Ice picks: Today's best NHL bets Thrashers vs. Montreal Canadiens (-118, 6) Montreal plays in just its second home game of the season Tuesday night and it’s not clear if that’s a good thing. Nobody’s home fans are quicker to boo their own side when things aren’t going well and right now, things aren’t going well. The Habs have lost five straight games after scraping out two overtime wins to open the season. Scoring goals has been the biggest problem with just 13 in regulation time through seven games. The power play is a pathetic 2-for-22 and many blame that on the injury to defenseman Andrei Markov in the season opener. In hopes someone else can kick start things, Montreal is recalling offensive-minded blueliner Marc-Andre Bergeron from Hamilton for Tuesday’s game, but we wouldn’t advise to expect any miracles. Pick: Under 6 Columbus Blue Jackets vs. Calgary Flames (-145, 5.5) If the Flames are still upset about losing to Columbus last week, they’ll have a chance to take it out on the Blue Jackets Tuesday. Columbus beat the Flames in a tight-checking 2-1 game last Tuesday that had an extra bit of sting for the Flames because the loss came just one day after their now infamous 6-5 embarrassment to the Blackhawks. (The Flames had a 5-0 first period lead in that game). Even though the Flames have looked a little better in their two games since the loss to Chicago, they apparently haven’t learned their lesson. They held a 5-0 lead after two periods over the Vancouver Canucks over the weekend but were outscored 3-0 in the third to make the game closer than it should have been. The good news is that Columbus plays such a defensive style from end to end that it’s unlikely Calgary will have a chance to build a big lead and then give its fans a heart attack. Pick: Under 5
Mighty Quinn Mighty split with the Yankees and Sharks Monday. Today it's the Yankees and Thrashers. The surplus is 665 sirignanos.
Hondo Hondo has some advice for Joe Girardi: Don't go changing, at least not at your current frenetic pace. The hyperactive skipper cost Mr. Aitch a victory with the Yanks last night, which caused the deficit to grow to 1,805 combses. Today, His Aitchness will stick with the Bombers to give the Halos hell, in spite of Girardi -- 10 units on Sabathia.
DUNKEL NHL Atlanta at Montreal The Thrashers look to take advantage of a Montreal team that is 0-6 in its last 6 home games. Atlanta is the pick (+110) according to Dunkel, which has the Thrashers favored by 1 1/2. Dunkel Pick: Atlanta (+110). Here are all of today's picks. TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20 Time Posted: 8:00 a.m. EST Game 51-52: St. Louis at Pittsburgh Dunkel Ratings: St. Louis 13.607; Pittsburgh 12.766 Dunkel Line & Total: St. Louis by 1; 7 Vegas Line & Total: Pittsburgh (-200); 6 Dunkel Pick: St. Louis (+180); Over Game 53-54: Atlanta at Montreal Dunkel Ratings: Atlanta 12.812; Montreal 11.361 Dunkel Line & Total: Atlanta by 1 1/2; 7 Vegas Line & Total: Montreal (-120); 6 Dunkel Pick: Atlanta (+110); Over Game 55-56: Columbus at Calgary Dunkel Ratings: Columbus 11.766; Calgary 12.044 Dunkel Line & Total: Calgary by 1/2; 5 Vegas Line & Total: Calgary (-145); 5 1/2 Dunkel Pick: Calgary (-145); Under
DCI Season: 39-28 (.582) PITTSBURGH 3, St. Louis 2 Atlanta vs. MONTREAL: TOO CLOSE TO CALL Columbus vs. CALGARY: TOO CLOSE TO CALL
THE SPORTS ADVISORS N.Y. Yankees (5-1) at L.A. Angels (4-2) After a thrilling 11-inning victory Monday, the Angels look to even this best-of-7 American League Championship series when they give the ball to newcomer Scott Kazmir (10-9, 4.99) in Game 4 at Angel Stadium, while the Yankees counter with ace CC Sabathia (21-8, 3.24 ERA). Los Angeles rallied from 3-0, sixth-inning deficit in Game 3 and prevailed 5-4 in 11 innings thanks to Jeff Mathis’ two-out double that scored Howie Kendrick from first base, handing New York its first defeat of this postseason. These teams have played 24 innings the last two games, following New York’s 4-3 victory in 13 innings Saturday. New York – which is back in the ALCS after getting bounced in the first round in 2005, 2006 and 2007 – is still on impressive runs of 46-18 overall, 4-1 on Tuesday, 11-4 in the fourth game of a series and 8-3 against left-handed starters. However, the last time the Yankees were in the ALCS, they blew a 3-0 series lead to the Red Sox in 2004, and they’re now 1-7 in their last eight road playoff contests. Going back to the end of the regular season, the Halos have won 11 of 14 overall, seven of eight at home, 37 of 52 against southpaw starters and 14 of 19 at home against lefties. However, L.A. has dropped 12 of its last 17 playoff games, including six of nine at home, and it snapped a six-game ALCS losing skid with Monday’s win. Although, the Angels bounced longtime playoff nemesis Boston in three games