Home sweet home: Canucks return to GM Place to battle Senators

Hockey Betting Lines

03/13/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The wait is finally over.

After playing 14 straight times on the road over a span of six weeks, the Vancouver Canucks finally return to GM Place for tonight's interconference showdown with the slumping Ottawa Senators.

That epic stretch -- the longest sequence of away games by any team in NHL history -- was necessitated by the city of Vancouver's hosting of the Winter Olympics. The Canucks played eight of those contests prior to the league's stoppage for the Games, then began their post-break schedule with a six-game trip that culminated with Wednesday's 4-3 shootout loss at Phoenix.

"There were days when you woke up in another hotel and wondered Where are we now?' before you get it together a little bit," center Ryan Kesler recently told the Canucks' official site. "The last six we've played here on the other end of the Games, that hasn't been as bad, but those first eight were real tough. They took forever."

Vancouver acquitted itself well over the massive trek, compiling an 8-5-1 record over the 14 games. The team was especially successful over the second leg, winning four of five outings before coming up just short against the Coyotes.

Down 1-0 in the third round of the shootout, Radim Vrbata kept Phoenix alive by firing the puck past Canucks goaltender Andrew Raycroft. After Mikael Samuelsson missed for Vancouver on the ensuing attempt, both teams were successful in the fourth and fifth rounds before the Coyotes' Adrian Aucoin opened the sixth with a shot that beat Raycroft upstairs. The Canucks' Mason Raymond then misfired on a backhand try to give Phoenix the two points.

The Coyotes claimed a 3-2 lead on Lee Stempniak's goal 35 seconds into the third period, but Vancouver's Christian Ehrhoff scored less than a minute later to tie the score.

Samuelsson had a goal earlier in the game and has now lit the lamp in each of Vancouver's last five matchups, with seven tallies over that span. Kesler assisted on Ehrhoff's marker to extend his scoring streak to 11 games, with the U.S. Olympic team member having notched 13 points (5 goals, 8 assists) during that span.

Canucks forward Daniel Sedin also has a notable streak going, as the standout Swede has registered an assist in eight consecutive tilts after getting one on twin brother Henrik Sedin's goal in Wednesday's loss. He has 11 helpers over that run.

Although a few Vancouver players, including Kesler, the Sedin brothers, Ehrhoff and goaltender Roberto Luongo, had the opportunity to play in their home venue while competing in the Olympics, tonight's clash will be the Canucks' first game at GM Place since a 3-2 decision over St. Louis on January 27.

The Canucks will attempt to build on their three-point lead over second-place Colorado in the Northwest Division when they take on an Ottawa squad that's gone just 1-3-1 since the break. The Senators were able to defeat doormat Edmonton in the opener of the team's three-game swing through Western Canada, but were stymied by Calgary's Miikka Kiprusoff (33 saves) in Thursday's 2-0 loss to the Flames.

"I thought we worked hard and played well, we just couldn't get one past Kiprusoff," said Senators head coach Cory Clouston. "They did a great job of blocking shots. I'm not going to criticize any of our effort; we had the chances and had the opportunities."

Ottawa is presently two points back of Buffalo for first place in the Northeast Division.

The Senators have lost two straight games at GM Place since a 2-1 triumph there on March 13, 2004. Vancouver had won four straight in this series before a 3-1 defeat in Ottawa on February 4.

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MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined

Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.

"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."

Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)

According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.

As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).

Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.

Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at

17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.

*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007

New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers

By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.

"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."

While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."

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