Habs and Bruins square off as playoff hopefuls

Hockey Betting Lines

03/13/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Montreal Canadiens look to further their playoff chances and defeat Boston for the fifth time in six meetings this year tonight at the Bell Centre, while the Bruins hope to strengthen their hold on the Eastern Conference's final postseason spot.

It was the Bruins who won five of six versus the Canadiens last year en route to a 116-point season that gave them the top seed in the East. Montreal, meanwhile, snuck in as the eighth seed with 93 points but was then swept out of the first round by Boston.

The Habs, however, have won four of five this year in the series, including a pair of shootout victories. They recorded a 4-1 win in Boston when the teams last met on March 2 and have won nine of the last 12 played at Bell Centre in the series.

Montreal's Glen Metropolit had a goal and an assist in the most recent meeting to give him four goals and two assists in the five games this season. The 35- year-old has 15 goals on the year, his highest single-season total in eight NHL campaigns.

Montreal has won a season high-tying four straight games and Thursday's 5-4 shootout win over Edmonton moved the club into a tie with Philadelphia for the sixth spot in the East with 74 points. Boston is eighth and two points back.

Sergei Kostitsyn, Travis Moen, Tomas Plekanec and Brian Gionta all scored in regulation and Jaroslav Halak made 21 saves before stopping all five skaters he faced in the shootout. Montreal missed on its first four attempts before Andrei Kostitsyn's tally in the shootout's fifth round.

"We knew before the game that [the Oilers] had nothing to lose, and they wound up strong against us," Halak said. "It was crazy goals against us, but that happens. What counts is that we won the game."

The Canadiens have won six of their last eight at home and will try to win five straight overall for the first time since Oct. 11-20, 2008. They could opt to go with Carey Price in net since he is 3-0-0 with a 0.97 goals-against average versus the Bruins this year. Halak started the other two meetings, going 1-1-0 with a 2.40 GAA.

Montreal also figures to have Maxim Lapierre back tonight after he served the final contest of his four-game suspension on Thursday for a hit from behind on Scott Nichol of San Jose back on March 4.

The Bruins come into this game 7-2-1 in their last 10 contests and are three points up on the New York Rangers for the conference's last playoff spot. They also got their sputtering offense on track Thursday in a 5-1 triumph over the Flyers, marking just the third time since Jan. 1 that Boston scored more than three goals in a game.

"We try to create a lot of energy and bring a lot of emotions to our game," said Boston captain Zdeno Chara. "Making simple plays but important plays to establish a forecheck and put pressure on them."

Patrice Bergeron, moved to the first line due to an injury to Marc Savard, scored and added two assists. Savard is likely to miss the rest of the season due to a concussion suffered on a blind-side hit by Pittsburgh's Matt Cooke last Sunday.

Tuukka Rask made 31 saves and Marco Sturm, Blake Wheeler and David Krejci each posted a goal and an assist for the Bruins, who improved to 2-1-1 on a seven- game road trip while winning for the sixth time in their last eight games as the guest.

Rask made 36 saves in a 3-0 victory over Montreal at the Bell Centre on Feb. 7 and is 1-1-1 with a 1.76 GAA in four games (3 starts) versus the Habs this year. Tim Thomas is 0-1-1 with a 3.44 GAA in the other two starts.

Footballplayonline Hockey Betting News

<< Raptors resume road trip in Oakland vs. Warriors
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Raptors haven't been playing like a team headed towards the postseason and will resume a four-game road trip Saturday night against the Golden State Warriors in Oakland. Toronto is currently eighth in the Easte

<< Mavs aim to push win streak to 14 vs. Knicks
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The red-hot Dallas Mavericks will try to stretch their season-high winning streak to 14 games tonight when they resume a four-game homestand against the woeful New York Knicks. Dallas kept its longest winning streak of the

<< Spurs shoot for 16th straight win over Clippers
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - There are quite a few rivalries in the NBA but don't count the San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Clippers among them. A rivalry generally contains a little give-and-take or back-and-forth. When the Spurs and Clippers get t

<< Nuggets press on without Karl in Memphis
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Denver Nuggets continue their push to the postseason without head coach George Karl tonight against a desperate Memphis Grizzlies team. The Nuggets played without Karl, who is undergoing radiation and chemotherapy to

<< Surging Magic continue push towards postseason, visit Wizards
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The lowly Washington Wizards will continue playing out the string tonight when they host Eastern Conference power Orlando. The Wizards lost their sixth straight game last night in Auburn Hills when Will Bynum provided a sp

Devils visit Islanders with first place in sight >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New Jersey Devils will try to move into a first-place tie in the Atlantic Division this evening when they take on the New York Islanders at Nassau Coliseum. The Devils picked up their second victory in a row last night

Coyotes hit the road to take on Hurricanes >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Phoenix Coyotes will play their first road game in just over a month this evening when they kick off a four-game swing versus the Carolina Hurricanes at RBC Center. The Coyotes are among the league leaders with 25 home

Red Wings aim to get back in playoff picture against Sabres >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Finally healthy, the Red Wings' offense has looked like a dangerous unit that could give teams trouble in the playoffs. However, Detroit still needs to get there first. The Red Wings will try to leap into the eighth spot i

Blues hope to continue surge versus Blue Jackets >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A strong road trip has put the St. Louis Blues back in contention for a postseason berth. The surging club continues its critical swing with tonight's visit to the Columbus Blue Jackets, who'll be seeking a third consecutive

Home sweet home: Canucks return to GM Place to battle Senators >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The wait is finally over. After playing 14 straight times on the road over a span of six weeks, the Vancouver Canucks finally return to GM Place for tonight's interconference showdown with the slumping Ottawa Senators.

Online Sportsbook Football Betting

Colts give the ‘D’ its due

The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.

They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.

"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."

Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.

New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.

Not so sound on the ground

If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.

Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com

“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.

Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.

Brees says bring it on

Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.

Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.

Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.

"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."

SportsBooks ready for a shootout

Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.

“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”

New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.

The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.

“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts US credit cards