Surging Flyers host Bruins in Winter Classic rematch

Hockey Betting Lines

03/11/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Flyers will try to continue their surge in the right direction when they host the Boston Bruins tonight at Wachovia Center.

The Flyers are 7-1-1 in their last nine games and have greatly improved their playoff chances since they last played the Bruins outdoors in the Winter Classic.

After losing the New Year's Day game at Fenway Park in overtime, Philadelphia has posted a 16-8-1 record and is now sixth in the Eastern Conference with 74 points.

Meanwhile, Boston has lost 17 out of 25 games since the Winter Classic, going 8-12-5 over that stretch. As a result, Boston comes into tonight as the eighth seed in the East and four points behind the Flyers.

Philadelphia beat the Bruins twice this year before the loss on Jan 1. and tonight's meeting caps the four-game season series. The Flyers have won four of six overall against Boston, but the Bruins have taken six of eight and seven of their last 10 games in Philly.

The Flyers have won two straight games and are coming off Tuesday's comeback win over the visiting New York Islanders. Philadelphia trailed 2-0 in the second period before scoring the games final three goals.

The 3-2 decision marked the 15th straight win over the Isles for the Flyers, giving Philadelphia the longest active stretch of victories by one team over any single opponent in the league.

Simon Gagne was credited with the game-winning power-play goal with 6:06 remaining in regulation to lift the Flyers to victory on Tuesday.

Claude Giroux and Jeff Carter also scored for the Flyers, while Michael Leighton turned aside 23 shots for Philadelphia.

"I thought halfway through the second period, once the guys came back to the bench, we got back into a rhythm," head coach Peter Laviolette told the Flyers official Web site.

Mike Richards added an assist in the win and the Flyers captain has registered a point in six straight games, posting three goals and six helpers over that span.

Philadelphia has won five straight and 11 of its last 13 home games. The Flyers, who are 20-11-2 at Wachovia this year, will cap a four-game homestand Saturday against Chicago.

The Bruins, who are 15-11-6 as the guest this year, are making the fourth stop on seven-game road trip and are 1-1-1 on the swing so far.

Boston was dealt an overtime loss Tuesday in Toronto as Nikolai Kulemin scored with 49.7 seconds left in OT to claim a 4-3 decision.

Patrice Bergeron, Marco Sturm and Mark Recchi got the goals for Boston, which has lost two straight. Tim Thomas made several big stops but wound up on the wrong end of a 26-save effort.

"We know we're in the (playoff) race right now, you can't give up those points," said Bergeron.

Tuesday's test was the first game for Boston since it lost star forward Marc Savard to a concussion. Savard, who has 33 points in 41 games this year, suffered a Grade Two concussion after taking a shoulder to the head from Pittsburgh's Matt Cooke on Sunday.

Savard, the Bruins' leading scorer in each of the previous three seasons, is sidelined indefinitely and could possibly miss the rest of the year. Cooke was not penalized on the play and it was announced Wednesday that he will not be suspended by the league.

In other injury news for Boston, top defenseman Zdeno Chara is questionable for tonight after missing the last game with a lower-body issue. Fellow blueliner Andrew Ference is also questionable after sitting out the last four tests with a groin injury.

Wwsbgglobal Hockey Betting News

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NFL Super Bowl Betting

The AFC South and the NFC East are the favorite divisions to have the next Super Bowl champ among them in the NFL betting odds. But more down to the point, these football odds are in favor of the Indianapolis Colts, by far the strongest team in the AFC South, and the Dallas Cowboys of the NFC East.

Most sports fans would agree that these two teams top the list to win it all before the season even begins. In the BetUS Sportsbook football futures, the Colts are +800 in the odds to win the Super Bowl, while the Cowboys are sitting at +1000 and the Super Bowl XLIV champions New Orleans Saints at +900. In the AFC South, the Colts won the division for five straight years after the 2002 realignment, before the Tennessee Titans won it in 2008. But the Colts came back strong in 2009 to win the division again en route to the Super Bowl. The Cowboys are the favorite to win the NFC East, as well as to advance far into the post season. The Cowboys won the division last season before their horrendous loss in the NFC Divisional playoff to Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings. But the ‘Boys will take that loss humbly and be ready for the playoffs this time around.

The NFC South is also very strong, at +600 in the NFL futures, considering that it is home to the defending Super Bowl champions. However, some predictions have the Atlanta Falcons with possibilities of claiming the divisional title this season in place of the Saints, as no team has won back-to-back division championships since the division realignment took place. Let’s not overlook the AFC North at +500. As TO goes to Cincinnati to join Chad OchoCinco and Adam “Pac-Man” Jones, this team looks to claim the division title again. And it is likely they will do so. The Bengals lost in the AFC Wild Card spot in a hard-fought battle against the New York Jets last season. Lest not forget the Pittsburgh Steelers, the XLII Super Bowl Champions… All these teams present interesting odds and matchups for the upcoming season, but the safest and surest bet seems to be with the Colts in the AFC South and the Cowboys in the NFC East. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.

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