Caps lose Ovechkin but beat Blackhawks with furious four-goal rally

Hockey Betting Lines

03/14/2010 - Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Nicklas Backstrom scored twice, including the winning goal at 3:10 of overtime, as the Washington Capitals rallied to beat the Chicago Blackhawks, 4-3, at United Center.

Backstrom, Brooks Laich and Eric Fehr scored 2:16 apart in the third period to erase a 3-0 deficit. Jose Theodore made 20 saves for the Capitals, who have already secured their third consecutive Southeast Division title and lead the NHL with 101 points.

Washington mustered the comeback without captain Alex Ovechkin. He missed the majority of the contest after receiving a major and a game misconduct for shoving Chicago defenseman Brian Campbell, who crashed violently into the end boards from behind at the 12:16 mark of the first period. Campbell's right shoulder appeared to absorb most of the collision. He did not return to the game.

Jonathan Toews had a pair of goals for Chicago, which was coming off a tough 3-2 loss in Philadelphia on Saturday. The Blackhawks surrendered two goals in the final 2:04 against the Flyers, including Chris Pronger's game-winner with 2.1 seconds left.

Antti Niemi stopped 26 shots to take the loss.

Washington got on the board when Laich converted a Mike Green rebound for a power-play goal at 5:29 of the final period.

David Steckel won a race to negate an icing and quickly centered the puck to Fehr, who tied the game at 7:45, just 13 seconds after Backstrom cashed in a friendly carom off the lively end boards.

The Swede struck again in overtime, pushing the puck down the left side on an odd-man rush and slipping a shot through the pads of Niemi after dangling the puck around a defenseman.

Chicago took advantage of a breakdown in coverage to open the scoring at the seven-minute mark of the first period.

Following a faceoff win by Toews in the Washington zone, Patrick Kane, who saw a nine-game point streak end in the loss to Philadelphia, moved the puck over to defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson at the left point. Hjalmarsson then fed an uncovered Toews for a successful one-timer below the right circle.

Ovechkin's day ended prematurely several minutes later.

The chief scoring chance during the extended power play belonged to Alexander Semin. The Washington sniper had a breakaway in the final minute, but Niemi made a left pad save.

Unfortunately, for Semin, his momentum carried him into the rookie Finn, which resulted in a goaltender interference penalty and a brief two-man advantage for the Blackhawks.

Toews' 5-on-3 tally gave Chicago a two-goal lead with 3:06 to play in the opening frame. A redirection from the high slot by John Madden made it 3-0 at 6:54 of the second period.

Game Notes

Theodore improved to 14-0-2 in his last 16 decisions...Washington had lost three of four on the road...Capitals forward Boyd Gordon appeared in his 300th career game...Right winger Marian Hossa and defenseman Kim Johnsson were out of the lineup with upper-body injuries for Chicago...The Capitals reached the 100-point plateau in Game 69, setting a new franchise record first established in 1985-86 when the Caps reached the mark in Game 74 that season.

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2007 NFL Football Betting Preview


“You play to win the game!”

Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.

The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.

The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.

Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?

Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.

New York Giants betting lines

Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.

Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.

Dallas Cowboys betting lines

Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.

The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.

Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.

Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.

Oakland Raiders betting lines

This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.

First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”

The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason. 

Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football wagering needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.