in the first round, this is just their sixth-ever appearance in the ALCS, having lost four of the first five. The Yankees had won four straight in this rivalry prior to blowing Monday’s game, and they’re now 7-6 in 13 meetings this year. However, New York has lost five of six this year in Anaheim and is just 8-21 in their last 29 games at Angel Stadium. In fact, the host is 17-4 in the last 21 clashes between these clubs going back to the beginning of last August (10-3 this season). These teams have met just twice previously in postseason play, both in the best-of-5 divisional round, and the Angels won both times in 2002 and 2005. Sabathia struggled in his first two postseason appearances in 2007-08, going 2-3 with a 7.92 ERA in five starts with Cleveland and Milwaukee. However, he’s been brilliant in two playoff outings in pinstripes, going 2-0 with a 1.23 ERA in beating the Twins 7-2 and the Angels 4-1, both in Game 1 at home. He gave up one earned run in each game over a total 14 2/3 innings, walking just one while striking out 15. Eliminate an awful regular-season finale against Tampa Bay (nine runs, five earned, in 2 2/3 innings of a 13-4 loss), and Sabathia has delivered 12 consecutive quality starts. Even with the bad outing at Tampa Bay, New York is 13-1 in Sabathia’s last 14 trips the hill, all multiple-run victories. Additionally, with the hefty lefty starting, the Yankees are on runs of 6-1 on the road, 5-0 against the A.L. West, 9-1 against winning clubs and 4-1 on Tuesday. Sabathia was 12-6 with a 3.53 ERA in 19 regular-season road starts. Also, with the dominating eight-inning effort in Game 1 on Friday, he’s now 6-7 with a 4.42 ERA in 15 career outings versus the Angels, including 1-2 with a 4.22 ERA in three games this year and 2-3 with a 4.63 ERA in seven starts at Angel Stadium. Kazmir got roughed up a bit in Game 3 of the ALDS in Boston on Oct. 11, allowing five runs on five hits in six innings, but the Angels rallied for a series-clinching 7-6 victory to improve to 5-1 in Kazmir’s last six starts (2-1 at home). Prior to the outing against the Red Sox, Kazmir had gone 2-2 with 1.73 ERA in six regular-season starts after being traded from Tampa Bay to Los Angeles, with opponents batting just .212 against the left-hander in those six games. Kazmir is 0-1 with a 2.84 ERA in three home starts with Los Angeles, but the one loss came against the Yankees on Sept. 23. In that game, Kazmir suffered a 3-2 setback, allowing all three runs on six hits in six innings. Despite that result, the Houston native, who faced New York often with the Rays, is 6-5 with a sparkling 2.67 ERA in 15 career appearances (14 starts) against the Yanks. Finally, including five starts with the Rays during their World Series run last year, Kazmir is now 1-1 with a 4.83 ERA in postseason play. New York is on “under” runs of 15-6-1 overall, 8-3 in playoff road games, 5-1-1 in playoff games overall, 5-2 in ALCS action, 6-2-1 against lefty starters and 16-5-1 after a victory. However, the over is 11-1 in Sabathia’s last 12 outings on the highway and 7-1-1 in his last nine versus the A.L. West. Similarly, the Angels are on “under” runs of 34-17-1 overall, 4-2 at home, 16-6 against southpaws (7-1 last eight at home against lefties), 9-4 in ALCS games, 5-2 against A.L. East teams, 7-1-1 on Tuesday and 6-1 with Kazmir on the bump In this rivalry, the under is 5-2 in the last seven meetings overall (2-1 in this ALCS), but the over is 15-5 in the last 20 head-to-head clashes in Southern California, with Game 3 barely hurdling the 8½-run posted price. ATS ADVANTAGE: N.Y. YANKEES
DUNKEL MLB NY Yankees at LA Angels The Yankees look to bounce back from yesterday's 5-4 loss and build on their 7-0 record in C.C. Sabathia's last 7 starts after allowing 5 runs or more in their previous game. New York is the pick (-135) according to Dunkel, which has the Yankees favored by 1/2 a run. Dunkel Pick: NY Yankees (-135). Here are all of today's picks. TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20 Time Posted: 7:30 a.m. EST Game 901-902: NY Yankees at LA Angels Dunkel Ratings: NY Yankees (Sabathia) 16.888; LA Angels 16.553 Dunkel Line: NY Yankees by 1/2; 8 Vegas Line: NY Yankees (-135); 8 1/2 Dunkel Pick: NY Yankees (-135); Under
Jim Feist's 5-Star Game 4 ALCS Romp - Tuesday! MLB (901) NEW YORK YANKEES VS (902) LOS ANGELES ANGELS Take: Game 4: 5-Star (901) NEW YORK YANKEES Reason: There's no use standing in the way of this NY juggernaut, especially with their ace on the hill. C.C. Sabathia pitched eight terrific innings in Game 1 of the ALCS against the Angels on Friday night, allowing one run on four hits. He struck out seven and walked just one. The Angels' big bats haven't been producing. Tough to back Scott Kazmir (4.89 ERA), who has a 5.95 ERA at home this season. Play the NY Yankees.
