Oilers to honor Messier against Gretzky's Coyotes
Hockey Betting Lines
02/27/2007 -
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Edmonton Oilers will begin their four-game homestand in
style tonight, when they honor Mark Messier before taking on the Phoenix Coyotes at Rexall Place.
The Oilers will retire Messier's No. 11 jersey in a pre-game ceremony this
evening and fittingly, Coyotes head coach Wayne Gretzky will be there to
witness the special night. Messier will join Gretzky as one of six Edmonton
players (Al Hamilton, Jari Kurri, Grant Fuhr and Paul Coffey) to have their
numbers retired.
Messier won six Stanley Cup championships in his career, five with Edmonton
and one with the New York Rangers in 1994. The last title with the Oilers came
in 1990, when Gretzky had already been traded to Los Angeles.
The St. Albert, Alberta native is the second all-time leading scorer in NHL
history with 1,887 points (694 goals, 1,193 assists), trailing only Gretzky.
The Oilers are the second team to have retired Messier's number, after the
Rangers raised his sweater to the rafters last year.
Edmonton hopes that Messier's big night will give the team a much-needed boost
in the playoff race. The defending Western Conference champion Oilers
currently have 66 points and trail Calgary and Minnesota by nine for the final
postseason berths in the West.
Edmonton had won two straight before dropping a decision in Minnesota on
Sunday. Pierre-Marc Bouchard had a goal and an assist as the Wild defeated the
Oilers, 4-1, at Xcel Energy Center.
Fernando Pisani scored the lone goal for the Oilers, who finished their seven-
game road trip with a 2-3-2 mark. Dwayne Roloson made 23 saves in defeat for
Edmonton.
The Oilers are 18-11-2 as the home team this year and will also battle
Minnesota, Calgary and Tampa Bay on this stand.
Meanwhile, the Coyotes have dropped seven of their last eight games and were
handed a decisive loss Monday in Calgary. Wayne Primeau scored twice as the
Flames downed Phoenix, 5-2, at the Saddledome.
Yanic Perreault and Steven Reinprecht each had a goal for the Coyotes, who are
20 points behind Minnesota and Calgary for the conference's last playoff
spots.
Phoenix is playing the middle test of a three-game road trip tonight. The
Coyotes have lost five straight as the visiting team and are 12-20-1 away from
Arizona this year.
Edmonton is 2-1 against the Coyotes this season and has taken four of the last
five overall meetings with Phoenix.
<< Avs host Blue Jackets in battle between struggling clubs
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Avalanche will try to end a three-game slide
tonight, when they welcome the Columbus Blue Jackets to the Pepsi Center.
The Avalanche's latest setback came Sunday evening in Anaheim, as Scott
Niedermay
<< Red Wings aim for another victory in Chicago
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Red Wings will try to rebound from consecutive
close losses when they visit the Chicago Blackhawks tonight at the United
Center.
Detroit had won three straight before dropping a shootout decision to visit
<< Mavs shoot for win No. 13 at Minnesota
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The NBA-best Dallas Mavericks try to extend their winning
streak to 13 games when they face the Minnesota Timberwolves tonight at the
Target Center.
All-Star Dirk Nowitzki scored 27 points and grabbed eight rebounds t
<< Golden State opens trek at Milwaukee
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Golden State Warriors begin a five-game road trip when
they visit the Milwaukee Bucks tonight at the Bradley Center.
This is the second and final meeting of the campaign between the clubs. On
December 2nd, Mauric
<< Wizards close out trip in Jersey
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Southeast Division-leading Washington Wizards wrap up a
three-game road trip when they visit the New Jersey Nets tonight at
Continental Airlines Arena.
Washington is 0-2 on the swing. On Sunday, Kevin Garne
Sabres get new backup goaltender in Conklin >>
Buffalo, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Moments after dealing backup goaltender Martin
Biron, the Buffalo Sabres found his replacement by acquiring veteran netminder
Ty Conklin from the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for a fifth-round choice
in the
U.S. MNT adds another friendly; Board approves 2018 World Cup bid >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The U.S. Men's National Team has scheduled
another friendly prior to the CONCACAF Gold Cup this summer.
The team will return to the Bay Area on June 2 to take on China at Spartan
Stadium in San Jose,
This Week in Auto Racing - March 3 - March 4 >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It is an off week for NASCAR Nextel Cup
teams many of whom can use the time to fix their early season problems.
Meanwhile, the Busch Series travels to Mexico City for its annual road-course
race so
Avs D Skrastins out 7-10 days >>
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Colorado defenseman Karlis Skrastins will
miss seven to 10 days with a knee sprain suffered in the team's shootout loss
to the Kings on Saturday.
"An MRI test done Monday confirmed that it's a knee s
Sharks land Guerin in deadline deal >>
San Jose, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Jose Sharks made a deal to bolster
their offense, as they acquired veteran winger Bill Guerin from the St. Louis
Blues just hours before Tuesday's trade deadline.
In return for Guerin, the Blu
SPORTS BETTING - Tennis is an underrated and under-utilized bettors' sport.
Ten years ago, at just about this time, I called Alan Boston in Vegas and left him a voicemail that went something like this (abridged version): "Hey Alan, Chad Millman from ESPN The Magazine calling. I want to do a book about wise guys, you in?"
A couple weeks later I got a message back (abridged version): "I don't know, maybe," Boston said. "Call me and we'll talk about it. But not later today. I got $1,000 on Andre Agassi to win the French Open at 40-1, and he's in the finals."
