Lightning and Pens converge in Tampa

Hockey Betting Lines

02/25/2007 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two of the hottest teams in the NHL over the past few months meet tonight in Tampa, as the Lightning welcome the Pittsburgh Penguins to St. Pete Times Forum.

The Penguins have been the best team in the NHL since the middle of January, posting an amazing 15-1-2 mark in their last 18 games. As a result, Pittsburgh comes into Sunday with 75 points and a hold on the fifth spot in the Eastern Conference standings.

Pittsburgh's latest triumph came in Thursday's overtime decision at Florida. Colby Armstrong's goal with 2:21 left in the extra session gave the Penguins a 2-1 win over the Panthers.

Jordan Staal also scored for Pittsburgh, which bounced back after having its 16-game (14-0-2) point streak snapped by the New York Islanders on Monday.

Jocelyn Thibault stopped 32 shots for the Penguins, which also got the 70th assist of the season from Sidney Crosby. The 19-year-old Crosby has registered a point in six straight games, notching one goal and nine helpers during that span.

Meanwhile, the Lightning are 16-4-1 in their last 21 tests and their 73 points on the year give them a one-point edge over Atlanta for the Southeast lead. Tampa also comes into Sunday as the third-place team in the Eastern Conference.

Tampa Bay did begin its three-game homestand on a down note Friday, as the Boston Bruins handed the Bolts a 6-2 setback. Brad Boyes scored two goals as the Bruins continued their domination of Tampa Bay with the 6-2 romp. Boston has won all four contests against the Lightning this season and has taken eight of the last nine games in the series.

Filip Kuba and Dan Boyle each scored a goal for the Lightning, who had won five of six coming into the game.

Marc Denis started the game in net, but was pulled after allowing two goals on seven shots. Johan Holmqvist finished the game in net and allowed four goals on 16 shots.

The Lightning are 17-14-0 as the home club this year.

The Penguins have lost all three games (0-1-2) against Tampa Bay this year and was swept in a home-and-home series by the Bolts on January 7 & 9. Tampa Bay has taken 11 straight against Pittsburgh, including five in a row on the home ice of St. Pete Times Forum.

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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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