Motoring: Red Wings seek 18th straight home win vs. Oilers

Hockey Betting Lines

02/08/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Red Wings will put the NHL's longest home winning streak since the mid-1970s on the line tonight, as they welcome the Edmonton Oilers for a battle at Joe Louis Arena.

It's been over three months since the Red Wings last tasted defeat in the Motor City and Detroit has rattled off 17 straight wins at the Joe since losing to Calgary on Nov. 3. The home mark is already a franchise record and is also the longest such streak in the NHL since the 1975-76 Philadelphia Flyers tied the league mark with 20 straight wins at The Spectrum.

Detroit, which is 20-2-1 at home this season, hasn't hosted a game since before the All-Star break and recently went 2-2-1 on a five-game road trip. The recent swing brought the Red Wings' road record to 15-15-1 on the year,

Like the Red Wings, tonight's opponent also has done the majority of its damage on home ice. The Oilers are 6-19-2 as the guest his year compared to a 15-8-3 home record and Edmonton has lost seven straight and 14 of its last 15 away from Rexall Place.

However, the Red Wings lost the last two games of their recent road trip, including a shootout defeat in Edmonton on Saturday. Detroit, which leads the Central Division by three points over Nashville and St. Louis, followed up the 5-4 setback to the Oilers with Monday's regulation loss at Phoenix.

Martin Hanzal scored twice to lead the Coyotes to a 3-1 win over the visiting Red Wings, who are also just one point ahead of Vancouver for the top seed in the West. Johan Franzen provided the lone offense for the Red Wings, while Joey MacDonald made his first start since March 30 and absorbed the loss despite giving up just two goals on 22 shots as he was outdueled by Phoenix netminder Mike Smith.

"We had some good scoring chances in the third there," said MacDonald. "We put some pressure on [Smith] and it was a 2-1 game. We just have to have a little more I think."

MacDonald and Ty Conklin will handle Detroit's goaltending duties while regular starter Jimmy Howard recovers from a broken right index finger. Howard suffered the injury in Vancouver last Thursday and is expected to miss 4-to-6 weeks. Howard was in the midst of his best season as an NHLer, going 32-11-1 with a .924 save percentage, a 2.03 goals-against average and five shutouts.

Detroit hopes to have defenseman Brad Stuart back tonight after he sat out Monday's game with flu-like symptoms. The veteran blueliner has four goals, seven assists and a plus-11 rating in 53 games this year.

Edmonton has not fared well in recent years against the Red Wings and when Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored the decisive goal in the shootout phase of Saturday's 5-4 win, it ended a seven-game skid in this series for the Oilers. The club has still lost four straight and six of its last seven in Motown.

Nugent-Hopkins won't be available to deliver any dramatic goals tonight, as the rookie sensation will be sidelined 7-to-10 days with a sprained shoulder. The 18-year-old recently returned to the lineup after missing a month with a left shoulder injury suffered at Chicago on January 2.

"It's the same shoulder, but a different injury," Nugent-Hopkins said on the team's Twitter account. "It's not close to my first shoulder injury. Hopefully, I can be back soon."

Nugent-Hopkins played in two games before his latest setback and despite the amount of time he's missed recently, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft still leads all rookies in assists (22) and points (35).

The injury to Nugent-Hopkins occurred in Edmonton's 6-3 loss in Toronto on Monday. Phil Kessel tallied twice and added one assist to lead the Maple Leafs to the easy win.

Jordan Eberle scored a pair of goals and Jeff Petry picked up a goal and one helper for the Oilers, who had a three-game winning streak halted and are 11 points out of a playoff spot in the West. Devan Dubnyk allowed five goals on 29 shots for the loss.

"We turned a lot of pucks over and gave them a ton of chances," lamented Eberle. "When you give them all that, they'll put pucks in the net eventually no matter how well your goaltender plays."

In addition to Nugent-Hopkins, Oilers defenseman Theo Peckham is also on the shelf. Peckham has missed the last three games after getting hit in the face with a puck during practice and is questionable for tonight.

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Eastern Conference Playoff Betting Trends

We all know by now that the “public” loves to put their money on the FAVORITES and the OVERS.  Just by taking a quick glance at Sportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends” it appears as is this tendency will continue as far as the Eastern Conference games are concerned.  For the inaugural games of the first round, 69% of the early money is on Toronto -4.5; 59% of bettors prefer Chicago -4.5; 84% are backing Detroit -9; and 56% think Cleveland -11.5 is the way to go.  As far as TOTALS are concerned, the only UNDER the “public” is backing is the Cleveland/ Washington game in which 83% are pounding the UNDER (190).  Remember, there is no better way to predict a possible line change than by monitoring MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”.   By determining who the “public” is backing, you can get the most ideal line for your bet.  For example, if you are siding with the public you better place your bet before the line moves in the wrong direction.  On the other side of the coin, if you prefer the team that the “public” is betting against; you might be able to get and extra ½ or even more by placing your bet a bit later.  Under the “Betting Trends” section, Sportsbook.com also provides plenty of statistical data and trends in order for the bettor to make the most informed pick.  Below are some extremely important trends for the first round opponents of the Eastern Conference match-ups, more can be found at MySportsbook.com

