The Bum's NHL February 2015 Trends/Stats/News Etc...All you know B4 Wagering !

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NHL
Armadillo's Write-Up

Sunday, February 8

Hot teams
-- Blues won seven of their last eight games.
-- Nashville won three of its last four games. Florida won last two games, after losing seven of eight.
-- Flyers won four of their last five games. Washington won last three games, allowing three goals.
-- Anaheim won eight of its last eleven games. Lightning won six of last nine.
-- Rangers won three of their last four games.
-- Montreal won six of its last eight games. Bruins won three of last four.

Cold teams
-- Chicago is 4-5 in its last nine games.
-- Islanders lost four of their last five games. Buffalo lost 15 of last 17 games.
-- Dallas Stars lost last three games, scoring seven goals.
-- Colorado got blanked in last two games, is 4-7 in last 11 games. Winnipeg is 0-6 since All-Star break, giving up 25 goals.

Series records
-- Blackhawks won five of last six games with St Louis.
-- Predators won five of last seven games with Florida.
-- Flyers won four of last five games with Washington.
-- Islanders lost six of last nine games with Buffalo.
-- Home side won five of last six Anaheim-Tampa Bay games.
-- Rangers won four of last six games with Dallas.
-- Jets won three of last four games with Colorado.
-- Boston lost its last five games with Montreal.

Totals
-- Last four St Louis home games stayed under total.
-- Over is 8-3 in Nashville's last eleven home games.
-- Six of last seven Washington home games stayed under.
-- Four of last five Islander road games stayed under.
-- Seven of last nine Lightning home games stayed under.
-- Five of last six Ranger games stayed under the total.
-- Nine of last eleven Colorado road games stayed under.
-- Six of last seven Boston home games stayed under.

Back-to-back
-- Nashville is 0-5 on road if they played night before.
-- Islanders are 6-1 if they played night before; Buffalo is 3-8.
-- Lightning are 3-5 if they played the night before.
-- Dallas Stars are 1-5 if they played night before. Rangers are 4-2.
-- Colorado is 0-5 if it played the night before.
-- Montreal is 6-3 on road if it played night before; Bruins are 1-6 overall if they did.

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NHL

Sunday, February 8

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Trend Report
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12:30 PM
CHICAGO vs. ST. LOUIS
Chicago is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games when playing on the road against St. Louis
Chicago is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing St. Louis
St. Louis is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
St. Louis is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games at home

3:00 PM
NASHVILLE vs. FLORIDA
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Nashville's last 12 games on the road
Nashville is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games when playing Florida
Florida is 4-10-3 SU in its last 17 games ,when playing Nashville
Florida is 2-6 SU in its last 8 games at home

3:00 PM
PHILADELPHIA vs. WASHINGTON
Philadelphia is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Washington
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Philadelphia's last 8 games when playing Washington
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Washington's last 8 games when playing Philadelphia
Washington is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing Philadelphia

5:00 PM
ANAHEIM vs. TAMPA BAY
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Anaheim's last 5 games when playing Tampa Bay
Anaheim is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games when playing Tampa Bay
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Tampa Bay's last 5 games when playing Anaheim
Tampa Bay is 3-7 SU in its last 10 games when playing Anaheim

5:00 PM
DALLAS vs. NY RANGERS
Dallas is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games
The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Dallas's last 14 games when playing on the road against NY Rangers
NY Rangers are 9-2 SU in their last 11 games at home
NY Rangers are 4-7-1 SU in their last 12 games ,when playing at home against Dallas

5:00 PM
NY ISLANDERS vs. BUFFALO
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of the NY Islanders last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of the NY Islanders last 5 games on the road
Buffalo is 2-15 SU in its last 17 games
Buffalo is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games at home

6:00 PM
COLORADO vs. WINNIPEG
Colorado is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Winnipeg
Colorado is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games on the road
Winnipeg is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Winnipeg's last 8 games when playing at home against Colorado

7:30 PM
MONTREAL vs. BOSTON
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Montreal's last 9 games on the road
Montreal is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games when playing on the road against Boston
Boston is 9-3 SU in its last 12 games
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Boston's last 8 games

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NHL

Sunday, February 8


Canadiens undefeated this season against Bruins

The Montreal Canadiens have had the Boston Bruins number this season, going 3-0 against their Original Six rival. Going into last season's playoffs, the Habs have now won five consecutive games against the Bruins.

Over those five games, the Canadiens have outscored the Bruins 20-6. Boston has also been shutout twice and only scored more than one goal in one of those five games.