NHL ADDITIONAL Tuesday, October 20 Trend Report 7:00 PM ST. LOUIS vs. PITTSBURGH St. Louis is 2-7-1 SU in its last 10 games when playing on the road against Pittsburgh The total has gone UNDER in 4 of St. Louis's last 6 games when playing on the road against Pittsburgh Pittsburgh is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Pittsburgh's last 11 games 7:30 PM ATLANTA vs. MONTREAL Atlanta is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Montreal Atlanta is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing Montreal Montreal is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Montreal's last 6 games 9:30 PM COLUMBUS vs. CALGARY Columbus is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Calgary The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Columbus's last 10 games when playing on the road against Calgary Calgary is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games at home The total has gone OVER in 6 of Calgary's last 7 games at home
NHL LONG SHEET Tuesday, October 20 ST LOUIS (3-2-0-1, 7 pts.) at PITTSBURGH (7-1-0-0, 14 pts.) - 10/20/2009, 7:00 PM Top Trends for this game. PITTSBURGH is 128-87 ATS (+248.6 Units) in all games over the last 3 seasons. PITTSBURGH is 23-9 ATS (+11.2 Units) on Tuesday nights over the last 3 seasons. PITTSBURGH is 17-6 ATS (+9.6 Units) when playing with 2 days rest over the last 2 seasons. PITTSBURGH is 97-52 ATS (+26.6 Units) in home games after a win by 2 goals or more since 1996. Head-to-Head Series History PITTSBURGH is 1-0 (+1.0 Units) against the spread versus ST LOUIS over the last 3 seasons PITTSBURGH is 1-0-0 straight up against ST LOUIS over the last 3 seasons 1 of 1 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+1.0 Units) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ATLANTA (4-1-0-0, 8 pts.) at MONTREAL (2-5-0-0, 4 pts.) - 10/20/2009, 7:30 PM Top Trends for this game. ATLANTA is 109-120 ATS (+270.3 Units) in a road game where where the total is 6 or more since 1996. MONTREAL is 43-50 ATS (+98.5 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons. MONTREAL is 17-21 ATS (-18.1 Units) in home games first half of the season over the last 3 seasons. Head-to-Head Series History ATLANTA is 4-4 (+1.5 Units) against the spread versus MONTREAL over the last 3 seasons MONTREAL is 4-4-0 straight up against ATLANTA over the last 3 seasons 4 of 6 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+1.7 Units) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- COLUMBUS (5-1-0-0, 10 pts.) at CALGARY (5-2-0-1, 11 pts.) - 10/20/2009, 9:30 PM Top Trends for this game. COLUMBUS is 14-31 ATS (+49.0 Units) after scoring 4 goals or more in their previous game over the last 3 seasons. COLUMBUS is 26-21 ATS (+54.7 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons. COLUMBUS is 15-10 ATS (+28.3 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the first half of the season over the last 2 seasons. Head-to-Head Series History COLUMBUS is 5-4 (+1.3 Units) against the spread versus CALGARY over the last 3 seasons COLUMBUS is 5-4-0 straight up against CALGARY over the last 3 seasons 7 of 9 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+4.9 Units)
MLB LONG SHEET Tuesday, October 20 NY YANKEES (108 - 60) at LA ANGELS (101 - 67) - 7:55 PM C.C. SABATHIA (L) vs. SCOTT KAZMIR (L) Top Trends for this game. LA ANGELS are 101-67 (+24.6 Units) against the money line in all games this season. LA ANGELS are 26-14 (+10.6 Units) against the money line when the total is 8 to 8.5 this season. LA ANGELS are 12-2 (+11.6 Units) against the money line as a home underdog of +100 to +125 this season. LA ANGELS are 94-59 (+24.6 Units) against the money line in games played on a grass field this season. LA ANGELS are 39-18 (+17.2 Units) against the money line against left-handed starters this season. LA ANGELS are 61-39 (+15.7 Units) against the money line after a win this season. LA ANGELS are 51-40 (+9.6 Units) against the money line when playing against a team with a winning record this season. LA ANGELS are 51-35 (+12.6 Units) against the money line when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons. KAZMIR is 39-21 (+13.8 Units) against the money line in all games over the last 2 seasons. (Team's Record) KAZMIR is 25-7 (+14.5 Units) against the money line in home games over the last 2 seasons. (Team's Record) KAZMIR is 29-12 (+14.6 Units) against the money line in night games over the last 2 seasons. (Team's Record) KAZMIR is 45-23 (+25.0 