Red Wings aim for another victory in Chicago

Hockey Betting Lines

02/27/2007 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Red Wings will try to rebound from consecutive close losses when they visit the Chicago Blackhawks tonight at the United Center.

Detroit had won three straight before dropping a shootout decision to visiting Edmonton on Friday and losing an overtime test to the Nashville Predators on Saturday.

The game against the Predators was a big one, considering Detroit is in the midst of a battle for postseason positioning with Nashville. The Red Wings, who have 86 points this year, are currently two points behind Nashville for first place in the Central Division and the top spot in the Western Conference.

Saturday's loss came after Peter Forsberg's goal 2:11 into overtime handed Nashville the 4-3 decision at Gaylord Entertainment Center.

Tomas Holmstrom notched his third career hat trick for the Red Wings, who have a hefty nine-point edge over Dallas for the fourth spot in the Western Conference.

Mathieu Schneider picked up three assists and Pavel Datsyuk had two in a losing cause. Chris Osgood made 25 saves, but fell to 6-4-2 on the year.

The Red Wings tried to give themselves a boost in the playoff race by trading for forward Kyle Calder on Monday. The Philadelphia Flyers sent Calder to Detroit in a three-team deal that saw also the Red Wings ship forward Jason Williams to Chicago. The Blackhawks sent defenseman Lasse Kukkonen and a third-round pick in 2007 to Philadelphia, then Chicago dealt Calder to Detroit for Williams.

Tonight marks the end of a brief two-game road trip for the Red Wings, who are 17-13-4 as the visiting team this year.

The Blackhawks will try to stay on the winning track tonight after ending a five-game losing streak Sunday against St. Louis. Duncan Keith, Adrian Aucoin and Bryan Smolinski each scored first-period goals as Chicago smoked the Blues, 5-1.

Martin Havlat posted a goal and two assists while Nikolai Khabibulin finished with 22 saves for the Blackhawks, who have 55 points and come into tonight's game tied with Columbus for last place in the Central Division.

The Blackhawks, who are 12-14-4 as the host thus year, are playing the third test of a four-game homestand tonight.

The Red Wings have dominated the series with Chicago in recent years, winning five straight and 12 of the last 13 encounters between the clubs. Detroit is 4-0 against the Blackhawks this year and has also taken six in a row in the Windy City.

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Super Bowl 2009 Betting

Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions

Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.

Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.

Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.

If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.

Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.

By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.

In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.

So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.

While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.

There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.

In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:

SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.

XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.

XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.

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