03/21/2008 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Buffalo Sabres will aim for their fourth straight victory, as they continue their push for the playoffs with tonight's home test against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Buffalo comes into this evening's tilt trailing Philadelphia by just one point for the eighth and final postseason berth in the Eastern Conference. The Flyers are also playing tonight, as is Washington, which is just one point behind the Sabres.
The Maple Leafs are still in the playoff mix as they trail Philadelphia by six points for the East's final postseason seed.
Buffalo is 4-2 against the Leafs this season and has taken seven of 10 and nine of the last 13 matchups in the series. The Sabres have also come out on top in three of four, four of six and eight of their previous 11 home tests against Toronto.
The Sabres are playing the middle segment of a three-game homestand tonight and are 19-13-5 at HSBC Arena this season. Buffalo has won its last two on home ice after dropping its previous four tests in western New York.
Buffalo has outscored its opponents 20-7 during the current win streak and is coming off Wednesday's 7-4 victory over visiting Tampa Bay. Thomas Vanek had a natural hat trick as part of a six-goal third period for Buffalo.
Vanek, who leads Buffalo with 31 goals on the year, had just one tally in eight games before notching his third hat trick of the season.
Jason Pominville and Jochen Hecht each had a pair of goals for the Sabres. Ryan Miller allowed four goals on 15 shots through the first two periods, but stopped all four shots he faced in the third.
Toronto has won three of its last four games and is coming off Tuesday's road win against the New York Islanders. Pavel Kubina's go-ahead tally highlighted a three-goal third period that boosted the Leafs to a 3-1 triumph at Nassau Coliseum.
Alexei Ponikarovsky and Kyle Wellwood each added a goal and an assist for the Leafs. Alexander Steen contributed a pair of helpers, while Vesa Toskala made 27 saves to earn the win.
The Leafs have played their last two games without captain and leading scorer Mats Sundin, who is sidelined with a groin injury. Sundin leads Toronto with 32 goals and 45 assists this year, but is expected to miss his third straight game tonight.
Toronto is 16-16-5 and is playing the second of three straight road games tonight. The Maple Leafs have won four straight and six of their last seven on the road.
<< Caps hope to rebound in Atlanta
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Washington's current road trip features several favorable
matchups. However, the Capitals' offense failed itself last time out and the
club will try to rebound tonight in a test with the Atlanta Thrashers at
Philips Arena in
<< Sixers try to stay hot in Orlando
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The surging Philadelphia 76ers will take their momentum
to the road tonight, when they pay a visit to the Orlando Magic at Amway
Arena.
The Sixers have been the hottest team in the Eastern Conference as of late,
having
<< Pacers need a win against Minnesota
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Indiana Pacers still have an outside chance at a
playoff spot, and will wrap up a three-game homestand tonight versus the
Minnesota Timberwolves at Conseco Fieldhouse.
Indiana sits two games off the eighth and final
<< Cleveland hosts the Raptors
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Cavaliers will shoot for their ninth
straight win at home this evening, when they host the Toronto Raptors at
Quicken Loans Arena.
Cleveland posted its season-high eighth straight win as the host with
Wedne
Gaels battle 'Canes in first round of NCAA Tournament >>
Little Rock, AR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The first round of the 70th annual NCAA
Tournament continues this afternoon in Little Rock, as the Miami-Florida
Hurricanes tangle with the Gaels of Saint Mary's-CA at Alltel Arena.
Miami opened the 2007-08
Govs and 'Horns mix it up in NCAA Tournament first-round action >>
Little Rock, AR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Making their 10th straight NCAA Tournament
appearance, the Texas Longhorns go after the Austin Peay Governors in first-
round action in the South Region at Alltel Arena in Little Rock this
afternoon.
An im
Mavericks face long odds in first-round bout with top-seeded Tigers >>
Little Rock, AR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Mavericks of Texas-Arlington make their
first-ever trip to the NCAA Tournament, but the team is rewarded with a first-
round bout against the Memphis Tigers at Alltel Arena in Little Rock.
Winners of th
American huge underdog in first-round game against Tennessee >>
Birmingham, AL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - In what appears to be a lopsided matchup in
the East Region of the 2008 NCAA Tournament, the second-seeded Tennessee
Volunteers will battle the American University Eagles in the first round.
Awaiting the winner
The NFL preseason is approaching. Time for players, coaches and teams to turn over a new leaf. General managers have hired some new coaches, while coaches have added some offensive and defensive assistants to try and improve things. Here’s a look at some changes to look for in the preseason.
New York Jets: The Jets were one of the surprise teams in the NFL last season, making the playoffs under hard-driving first-year coach Eric Mangini. Mangini rebuilt the offensive line with rookies D'Brickashaw Ferguson (the No. 4 pick in the 2007 Draft) and Ohio State center Nick Mangold (the 29th pick in the first round). This season he upgraded the defense with rookie linebacker David Harris (Michigan) while the secondary picked up a much needed top-notch corner in Pitt CB Darrelle Revis (No. 14 overall).