New Jersey Nets vs. Toronto Raptors

Toronto was the most reliable covering team this season with a 48-33-1 ATS record but covered the OVER only 41.5% of the time.
The last 20 times these teams have played, the TOTAL has gone UNDER 16 times.
Versus Eastern Conference teams, Toronto is 33-19 ATS including 17-9 at home.
 New Jersey has covered four games in a row while Toronto has failed to cover their last four games.
When playing a team with a winning record during the second half of the season, New Jersey was just 5-13 ATS this season.
After scoring 105 points or more, Toronto has covered the OVER only 28% of the time this season. 
 
Miami Heat @ Chicago Bulls

Miami has failed to cover their last 7 games whereas Chicago has covered 6 out of their last 8 games.
Miami has covered the UNDER in four of their last five games whereas Chicago has covered the UNDER in five out of their last six.
When playing on Saturdays, Miami covered 80% of their games this season.
Away from home, Chicago is just 16-25 ATS this season.
At home, Miami covered the UNDER about 66% of the time whereas Chicago covered the UNDER about 61% of the time.
The last 13 times these teams have played each other, Chicago has covered 9 times.
In Miami’s last 11 road games, the UNDER covered 9 times. 
 
Orlando Magic @ Detroit Pistons

Detroit has covered 5 out of their last 6 games.
Away from home, Detroit is 28-13 ATS but just 14-26-1 ATS at home.
At home, Orlando covered the UNDER 64% of the time while Detroit covered the UNDER in 63% of their away games.
The last five times these teams have played in Detroit, the OVER covered each time.
Versus Eastern Conference teams, Detroit is 8-17-1 ATS at home but 17-9 ATS away.
Detroit covered the spread 5 out of the last 6 times they played Orlando.
After a Division game, Orlando covered the UNDER 87% of the time this season. 
 
Washington Wizards @ Cleveland Cavaliers

In a home game where the TOTAL is between 190 and 194.5 points, Cleveland is 9-1 ATS this season.
Washington has covered the UNDER in their last 6 games and in 8 of their last 9 games.
The last 6 times these teams have played each other, the UNDER covered each time.
When playing on 3 or more days of rest, Washington is just 18-37 ATS since 1996.
Since 1996, Washington is 28-16 ATS versus Cleveland including 11-5 over the last 3 seasons.
In their last 7 road games, Washington is 6-1 ATS.
Versus Eastern Conference teams at home, Washington is just 6-18-2 ATS. 
 
For even more betting trends for not just the NBA but for all of the major sports, log on to Sportsbook.com and click on “Trends”.  With only two months left in the NBA betting season it is important to be as well informed as possible in order to maximize your profit.  Also for all of you poker players, check out MySportsbook.com’s “WSOP Low Bid Auction”. You could be on your way to Vegas to play against the world’s best poker players for under a buck.

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Pro Football Odds : NFC SOUTH BETTING ODDS

NFL Sports Betting

NFL betting action is back! At MySportsbook, all of the pro football odds are posted for the NFC North. Check out how we see the four teams in this cloudy division stacking up this year in the chase for the playoffs! Green Bay Packers (+125) - With QB Aaron Rodgers leading the offense and DC Dom Capers working his magic on defense, the Packers are a real force to be reckoned with.

Virtually nothing changed on this offense for Green Bay from last year to this year, save for the addition of rookie OT Brian Bulaga to the bunch. Expect more huge numbers from the Pack, and a relatively favorable schedule should get them over the hump and into the playoffs once again this season. My NFL Betting Predictions: 11-5, 1st place in NFC North Minnesota Vikings (+130) - There are still too many unknowns about the Vikes this year. There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not.

There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.

Chicago Bears (+350) - The Bears are probably a bit of an overhyped team once again this year.No, we don't think it is plausible for QB Jay Cutler to have as bad of a season as he did last year, and we do think the additions of RB Chester Taylor and DE Julius Peppers are going to help immensely, but there's still something in the water in the Windy City that we aren't so sure about. Maybe Chicago finds its way to .500... but then again, maybe it doesn't. If Favre comes back, Cutler might be the worst quarterback in this division this year.

Detroit Lions (+1500) - The Lions are probably once again going to be the whipping boys for the rest of the teams in the NFC North, but they aren't just going to roll over and die once again. There is some real talent amassing on this team offensively, as the combination of QB Matt Stafford, RB Jahvid Best, WR Calvin Johnson, and TE Brandon Pettigrew should put a bunch of points on the board if the offensive line can even remotely hold up. The questions really lie on defense, where it feels like DT Ndamukong Suh is going to be trying to stop opposing teams all by himself. This year should show some marked improvement in the Motor City.

The Patriots will make NFL betting fans a lot of money this season, get in early and enjoy the cash.

NFL Betting

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