Wild stop surging Blues

Hockey Betting Lines

03/14/2010 - St. Paul, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mikko Koivu netted a goal and two assists, and the Minnesota Wild notched a 4-2 win over the streaking St. Louis Blues at Xcel Energy Center.

Andrew Brunette and Antti Miettinen both had a goal and an assist for the Wild, while Guillaume Latendresse tallied for the 25th time, extending a career-best.

Josh Harding, playing again in place of the injured Niklas Backstrom (groin), made 35 stops in Minnesota's second straight win following a four-game skid.

"We have to win the games coming up," Harding said. "We were ready to play, and we got a big win. (The Blues are) a great hockey club -- you got to give them all the credit in the world. Fortunately, we came out on top (Sunday)."

Paul Kariya and Patrik Berglund scored for the Blues, who had won seven of their last eight to move within striking distance of a playoff berth. St. Louis stands five points behind idle Detroit for the eighth and final spot in the West.

"We're not gaining ground, everyone around us is winning," said Blues forward Keith Tkachuk. "This really hurts, no question about it. Some of the teams won today too, so it's frustrating. We have to go on a serious run to get into the playoffs."

Chris Mason stopped only 4-of-7 shots in the first period before Ty Conklin finished the game with 12 saves.

The Wild got started quickly, getting on the board at the 1:54 mark of the first period. Koivu won a faceoff in the offensive zone, and the puck drifted back to Cam Barker. Barker fired a one-timer, which Brunette redirected past Mason for the goal.

St. Louis was unable to solve Harding in the early-going, and Koivu extended Minnesota's advantage with a power play tally at the 13:12 mark of the opening frame.

Then, with 1:10 left on the clock, Latendresse completed the dominating period with his 25th goal of the year for a 3-0 Wild lead after 20 minutes.

Koivu helped turn the game into a rout with a nifty behind-the-back pass to Miettinen, who was in position to easily flick the puck into the net with 5:12 remaining in the second.

Berglund's unassisted tally on a power play with 2:51 left in the second got the Blues to within three entering the third, and Kariya made it a two-goal game with his 15th at the 6:08 mark of the final period.

Harding, though, was able to stop the remaining 12 shots in the final 20 minutes, as the Wild skated off with the victory.

Game Notes

Backstrom has missed three consecutive games...Minnesota is six points behind Detroit for the eighth spot in the conference...The Wild improved to 22-9-3 at home, while St. Louis fell to 20-11-4 on the road...The season series is tied 2-2...Martin Havlat had a pair of assists for Minnesota...St. Louis finished up a six-game road trip at 4-2-0.

Wrollingstone Hockey Betting News

<< Wade carries Heat over Sixers
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dwyane Wade poured in 38 points on 14-of-25 shooting, pacing Miami to a 104-91 wire-to-wire victory over the Philadelphia 76ers. Udonis Haslem added 13 points and 12 rebounds, and Carlos Arroyo chipped in

<< Bobcats win sixth straight, snap Orlando's eight-game win streak
Orlando, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Stephen Jackson recorded 28 points, six rebounds and as many assists, as Charlotte matched a franchise-best winning streak with its sixth straight win, 96-89, over Orlando. Raymond Felton checked i

<< Report: Beckham to miss World Cup due to Achilles tear
Milan, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - English superstar soccer player David Beckham will reportedly miss the World Cup in June after suffering an apparent tear to his left Achilles while playing for AC Milan. The injury occurred Sunday night in a

<< Raiders acquire LB Wimbley from Cleveland
Alameda, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Oakland Raiders announced Sunday that they have acquired linebacker Kamerion Wimbley from the busy Cleveland Browns for an undisclosed draft choice. While the draft choice remains undisclosed officially,

<< Coyotes nip Thrashers in SO
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Adrian Aucoin scored the game-winning goal in the fourth round of the shootout, as the Phoenix Coyotes edged the Atlanta Thrashers, 3-2, at Philips Arena. Rich Peverley got Atlanta on the board with a

North Carolina among NIT field >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Illinois, Arizona State, Virginia Tech and Mississippi State were anointed as the top seeds for the 32-team 2010 National Invitation Tournament. The field was revealed Sunday night, approximately three ho

