Datsyuk picked first in All-Star draft
Hockey Betting Lines
01/26/2012 - Ottawa, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Detroit Red Wings center Pavel Datsyuk was the first overall pick Thursday in the NHL All-Star Fantasy Draft.
A flipped puck was used to determine who got the first pick and Team Chara won the toss.
Captain Zdeno Chara of Boston -- assisted by Joffrey Lupul of Toronto -- took the three-time Selke Winner Datsyuk.
"I'm very appreciative to be taken first," said Datsyuk. "It was kind of a surprise, actually."
Team Alfredsson, headed by Ottawa captain Daniel Alfredsson along with goaltender Henrik Lundqvist of the New York Rangers, chose Ottawa defenseman Erik Karlsson with their first selection.
"I'm really happy that I could join my fellow Swedes on this team," said Karlsson.
The second round saw Team Chara take Boston goaltender Tim Thomas, the reigning Conn Smythe and Vezina winner, while Team Alfredsson took Ottawa forward Jason Spezza.
Forward Evgeni Malkin of Pittsburgh, the current points leader, was taken by Chara in the third round while Alfredsson countered with Los Angeles goaltender Jonathan Quick, who leads the NHL with six shutouts.
Forward Marian Hossa of Chicago and defenseman Kimmo Timmonen of Philadelphia rounded out the top five picks by Chara and forward Claude Giroux from Philadelphia and Pittsburgh defenseman Kris Letang were the fourth and fifth picks for Alfredsson's team.
Team Chara's next five picks were forward Corey Perry of Anaheim, goaltender Carey Price from Montreal, Toronto forward Phil Kessel, defenseman Ryan Suter from Nashville and goaltender Jimmy Howard from Detroit.
The next five picks for Team Alfredsson were forward Steven Stamkos of Tampa Bay, St. Louis goaltender Brian Elliott, defenseman Shea Weber from Nashville, Vancouver forward Daniel Sedin and New York Rangers forward Dan Girardi.
For the Nos. 11-15 picks, Chara took Florida defenseman Brian Campbell, Chicago forward Patrick Kane, Toronto defender Dion Phaneuf, Calgary forward Jarome Iginla, who scored his 500th goal earlier in the month, and defenseman Dennis Wideman from Washington.
Alfredsson took Phoenix defenseman Keith Yandle, Ottawa forward Milan Michalek, Vancouver forward Henrik Sedin, Pittsburgh forward James Neal and Vancouver defenseman Alexander Edler for his 11-15 picks.
Forwards Marian Gaborik of the Rangers, Jordan Eberle from Edmonton and Tyler Seguin from Boston went to Chara with the next three picks while forwards John Tavares of the Islanders, Scott Hartnell from Philly and Jason Pominville from Buffalo went to Alfredsson.
The last two selections saw Dallas forward Jamie Benn -- who had an appendectomy on January 15 but will appear in his first All-Star game -- go to Team Chara while forward Logan Couture from San Jose was picked by Alfredsson with the last pick of the draft.
"Being the young guy and with these great players, I knew it was a possibility," said Couture.
Also named on Thursday were the rookie teams.
The representatives for Team Chara's freshman class are forwards Gabriel Landeskog of Colorado, Ryan Johansen of Columbus, Cody Hodgson of Vancouver, Colin Greening of Ottawa and Luke Adam from Buffalo, defenseman Raphael Diaz of Montreal.
Team Alfredsson's rookies are forwards Sean Couturier and Matt Read of Philadelphia, Carl Hagelin of the Rangers, Nick Johnson of Minnesota and Craig Smith of Nashville and defenseman Justin Faulk from Carolina.
Auburn, AL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A'dia Mathies scored 20 points while Samarie Walker pulled down 15 rebounds as No. 6 Kentucky took down Auburn, 66-48. Maegan Conwright added 10 points for Kentucky (19-2, 8-0 SEC), which forced 30 Auburn t
<< Florida earns comeback win at Ole Miss
Oxford, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Patric Young scored 15 points and added four
rebounds to lead the way for No. 14 Florida as it came from behind to hand Ole
Miss its first home loss of the season, 64-60, at Tad Smith Coliseum.
Kenny Boynto
<< VT upsets No. 8 Maryland
College Park, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Monet Tellier scored a game-high 31
points, as Virginia Tech upset No. 8 Maryland, 75-69, on Thursday.
The Hokies (7-14, 3-5 ACC) had lost five straight games but got 15 points from
Aerial Wilson a
<< Hurricanes shut down Wake Forest
Coral Gables, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Riquna Williams and Stefanie Yderstrom
each scored 14 points as the 10th-ranked Miami-Florida Hurricanes extended
their winning streak to seven games with a 64-39 victory over Wake Forest.
Shenise
<< Zeller, UNC hammer NC State
Chapel Hill, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tyler Zeller's double-double of 21 points
and 15 rebounds powered seventh-ranked North Carolina to a 74-55 victory over
the North Carolina State Wolfpack.
Harrison Barnes had 15 points and Reggie Bullo
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The BC Lions have signed veteran wide receiver Arland Bruce to a contract extension. Last August, the Lions acquired Bruce from Hamilton in exchange for a third- round selection in the 2012 CFL
Baylor stays perfect in rout of Oklahoma >>
Norman, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brittney Griner scored 18 points, had seven
blocks and pulled down six rebounds as the top-ranked Baylor Bears remained
perfect with an 89-58 win over Oklahoma.
Odyssey Smith had 14 points, five rebou
Scott helps Virginia take down Boston College >>
Charlottesville, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Before arriving in Charlottesville,
Tony Bennett completely transformed the culture and expectations of the
Washington State basketball program. He's now doing the same in his third
season
Badgers down struggling Hoosiers >>
Madison, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Wisconsin still has Indiana's number.
The 25th-ranked Badgers showed why they're considered the nation's best
defense by shutting down the No. 16 Hoosiers en route to a 57-50 victory,
their ninth st
Hill leads No. 9 Ohio State over Indiana >>
Bloomington, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tayler Hill scored all 18 of her points in
the second half as No. 9 Ohio State downed Indiana, 73-55.
Samantha Prahalis also had 18 points for Ohio State (20-1, 7-1 Big Ten), which
has won five straight ga
Super Bowl 2009 Betting
Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositionsUnderdog 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.
Get free 2009 Super Bowl Betting from top rated online sportsbook MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online Super Bowl betting VISA Mastercard