Units) against the money line after a win since 1997. (Team's Record) KAZMIR is 16-3 (+13.1 Units) against the money line in home games when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons. (Team's Record) NY YANKEES are 108-60 (+15.9 Units) against the money line in all games this season. NY YANKEES are 72-36 (+21.8 Units) against the money line in night games this season. NY YANKEES are 59-33 (+13.6 Units) against the money line when playing against a team with a winning record this season. NY YANKEES are 36-17 (+12.9 Units) against the money line when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season. Head-to-Head Series History LA ANGELS is 6-7 (+0.3 Units) against NY YANKEES this season 7 of 12 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL this season . (Over=+1.5 Units) C.C. SABATHIA vs. LA ANGELS since 1997 SABATHIA is 6-7 when starting against LA ANGELS with an ERA of 4.42 and a WHIP of 1.390. His team's record is 6-9 (-6.7 units) in these starts. The UNDER is 7-8. (-2.2 units) SCOTT KAZMIR vs. NY YANKEES since 1997 KAZMIR is 6-5 when starting against NY YANKEES with an ERA of 2.66 and a WHIP of 1.252. His team's record is 7-7 (+1.8 units) in these starts. The OVER is 6-8. (-2.4 units)
MLB SHORT SHEET Tuesday, October 20th American League Championship Series Best of Seven Game Four Yankees Lead, 2-1 TV: FOX NY Yankees at LA Angels, 7:55 ET CC Sabathia (L) vs. Scott Kazmir (L) Sabathia: 9-1 Over Away 2nd half of season NYY 4-12 at LA Angels Kazmir: 25-7 TSR in home games LAA 14-1 if they had 6+ extra base hits last game
igz1 sports Tuesday Update Monday Recap: 1-0 MLB / 0-1 NFL / 0-2 NHL 10-2 MLB Playoffs ! Free Play from NHL Card 3* Montreal -120
Chris Jordan Tuesday's winner ... 400? YANKEES (LIST Sabathia over Kazmir) - Analysis due back by 4 p.m. eastern
Benjamin lee Eckstein Ben lee won on Monday with the Phillies -$130/Dodgers. For Tuesday "Mr Chalk" likes the Yankees -$130/Angles. "Mr Chalk" is 6-3 +$210 for the MLB postseason.
Randall the Handle 10/20 NHL St. Louis +1.76 over PITTSBURGH (REG) Pinnacle This one is rather simple and it goes something like this; when a take-back like this is offered on the Blue Notes you can almost always pencil me in and I make no exception here. Not that the Blues are the best team on ice but nobody tries harder and nobody wants to win more. On top of that, they have plenty of talent and they’re just getting better. The Blues are coming off a strong effort in Anaheim in which they won 5-0 and they finally appear to be over their jet lag after its European trip to start the year. The Blues are a very appealing pooch. The Pens are hot and there’s really nothing more to say about them. They seemed determined to prove last year was no fluke but they really haven’t had a tough time of it yet. Four of the Penguins seven wins have come against the Islanders, Leafs, Bolts and Canes. The other three have come against the Coyotes, Flyers and Sens and while those are good wins they Pens were out-shot in all three of those games. Anyway, this really isn’t about playing against the Pens, it’s more about taking back a big price on the Blues, as this team always has a chance to win. Play: St. Louis +1.76 (Risking 2 units). Atlanta +1.10 over MONTREAL (REG) Pinnacle The Thrashers defense leaves plenty to be desired but it seems to be working for them right now and it’s not like they’re playing the Sharkies. Furthermore, Atlanta has won four of five and that includes its most recent win, a 4-2 victory over the previously red-hot Sabres. They also have wins in St. Louis and in New Jersey. The Thrashers have scored four goals or more in all but one of their games while the Habs are tooth and nails to score even a single goal. Montreal offers up nothing as the chalk and while they were all over the Sens in the first period last game, frustration set in again and they couldn’t keep it going, eventually losing 3-1. It’s one thing to be talented and in a funk but the Habs are not and now pressure is mounting big time after its fifth consecutive loss. Only once this year have they scored more than twice in a game and that is because of a defense that can’t move the puck crisply out of its own end. There’s not a single team in the NHL that is unworthy of taking back a price against the Habs and certainly the Thrashers are among that group. The Habs are a bigger hoax than the Balloon Boy and not even Chris Angel could make this illusion work. Play: Atlanta +1.10 (Risking 2 units).