Westbrook, Durant lead Thunder over Jazz >>
Oklahoma City, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Russell Westbrook poured in 30 points and dished out 11 assists, as the Oklahoma City Thunder took down the Utah Jazz, 119-111. Kevin Durant added 35 points for the Thunder, who have won five in a row

No. 2 Stanford wins Pac-10 title by downing UCLA >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tournament MVP Nnemkadi Ogwumike had 16 points and 10 rebounds as No. 2 Stanford downed 23rd-ranked UCLA, 70-46, in the championship game of the Pac-10 conference. Jayne Appel added 15 points and

Ducks beat Sharks; Selanne inches closer to milestone >>
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Teemu Selanne posted a goal and one assist and crept closer to becoming the NHL's all-time leading Finnish goal scorer, as Anaheim topped San Jose, 4-2, at Honda Center. Selanne posted his 599th career go

Evans, Kings cruise past lowly Timberwolves >>
Sacramento, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tyreke Evans came just shy of a triple double, finishing with 29 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds, and the Sacramento Kings routed the Minnesota Timberwolves, 114-100, at ARCO Arena. Donte

American Idol Betting Season 6 Strategies  

It's that time of year folks.  Betting on American Idol Season 9.  And we have plenty of American Idol Season 6 strategies appearing below.  With the Top 24 finalists revealed, online gambling sites will be offering betting odds on each of them, including MySportsbook.com.

No other “event” has been growing as fast as wagering on American Idol. It has turned into a huge betting event with reasonably high limits and all sorts of profit-making potential for sharp bettors. Last year, MySportsbook.com experienced unprecedented traffic as a result of the American Idol betting craze.

Every week there will be odds to win American Idol, various elimination props and contestant versus contestant match-ups at the MySportsbook.com website.

Whether a fan of America’s top-rated show or watching only because of a wife or girlfriend, here are some of basic strategies to use when betting American Idol.

Odds to Win

There are a few things to consider when looking for the right win bet. First off, remember that this bet is for the long haul. Many people make the mistake of picking the performer who sang the best the previous week. This strategy leads to an underlay situation – betting a price, which is less than what it should be.

All Idol contestants struggle at some point in the competition, so you should always look for value. In last year’s competition alone, two performers who had some of the best performances early in the series were subsequently bet down to low prices - Lisa Tucker and Ace Young. After just a few weeks, Tucker had already been eliminated, while Young quickly became a huge long shot to win America’s largest talent search.

A better strategy is to look for performers who don’t necessarily get the praise from the judges, but show flashes of the talent necessary to go the distance.

Another important thing to remember when betting any contestant to win is the demographic breakdown of the voters, the viewing public and potential future CD purchasers. Unlike sporting events, American Idol is not decided on the field of play – it’s decided by the American public under the guiding influence of the shows producers.

Understand that the great state of Alabama has a mighty edge when it comes to American Idol. 

Therefore, to be successful betting on American Idol, put any personal opinions or prejudices aside and think like the majority of the voting public. Remember that the typical voter is young, female and quite often, Southern.

If a contestant cannot appeal to this demographic, no matter how much talent he or she possesses, they’ll struggle for votes. Looks, demeanor and charisma are extremely important. And it’s no coincidence that every Idol winner so far has hailed from a Southern state.

Elimination Props

Every week MySportsbook.com anticipates offering a prop on who’ll be eliminated from the show each Wednesday night. A suggestion to handicap this is to gauge an overall feel for who’s the least popular contestant left in the competition. Generally the least popular performers have recently appeared in the bottom three and will have been the target of repeated criticism from the judges.

Last year, resources included dialidol.com and votefortheworst.com. Dialidol.com measures the volume of each contestant’s voting line. While by no means a perfect science, it does give a good indication of who is generating votes and who isn’t. Meanwhile, votefortheworst.com is a site that attempts to build support for the worst competitor to keep them in the competition for ‘entertainment’ value. The site has a proven track record of keeping performers around who most feel should have been voted off a long time ago.

Contestant vs. Contestant Match-ups

The best strategy for doing well on match-ups is to assess how close either of the contestants is to being eliminated. If neither is expected to be voted off of the show in the coming weeks, the value is almost always on the underdog. If both are expecting an imminent exit in the near future, the favorite in the match-up might offer value.

Watch for American Idol betting odds on each of the contestants shortly and good luck with these American Idol betting strategies.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.