Aiming to extend win streak, Flyers visit Canadiens

Hockey Betting Lines

12/18/2008 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The red-hot Philadelphia Flyers will shoot for their sixth consecutive victory when they visit the sliding Montreal Canadiens for tonight's battle at the Bell Centre.

The Flyers can match their longest winning streak of the season after also taking six games in a row from November 15-26. Philadelphia has also earned at least a point in 16 of its last 17 contests, going 13-1-3 over that stretch.

The most recent triumph for the Flyers came in Tuesday's home decision over Colorado. Simon Gagne and Mike Richards recorded a goal and two assists each as Philadelphia topped the Avalanche, 5-2, at the Wachovia Center.

Mike Knuble, Jeff Carter and Joffrey Lupul also tallied for the Flyers, who are second in the Atlantic Division with 40 points on the season.

Antero Niittymaki, in place of the flu-ridden Martin Biron, made 29 saves for the win and improved to 6-1-2 on the season. Biron did not make the trip for this evening's contest and Scott Munroe will back up Niittymaki once again.

Richards has the second-longest current point streak in the NHL, having reached the scoresheet in eight straight contests. He has seven goals and eight helpers during the run and is tied with Gagne for the team lead in points this year with 37.

Carter also extended his point streak to five games and has four goals and four assists over that stretch.

Philadelphia has won four of its last five road tests and is 7-3-3 as the visiting club this year.

The Canadiens, meanwhile, were handed a 3-2 setback in Carolina on Tuesday as Eric Staal scored twice and Joe Corvo netted the game-winner in the second period.

Alex Kovalev ended a 19-game goal drought with a short-handed tally and Guillaume Latendresse scored on a penalty shot for the Canadiens, who have dropped three straight and four of five overall.

Kovalev has been a huge disappointment for Montreal so far this year as he has just six goals and 23 points in 30 games. Last season, the Russian veteran led the Habs in both goals (35) and points (84).

Jaroslav Halak made 24 saves in the loss as he started his fourth straight game in place of Carey Price, Montreal's No. 1 goaltender. Price was at first sidelined due to the flu, but is now out with a lower-body injury and is questionable for tonight's game.

Montreal is 9-4-3 as the host this year, but has lost two straight and three of its last four in Quebec. Tonight marks the start of a three-game homestand for the Habs.

Philly and Montreal have split a pair of meetings this year with each team winning a test on the opposition's ice. Montreal has still taken eight of 10 overall in the series and five of seven at the Bell Centre.

The Flyers and Canadiens also met in last year's Eastern Conference semifinals and Philly won that series in five games.

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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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