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Today's NHL Picks

Anaheim at Tampa Bay

The Ducks head to Tampa Bay tonight to face a Lightning team that is coming off a 4-2 loss to the Kings and is 8-3 in its last 11 games after allowing 4 goals or more in the previous game. Tampa Bay is the pick (-120) according to Dunkel, which has the Lightning favored by 1 1/2. Dunkel Pick: Tampa Bay (-120). Here are all of today's NHL picks.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8

Time Posted: 10:30 a.m. EST

Game 51-52: Chicago at St. Louis (12:30 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Chicago 10.504; St. Louis 12.139
Dunkel Line & Total: St. Louis by 1 1/2; 6
Vegas Line & Total: St. Louis (-120); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: St. Louis (-120); Over

Game 53-54: Nashville at Florida (3:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Nashville 12.342; Florida 10.819
Dunkel Line & Total: Nashville by 1 1/2; 5 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Nashville (-130); 5
Dunkel Pick: Nashville (-130); Over

Game 55-56: Philadelphia at Washington (3:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Philadelphia 11.989; Washington 10.817
Dunkel Line & Total: Philadelphia by 1; 5
Vegas Line & Total: Washington (-185); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Philadelphia (+165); Under

Game 57-58: NY Islanders at Buffalo (5:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: NY Islanders 10.212; Buffalo 11.133
Dunkel Line & Total: Buffalo by 1; 4 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: NY Islanders (-250); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Buffalo (+210); Under

Game 59-60: Dallas at NY Rangers (5:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Dallas 11.313; NY Rangers 12.762
Dunkel Line & Total: NY Rangers by 1 1/2; 5
Vegas Line & Total: NY Rangers (-150); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: NY Rangers (-150); Under

Game 61-62: Anaheim at Tampa Bay (5:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Anaheim 11.109; Tampa Bay 12.821
Dunkel Line & Total: Tampa Bay by 1 1/2; 6 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Tampa Bay (-120); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Tampa Bay (-120); Over

Game 63-64: Colorado at Winnipeg (6:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Colorado 11.899; Winnipeg 10.702
Dunkel Line & Total: Colorado by 1; 5
Vegas Line & Total: Winnipeg (-165); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Colorado (+145); Under


Game 65-66: Montreal at Boston (7:30 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Montreal 11.213; Boston 12.769
Dunkel Line & Total: Boston by 1 1/2; 5 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Boston (-140); 5
Dunkel Pick: Boston (-140); Over

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Armadillo: Monday's six-pack

Six of the best minor league prospects for the Baltimore Orioles:

1) Dylan Bundy, P-- Missed all of 2013 after Tommy John surgery.

2) Hunter Harvey, P-- First two prospects are both HS pitchers.

3) Christian Walker, 1B-- Won back/back national titles at South Carolina.

9) Mike Yaztrzemski, OF-- Vandy alum has a very famous grandfather.

11) Pat Connaughton, P-- You've seen him play hoop at Notre Dame.

14) Henry Urrutia, OF-- Got 58 ABs with Orioles in '13; lacks power.

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Armadillo: Monday's List of 13: Wrapping up a sports Sunday......

13) RIP coach Dean Smith, who passed away at age 83 Saturday night; if you posted a Mt Rushmore of college basketballl coaches, John Wooden, Mike Krzyzewski and Dean Smith would definitely be on it- the fourth coach would be an interesting debate.

Rupp, Knight, Pitino, Donovan, Izzo, Calipari, Self? My choice would be Pitino.

12) Smith's 4-corner offense is one of the main reasons the shot clock was put into college basketball-- he was an innovator who put lot of coaches into the profession. George Karl, Larry Brown, Roy Williams, Buzz Peterson, Matt Doherty, Jeff Lebo, King Rice, Billy Cunningham, Doug Moe, Scott Cherry, John Kuester, all Tar Heels.

11) Lookalikes: pro golfer Paul Goydos and Lou Piniella.

10) Senior Tour golfer Rod Spittle (great name, by the way) finished three shots out of first place yesterday; he had a 10 on the par-5 6th hole. Cost him lot of money.

9) Blake Griffin has a staph infection in his elbow, is out for at least a couple weeks. Clippers had a rough week on the road; it ain't getting better with Griffin out.

8) Pelicans' star Anthony Davis sprained his shoulder on a nasty fall Saturday night, is doubtful for their game tonight with Utah.

7) Former Ravens' RB Jamal Lewis declared for bankruptcy; the Super Bowl ring he got from Raven owner Steve Bisciotti just sold for $50,820 at an auction.

6) Marv Albert's son Kenny is a very good announcer; he does his homework, asks his analysts good questions and makes broadcasts better, but you would never really notice him. Thats a good thing, by the way. Good play-by-play guys are like a point guard; they set their teammates up and make them better. Albert does that.

5) Utah State got good news this weekend; QB Chuckie Keeton who is a very good player but has been hurt a lot, got a fifth year of eligibility from the NCAA so he'll be back next fall. Aggies went through four QBs last fall, still went 10-4.

