona is that the players like new coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was the Steelers offensive coordinator last year. We think of Arizona as all-passing because their running game has been awful of late because of a poor offensive line. However, keep an eye on the running game in preseason as they’ve made a lot of changes.
The new coach brings in Russ Grimm to coach the offensive line (Grimm did a marvelous job building the Steelers line). They took Penn State OT Levi Jones in the first round and signed two offensive linemen, Mike Gandy and Al Johnson, to provide depth. Reggie Wells was moved from right tackle to left guard and they want more speed out of the offensive line for pulling and traps, a Pittsburgh staple under Bill Cowher.
Atlanta Falcons: While all the attention has been focused on QB Mike Vick’s off-field problems, new coach Bobby Petrino is revamping the Falcons from an all-running team to a more balanced one. Petrino likes the experience of backup QB Joey Harrington and he has veteran backup Chris Redman, who used to play for Petrino at Louisville and knows his offenses better than anyone. Petrino wants Vick to be more of a pocket passer.
The addition of FB Ovie Mughelli is a sign Petrino wants a power rushing attack behind a physical fullback and newcomer WR Joe Horn should upgrade what was a below average wideout corps. Petrino is changing their old zone-blocking scheme to a more traditional in-line blocking scheme and the offensive line is bigger. Rookie DE Jamaal Anderson was grabbed in the first round and the secondary got younger with former Auburn cornerback David Irons, who the Falcons think was a steal as a sixth-round pick.
Cleveland Browns: The 2007 Browns look like a double-edged sword. There was the excitement of the offseason, trading for RB Jamel Lewis, upgrading the offensive line with Wisconsin’s Joe Thomas (the No. 2 pick in the draft) and free agent LG Eric Steinbach, then trading for Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn when he fell to No. 22. GM Phil Savage and head coach Romeo Crennel feel they have a talented, balanced offense with these new pieces, plus TE >Kellen Winslow and WR Braylon Edwards.
However, were these moves made in desperation? And were they foolish ones? The Browns gave up their 2008 first-round pick for Quinn and we all know QBs take time to develop. And even first-round QBs can be busts (Joey Harrington, Akili Smith). We also don’t know if the offensive line is that much improved (31st in rushing in 2007) and they did nothing to improve a defense that was awful against the run (142 yds pg allowed).
The Browns have a new offensive coordinator in Rob Chudzinski. This is a young offense and Quinn looked tentative, indecisive and inaccurate early in camp. Crennel will play Charlie Frye, Quinn and Derek Anderson in preseason. And there is a mixed bag for rookie QBs receiving significant starts: Tim Couch (14), Kerry Collins (13), Ben Roethlisberger (13), Vince Young (13), Joey Harrington (12), Matt Leinart (11) and Kyle Boller (nine). While all the focus will be on the Browns new-look offense, I’m more concerned with the defense.
Carolina Panthers: Coach Jon Fox loves the ground game, but Carolina has made some interesting changes for 2007. Fox fired offensive coordinator Dan Henning and brings in Jeff Davidson to run the offense. Davidson has brought in zone-blocking schemes to the Panther offense, a dramatic change for a system that's been built around a power-running style.
In zone-blocking, offensive linemen are responsible for blocking any defender who appears in their zone, instead of focusing on one defender. The Broncos and Falcons have had success with the system, which features smaller, more athletic offensive linemen and can create running lanes on the inside and outside. Keep an eye in preseason on how Carolina adjusts as it will take time to learn the system. Fox has been one of the top coaches in preseason, with a 15-5 SU, 12-7-1 ATS August record.
Dallas Cowboys: WR Terrell Owens is still here, but QB Drew Bledsoe and Bill Parcells are gone. New head coach Wade Phillips takes over, replacing Parcells. He ran the Chargers defense last season. Phillips was chosen by teary-eyed owner Jerry Jones partly because he is one of the best 3-4 coaches in football and the Cowboys have loaded up on players for that scheme.
Remember that Phillips was blitz-happy with the Chargers last season and early reports out of the Dallas camp have mentioned how the Cowboys have been blitzing a lot, a departure from Parcells. The theme of the 2007 Dallas defense appears to be one of attack.
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Two playoff teams from 2007 take center stage on the NFL Network Sunday night in a Week 2 NFL betting match-up when the (0-1) New England Patriots betting head south to Florida for a contest with the (1-0) Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
New England HC Bill Belichick couldn’t care less about the way his team plays in the preseason. With a chance to tie last week’s game with the Baltimore Ravens betting, He elected to go for the two-point conversion and outright victory. The conversion failed, and the Pats ended up falling to the Ravens by a 16-15 final count.
New England rolled off twelve unanswered points to give it a chance at securing the victory, but it never threatened to cover the 3.5-point spread. NFL bettors saw this one coming, as they bet the Ravens down from +6 to +3.5 as the week progressed. QB Tom Brady didn’t take part in the Patriots first preseason clash, but could see action this weekend.
His three replacements all put up embarrassing numbers. They went a combined 17 for 33, and threw three interceptions and no touchdowns. The New England defense was encouraging, as they held the Ravens to 2/12 third down conversions and surrendered just ten first downs. That ‘D’ should be bolstered with the addition of former Bucs and Denver Broncos betting safety John Lynch, who could make his Patriots debut on Sunday against his former mates.
HC Jon Gruden had to be impressed with the way his Bucs played on both sides of the ball in their dominating 17-6 victory over the Miami Dolphins in Week 1’s NFL pre-season betting action. Bucs bettors were quite happy with the effort, as they made a mockery of the fact that they were underdogs in the game.
The logjam at the quarterback position didn’t get any easier to separate for Gruden, as all four of his QBs had positive experiences in the first exhibition of 2008. The four combined to complete 28 of their 40 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown, and that was without starting QB Jeff Garcia in the lineup.
RB Michael Bennett had 19 carries and four receptions, totaling 90 yards and a touchdown. Expect to see more of Bennett, Kenneth Darby, and Earnest Graham, as they all compete for playing time with Warrick Dunn in the backfield this season. Defensively, the Bucs recorded four sacks and held the Fins offense in check all day.
First round draft pick Aqib Talib was impressive in the secondary, recording a tackle and two pass defenses in his debut. Don’t be surprised to see Talib in the starting lineup opposite Ronde Barber for the Bucs in ’08.
The betting trends suggest that NFL bettors should be backing the Bucs in this intra-conference exhibition.
These two teams hooked up last year in Tampa Bay, with the Bucs winning that game 13-10. The Buccaneers have only lost one preseason game at home dating back to the beginning of the ’05 preseason. The Patriots have had a mixed bag of results in their recent exhibitions. They have gone 2-2 ATS and SU each of the last three years.
New England currently sits as modest 1-point favorites in this preseason showdown with the ‘total’ now sitting at 34.5.
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