Lowly Blue Jackets visit Ducks

Hockey Betting Lines

02/03/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Columbus Blue Jackets' disappointing season may have hit a new low point on Wednesday. They hope the return of sniper Jeff Carter can help turn things around this evening in the finale of a six-game road trip against the Anaheim Ducks.

Having already lost the four tests of their swing, the Blue Jackets appeared headed for overtime on Wednesday versus the Kings, until a clock delay helped Los Angeles score the game-winner in the final second of regulation. While bombarding Columbus netminder Curtis Sanford, the Kings' Drew Doughty pounced on a rebound and sent it past Sanford for a power-play goal with four-tenths of a second left.

However, replays showed that the clock had stalled at 1.8 seconds for what appears to be at least a second. The play was reviewed and was allowed to stand, but after the game there were questions from the Blue Jackets about the clock delay.

In the end, it was just another setback for the Blue Jackets, who sit last in the NHL with 32 points. They have lost seven in a row on the road as well as six straight and 17 of their past 21 overall.

"This is hugely disappointing, we thought we were going into overtime with at least one point," Sanford said after making 30 saves. "They controlled the puck at the end, got it on the guy's stick and he made the shot. This one is tough, it's happening too many times this season."

Derek Dorsett and Colton Gillies scored for Columbus, which will have Carter back in the lineup for the first time since he suffered a separated right shoulder versus the Ducks on Jan. 8. Carter missed the past 10 games and has 10 goals and 17 points in 30 contests this year, having also missed time with a fractured right foot and lower-body ailment.

The Ducks rolled to a 7-4 win at home in that meeting, getting a hat trick from Corey Perry as well as two goals from Teemu Selanne. It was Anaheim's third victory in its past four versus Columbus and second in a row at home in this series.

The Ducks have lost two of three since a five-game win streak as they try to get back into the playoff race. They sit tied for 13th in the Western Conference with 45 points, 12 back of a playoff spot.

Anaheim opened a four-game homestand on Wednesday, losing a 6-2 decision to Dallas. The defeat halted the Ducks' six-game winning streak as the host.

Luca Sbisa and Matt Beleskey each scored for the Ducks, while Jonas Hiller was tagged for all six goals on 26 shots.

"We knew how big this game was and we knew how big this game was going to be," said Sbisa. "Dallas is one of the teams we have to catch. They were ready tonight and we weren't."

Jason Blake is questionable with a foot injury that has held him out of the past two games for the Ducks.

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Betting the NFL preseason

Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."

When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules. 

The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.

The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.

“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”

The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.

“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”

The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.

“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”

Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.

“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."

So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?

“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.

Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.

Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.

Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.

“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.

Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.

The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.

“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.

Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.

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