Here's what happened next (abridged version): Agassi won his tourney. Boston won his $40,000. I wrote sportsbook.
In the ten years since, how much has been wagered on the big-time tennis events? Put it this way: The Nevada Gaming Commission doesn't even track the number year by year because it's so small.
"Tennis makes up about one-tenth of one percent of our take," says Lucky's bookmaking boss Jimmy Vaccaro. "The last big golf major we probably had $100,000 worth of bets. In tennis, we might have written two big tickets."
Tennis' lack of popularity amongst the American bettoratti is no surprise, really. For starters, the biggest sports betting holidays -- the Super Bowl, the NCAA tourney -- are must see TV. People, at least the degenerates I know, plan vacations around watching those events in Vegas sports books.
But Wimbledon? Doesn't exactly reel in the whales. "Seriously, it's the nuts as an event," says Boston. "But who even knows when it's on?"
Here's another reason that helps explain why golf gets traction, something I call "The Bubbe Theory." My Bubbe is pushing 95 and has cataracts so bad that, to her, even the most crystalline Chicago day is mostly cloudy. But she still listens to the Cubs games, and she still calls me in a fit if she disagrees with something Rick Telander writes in the Chicago Sun Times. She's a sports fan. If she doesn't know you, you're just filling a niche. And niche players, even historically good ones like Roger and Raf, don't drive betting volume. Only the highest profile names attract square money, which inflates wagering totals like a shot of saline to the lips. Bubbe, and the public, loved Agassi, tennis' last cross-the-rubicon, mainstream draw. She also has a crush on Tiger. She's given me standing orders to put a sawbuck on the big cat whenever I walk through a sports book (or mistakenly tap into one via my Internet machine.) That explains why the Masters is getting $100K in action at some books while the four tennis majors might not get that combined this year.
This isn't a case of tennis being a difficult sport to bet. In fact, in Europe, it's probably the second most popular sport for gambling after soccer. Granted, as the WSJ football betting last week and The Mag's Shaun Assael examined in even greater depth last year, that might be because gamblers across the pond see it as an easy game to fix. But it could also be because, over there it holds the kind of sway the big two do over here.
Street corners in Spain are peppered with public courts and kids doing their best Raffy impressions. In some war torn parts of Eastern Europe poverty-stricken kids view tennis as an escape route, like football or basketball here. A couple years ago The Mag's Lindsay Berra wrote a great piece about Belgrade's Jelena Jankovic, Ana Ivanovic and Novak Djokovic. They learned the game as kids while bombs were raining down on their homeland. They practiced in drained swimming pools. Not exactly Nick Bolletierri conditions.
In the United States, casual fans think tennis is played four times a year. But on the tightly packed European continent, national interest in homegrown talent runs deep every weekend. Of the ATP's current top 20 players, only two, tennis betting and James Blake, are American. Fourteen are from Europe, representing six different countries.
No wonder fans from Lisbon to Bhudapest get jacked up for the net game, whether it's Wimbledon or a low-level tourney like the Estoril Open in Portugal (congrats to Spain's Albert Montanes for winning that one, btw). Chances are good that someone representing their flag will not only be playing, but have a shot at winning.
And that's all any bettor can ask for.
To visit this sports book go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.
your source for online betting
As the web was just getting it's footing in the business world in 1997, My Sportsbook was breaking new
ground in the online sportsbook arena. Offering over 20 Las Vegas Games and backed by Sporting Bet UK,
the largest publicly traded Internet gaming company in the world today, My Sportsbook offers betting lines
on every major sporting event in the world, including Online MLB Baseball Betting. With a wide array of bonuses including a 10% Free Money bonus
to all new customers, My Sportsbook is a top online sportsbook, poker room, casino and racebook -- join today!For those that feel that a site like My Sportsbook is only a sportsbook we would like to introduce you to
a place where a single login allows you to not only bet on every major sporting event in the world but also
to bet on horses at over 90 different tracks or play at over 20 Las Vegas style table games in their top online
casino. My Sportsbook has won many awards for it's site design and ease of use as well as it's 24/7
customer support. Get all your gaming done in one spot - try My Sportsbook Today!
|
Bonds nearly hits HR 751, SF wins
4 and drove in
a pair of runs, and Barry Bonds nearly hit homer No. 751 as San Francisco beat
1, in the middle contest of three at AT&T Park.
6) allowed five hits and one run over 6 2/3 innings, fanning
eight and walking three.
game slide.
Bonds, who came within five homers of Hank Aaron's record on Friday, went
1 with three walks, an RBI double and scored twice. The double ...
read more
|
online sportsbook and casino
Since 2000, Best eCasino has maintained a 98.5% payout rate on all their more than 20 Las Vegas style games.
Each of their award winning games including, blackjack (and blackjack super 7s), Baccarat, Roulette and Craps are
available as either a downloadable program or as java programs that can be played directly within your browser. Don't
know how to play a certain game? Read the details and strategy here and start with their Play for Fun section which
allows you to practice a game before taking on the casino. Let's see any Vegas casino do that... Best eCasino doesn't stop there, they now offer horse wagering and sportsbook lines to round off all the online
gaming industry have to offer. They are consistently at the forefront of the industry with new innovations consistently
starting with their site. These guys are the entrepreneur's of the online gaming world and they set the standard for others
to follow. So bet with a leader that's backed by the largest online gaming company in the world with 24 hour customer support,
Best eCasino.
|