The Jets have added balance to the offense for QB Chad Pennington with RB Thomas Jones, essentially stolen from the Bears. He will upgrade a New York ground game that was 20th in rushing with a weak 3.5 yards per carry. They have their first true feature back since Curtis Martin. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer prefers ball control, like his father Marty. In preseason, behind Pennington you’ll see second-year QB Kellen Clemens and mobile newcomer QB Marques Tuiasosopo.
Jacksonville Jaguars: The heat is on Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville as the Jaguars flopped last season despite a ton of talent. Keep in mind that under Del Rio the Jaguars have been outstanding in preseason with a 12-4 SU, 11-5 ATS August mark. Their defense is loaded, it’s the offense that has been stuck in first gear the last few years.
Enter a new offensive coordinator in Dirk Koetter, the former Boise State and Arizona State pass-happy coach. He will try and upgrade a passing game that ranked 24th last season. Del Rio has criticized wide receivers Reggie Williams and Matt Jones this summer, both of whom have battled injuries. It will be interesting to watch the “new” Jaguars passing game in preseason.
Arizona Cardinals: Word out of Arizona is that the players like new coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was the Steelers offensive coordinator last year. We think of Arizona as all-passing because their running game has been awful of late because of a poor offensive line. However, keep an eye on the running game in preseason as they’ve made a lot of changes.
The new coach brings in Russ Grimm to coach the offensive line (Grimm did a marvelous job building the Steelers line). They took Penn State OT Levi Jones in the first round and signed two offensive linemen, Mike Gandy and Al Johnson, to provide depth. Reggie Wells was moved from right tackle to left guard and they want more speed out of the offensive line for pulling and traps, a Pittsburgh staple under Bill Cowher.
Atlanta Falcons: While all the attention has been focused on QB Mike Vick’s off-field problems, new coach Bobby Petrino is revamping the Falcons from an all-running team to a more balanced one. Petrino likes the experience of backup QB Joey Harrington and he has veteran backup Chris Redman, who used to play for Petrino at Louisville and knows his offenses better than anyone. Petrino wants Vick to be more of a pocket passer.
The addition of FB Ovie Mughelli is a sign Petrino wants a power rushing attack behind a physical fullback and newcomer WR Joe Horn should upgrade what was a below average wideout corps. Petrino is changing their old zone-blocking scheme to a more traditional in-line blocking scheme and the offensive line is bigger. Rookie DE Jamaal Anderson was grabbed in the first round and the secondary got younger with former Auburn cornerback David Irons, who the Falcons think was a steal as a sixth-round pick.
Cleveland Browns: The 2007 Browns look like a double-edged sword. There was the excitement of the offseason, trading for RB Jamel Lewis, upgrading the offensive line with Wisconsin’s Joe Thomas (the No. 2 pick in the draft) and free agent LG Eric Steinbach, then trading for Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn when he fell to No. 22. GM Phil Savage and head coach Romeo Crennel feel they have a talented, balanced offense with these new pieces, plus TE Kellen Winslow and WR Braylon Edwards.
However, were these moves made in desperation? And were they foolish ones? The Browns gave up their 2008 first-round pick for Quinn and we all know QBs take time to develop. And even first-round QBs can be busts (Joey Harrington, Akili Smith). We also don’t know if the offensive line is that much improved (31st in rushing in 2007) and they did nothing to improve a defense that was awful against the run (142 yds pg allowed).
The Browns have a new offensive coordinator in Rob Chudzinski. This is a young offense and Quinn looked tentative, indecisive and inaccurate early in camp. Crennel will play Charlie Frye, Quinn and Derek Anderson in preseason. And there is a mixed bag for rookie QBs receiving significant starts: Tim Couch (14), Kerry Collins (13), Ben Roethlisberger (13), Vince Young (13), Joey Harrington (12), Matt Leinart (11) and Kyle Boller (nine). While all the focus will be on the Browns new-look offense, I’m more concerned with the defense.
Carolina Panthers: Coach Jon Fox loves the ground game, but Carolina has made some interesting changes for 2007. Fox fired offensive coordinator Dan Henning and brings in Jeff Davidson to run the offense. Davidson has brought in zone-blocking schemes to the Panther offense, a dramatic change for a system that's been built around a power-running style.
In zone-blocking, offensive linemen are responsible for blocking any defender who appears in their zone, instead of focusing on one defender. The Broncos and Falcons have had success with the system, which features smaller, more athletic offensive linemen and can create running lanes on the inside and outside. Keep an eye in preseason on how Carolina adjusts as it will take time to learn the system. Fox has been one of the top coaches in preseason, with a 15-5 SU, 12-7-1 ATS August record.
Dallas Cowboys: WR Terrell Owens is still here, but QB Drew Bledsoe and Bill Parcells are gone. New head coach Wade Phillips takes over, replacing Parcells. He ran the Chargers defense last season. Phillips was chosen by teary-eyed owner Jerry Jones partly because he is one of the best 3-4 coaches in football and the Cowboys have loaded up on players for that scheme.
Remember that Phillips was blitz-happy with the Chargers last season and early reports out of the Dallas camp have mentioned how the Cowboys have been blitzing a lot, a departure from Parcells. The theme of the 2007 Dallas defense appears to be one of attack.
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