Conference Finals: Surprises in the East, chalk in the West

Hockey Betting Lines

05/16/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - There is something pleasantly symmetrical about the way the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs are shaping up.

In the West, we have a matchup up between the No. 1 and 2 seeds, while in the East it's just the opposite, with the bottom two seeds from that conference battling for a right to play in the Stanley Cup Finals.

As a result, this year's conference finals really leaves the hockey viewing public with the best of both worlds. If you like underdogs, the seventh-seeded Philadelphia Flyers against the eighth-seeded Montreal Canadiens is your series. If a star-studded battle between powerhouse clubs is more your speed, then one is free to concentrate on the matchup between top-seeded San Jose and No. 2 Chicago.

Whatever your tastes, the contrast between the storylines should make for an interesting conference final round.

EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

(7) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (8) Montreal Canadiens

The Flyers and Canadiens matchup is the more intriguing matchup from a historical standpoint. This is the first time since the NHL adopted the current playoff format in 1994 that the bottom two seeds from the East or the West are meeting in the conference finals.

It's not surprising that both the Flyers and Habs had plenty of obstacles in their path en route to reaching this stage. After all, both clubs didn't even know they were in the playoffs until the completion of their final games of the regular season.

Montreal then had to beat top-seeded Washington, the Presidents' Trophy winners, in Round 1 and came back from a 3-1 series deficit to pull off the upset. The Canadiens followed with another seven-game series victory in the conference semifinals against Pittsburgh, last year's Stanley Cup champions and winner of the last two Eastern Conference titles.

Meanwhile, the Flyers had a relatively easy first round, beating second-seeded New Jersey in five games, but the second round was another story altogether. Philadelphia lost the first three games against Boston in Round 2, but then carved out a piece of history by becoming just the third NHL team to ever win a series after being down 3-0. And, mot only did the Flyers come back from down 3-0 in the series, but they also trailed 3-0 in the first period of Game 7 before charging back for a 4-3 victory in front of a stunned crowd at Boston's TD Garden.

All that makes this a difficult series to gauge, considering that for most of the 2009-10 season when thinking about the contenders for the Eastern Conference title it was unlikely that either the Flyers or Canadiens were to be included in that conversation. Ample time was spent this year discussing what was wrong with both of the Eastern Conference finalists, that at this point, it's become hard to see what the Flyers and Habs are doing right.

Both teams will be playing with nothing to lose in this series, having already exceeded the low expectations set for them. Expect to see a pair of teams leaving it all out on the ice in what should be a closely contested and entertaining series.

Montreal has the edge in goal with the red-hot Jaroslav Halak getting the nod over Philadelphia's Michael Leighton, who has reclaimed the starting job after Brian Boucher's injury in the Boston series. The Habs also boast a deeper defense, despite the presence of star rearguards Chris Pronger and Kimmo Timonen on the Flyers blueline.

On the other hand, Philly has a more-balanced offensive attack, while the Canadiens received nearly half their goals in this postseason from just two players, Michael Cammalleri and Brian Gionta.

Despite being the last seed in the East, the Habs have to be favored in this series after knocking off No. 1 Washington and the defending Stanley Cup champions in the first two rounds.

Canadiens in 7

WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

(1) San Jose Sharks vs. (2) Chicago Blackhawks

After collapsing under the pressure of lofty playoff expectations in recent years, the San Jose Sharks have finally turned in a postseason run that seems worthy of all their regular-season success.

Six years ago, the Sharks made it to the 2004 Western Conference finals before losing in six games to the Calgary Flames. Since then, San Jose has averaged nearly 109 points per season, only to bow out in the second round or earlier every postseason until the current playoff tournament.

After ousting Colorado in six games, San Jose made a huge statement by defeating the fifth-seeded Detroit Red Wings. Despite the Sharks' higher- seeding, the Red Wings, who came into the playoffs as the two-time defending conference champions, were understandably being picked by many to take that series.

Instead, the Sharks ousted the Wings in five games, with the lone hiccup coming in a 7-1 blowout loss in Detroit, but that was in Game 4, after San Jose had already grabbed a commanding 3-0 series lead.

The best sign for San Jose in Round 2 was the play of the team's top line of Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau and Dany Heatley, who were able to dominate the Red Wings in the conference semifinals. This was especially true of the centerman Thornton, who had just three assists against the Avalanche, but rebounded with three goals and five assists in the Detroit series.

While the Sharks have exorcised some playoff demons in reaching this stage, the ever-improving Blackhawks are back in the conference finals for the second straight year.

Last spring, Chicago made its first playoff appearance in seven years and made it to the West finals before losing in five games to Detroit. This year, the young Blackhawks are a year older and figure to have a better shot at reaching the Cup Finals for the first time since 1992.

Chicago enters the West finals after winning each of its series so far in six games, beating Nashville in Round 1 and ousting Vancouver in the conference semifinals.

One of the primary strengths of Chicago is the club's ability to get scoring from all over its roster. The Blackhawks have four players with double-digit point totals during the 12 games in this postseason and 14 different skaters have scored at least one goal for Joel Quenneville's club.

Chicago's top line may not be as heralded as San Jose's trio of Thornton, Heatley and Marleau, but Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Dustin Byfuglien still make up one of the league's most-feared units. In fact, Toews is leading all NHL players this postseason with 20 points.

While the Sharks boast considerable depth on offense and defense, the Blackhawks have an even sturdier roster that makes them extremely difficult to play against on both ends of the ice.

San Jose is more equipped at the back end to handle Chicago's forwards than Vancouver was, but the Blackhawks will still generate more than enough scoring chances.

The Sharks seem to have an edge in goal with Evgeni Nabokov, but as long as Blackhawks netminder Antti Niemi doesn't fall flat on his face, Chicago will be able to make up for that disparity.

Blackhawks in six

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Football Betting

NFL Football Betting Online

The San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago.

Thursday, August 21

NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37

NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007
KEY NFL BETTING TREND: SF has lost its last seven SU on pre-season road

In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points.

Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):

* SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU
* SF has covered three of its last 11 games
* SF has lost six of its last seven road games SU
* SF has covered one of its last seven road games
* CHI has covered five of its last eight games
* CHI has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* CHI has covered four of its last 13 home games
* SF has lost its last seven pre-season road games SU
* CHI has covered two of its last seven home pre-season games

Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp.

Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled.

Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too.

That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm.

Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds.

CHICAGO -3 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

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SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting

NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.


That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.

A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."

It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.

The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.

So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."

Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.

Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.

Seriously.

The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.

The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.

Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."

The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.

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