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02/07/2012 - New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Martin Brodeur extended his NHL record with the 117th shutout of his career, as the New Jersey Devils made a first period goal stand up in a 1-0 win over the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden.
David Clarkson tallied the only goal for the Devils, who have now won five straight.
The Rangers appeared to tie the game with 3.5 seconds left, but Marian Gaborik crashed into Brodeur and was called for goalie interference, negating Artem Anisimov's potential equalizer.
Henrik Lundqvist was again marvelous in net, stopping 21-of-22 shots, but saw a personal four-game winning streak come to an end. New York, meanwhile, lost for only the second time in its last six games overall.
Brodeur, though, was the story, as the four-time Vezina Trophy winner stopped 30 shots, including 15 in the final period, to secure his first shutout since blanking the Pittsburgh Penguins on March 25 of last season.
It looked as if he would be denied the shutout late. With the Rangers net empty and time ticking down, Ryan Callahan wristed a shot from the left circle that Brodeur pushed aside. Gaborik then went into Brodeur, knocking him backwards into the net, while Anisimov buried the putback, only to see it waved off by a penalty.
The Rangers had their chances in the third period and outshot the Devils, 15-1. New York was also 0-for-3 on the power play and is scoreless in its last 17 tries with the extra skater.
The Devils took advantage of a Stu Bickel holding call and cashed in on the power play 8:14 into the opening period. From behind the net Zach Parise found a streaking Clarkson, who beat Lundqvist glove side for his 21st goal of the season.
Clarkson now has five goals in his last five games, while Parise extended his point streak to six games (5g, 3a).
Petr Sykora almost made it a two-goal game late in the first period, but his rocket from the top of the right circle hit the crossbar with time winding down.
The Rangers had a pair of terrific chances in the second period. Shortly into the period Brandon Prust missed the net, while with time ticking down in the stanza Brodeur used the left glove to turn aside a terrific opportunity from Carl Hagelin.
Game Notes
Lundqvist has allowed one goal or fewer in 11 of his last 19 games, and has held opponents to two or fewer goals in 27 games this season...The Devils have outscored the opposition 21-12 during their five game win streak.
<< UConn gets road win over Louisville
Louisville, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Caroline Doty had 15 points and No. 3
Connecticut defeated No. 20 Louisville, 56-46, at KFC Yum! Center on Tuesday.
Tiffany Hayes and Bria Hartley scored nine points apiece for Connecticut
(22-2
<< No. 2 Notre Dame cruises past Syracuse
Syracuse, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Devereaux Peters recorded a double-double with
21 points and 16 rebounds as No. 2 Notre Dame cruised to a 74-55 win over
Syracuse.
Kayla McBride scored 19 points, Skylar Diggins added 11 and Brittany Ma
<< Pacers hang on to beat Jazz
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Darren Collison scored a season-high 25
points and added four rebounds as the Indiana Pacers held off the Utah Jazz,
104-99, at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Tuesday night.
Utah erased a 21-point third
<< Blue Jackets get Wild
Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Antoine Vermette scored the eventual game-
winning goal in the second period as the Columbus Blue Jackets topped the
Minnesota Wild, 3-1, at Nationwide Arena.
David Savard had a goal and an assist
James, Wade lead Heat over Cavs >>
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dwyane Wade and LeBron James had 26 and 24
points, respectively, as the Miami Heat beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 107-91
at American Airlines Arena.
Chris Bosh added 15 points and nine rebounds for the H
Evansville gets past Creighton >>
Evansville, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kenneth Harris scored 15 points and Colt
Ryan had 14 in Evansville's 65-57 upset of No. 17 Creighton on Tuesday.
The Purple Aces (12-12, 7-7 MVC) had lost three of four coming in, but
outscored
Nash lifts Suns over Bucks >>
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Suns saw a 21-point lead evaporate, but
Steve Nash's short jumper with five seconds remaining lifted Phoenix over
Milwaukee, 107-105.
Nash ended with 18 points and 11 assists for the Suns, who have
Clifford's goal the difference in Kings' win over Lightning >>
Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kyle Clifford scored the eventual game-winner
midway through the second period as the Los Angeles Kings skated past the
Tampa Bay Lightning, 3-1, at Tampa Bay Times Forum.
Anze Kopitar and Dustin Penne
BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting.
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