4) Tony Romo's Pizza Hut commercial? Wasn't sure it was him until about fourth time I saw it. Not sure his face is well-known enough for him to be on it without a Cowboys' logo or his jersey on or something.

3) Oregon State 64, Washington 50-- Wayne Tinkle might be national Coach of the Year-- his Beavers are 16-7 after not being good for a long time. This is Tinkle's first year in Corvallis; he has some good recruits coming in next year.

2) Rhode Island 79, Richmond 74-- Danny Hurley's Rams are 16-5 and will be a fun team to follow during Championship Week.

1) Boise State 61, San Diego State 46-- Boise snapped 7-game losing streak against the Aztecs-- they're doing well despite losing Anthony Drmic, their best player for the season last month.

[StarDust Bum]

NHL
Armadillo's Write-Up

Monday, February 9

Hot teams
-- New Jersey won three of its last four games.
-- Minnesota is 5-0 since All-Star break, allowing three goals. Canucks won three of last four on road.
-- Chicago won five of its last eight games.
-- Calgary won eight of its last eleven games.

Cold teams
-- Edmonton lost four of its last six games.
-- Los Angeles lost seven of its last nine games. Blue Jackets are 5-8 in their last 13 games.
-- Arizona lost ten of its last thirteen games.
-- Sharks lost three of their last four games.

Series records
-- Devils won four of last five games with Edmonton.
-- Kings won five of last six games with Columbus.
-- Minnesota won five of last six games with Vancouver.
-- Blackhawks won five of last six games with Arizona.
-- Flames won five of last six games with San Jose.

Totals
-- Last four Edmonton road games went over total; five of last six Devil games stayed under
-- Six of last eight Los Angeles road games stayed under.
-- Six of last seven Vancouver road games stayed under.
-- Six of last eight Chicago home games went over.
-- Seven of last eight San Jose home games went over.

Back-to-back
-- Blackhawks are 6-3 if they played the day before.




NHL

Monday, February 9

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Trend Report
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7:00 PM
EDMONTON vs. NEW JERSEY
Edmonton is 3-16 SU in its last 19 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Edmonton's last 9 games when playing New Jersey
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of New Jersey's last 5 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of New Jersey's last 9 games when playing Edmonton

7:00 PM
LOS ANGELES vs. COLUMBUS
Los Angeles is 2-7 SU in its last 9 games
Los Angeles is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing Columbus
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Columbus's last 11 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Columbus's last 6 games when playing at home against Los Angeles

8:00 PM
VANCOUVER vs. MINNESOTA
Vancouver is 4-8 SU in its last 12 games when playing on the road against Minnesota
Vancouver is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games when playing Minnesota
Minnesota is 8-4 SU in its last 12 games when playing at home against Vancouver
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Minnesota's last 5 games at home

8:30 PM
ARIZONA vs. CHICAGO
Arizona is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games when playing Chicago
The total has gone UNDER in 16 of Arizona's last 24 games when playing on the road against Chicago
Chicago is 2-6 SU in its last 8 games when playing at home against Arizona
The total has gone UNDER in 16 of Chicago's last 24 games when playing at home against Arizona

10:30 PM
CALGARY vs. SAN JOSE
Calgary is 3-7 SU in its last 10 games when playing on the road against San Jose
Calgary is 8-3 SU in its last 11 games
San Jose is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games when playing at home against Calgary
The total has gone OVER in 6 of San Jose's last 7 games at home

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NHL

Monday, February 9


Road teams heat up the ice Sunday night

Teams in the visitors dressing room had a great night, going 6-2 straight up in NHL action Sunday night.

The number is even more impressive considering seven of the eight road teams were underdogs and went 5-2 SU.

Winnipeg dumping Colorado 5-3 and Tampa Bay beating Anaheim 5-3 were the only two home teams to win Sunday.

Road teams have cashed 44.44 percent of the time so far this season.



NHL roundup: Isles jump into 1st with win

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Right winger Colin McDonald, center Anders Lee and center Mikhail Grabovski scored to lead the New York Islanders to a 3-2 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Sunday.

Goalie Jaroslav Halak made just eight saves for New York in the victory. It was the first regulation win for the Islanders (34-18-1) since Jan. 27. They were 0-4-1 in their previous five games but jumped over Pittsburgh to take a one-point lead in the Metropolitan Division standings.

Right wingers Marcus Foligno and Drew Stafford scored for the Sabres, who mounted a comeback but were unable to tie the game. Goalie Michal Neuvirth made 28 saves for Buffalo.

Blackhawks 4, Blues 2

ST. LOUIS -- Right winger Marian Hossa scored a power-play goal at 11:19 of the third period, his second goal of the game, to lift Chicago to a win in St. Louis.

Hossa's goals were his first in six games. It was also only his second two-goal game of the season. He came into Sunday with only 10 goals in the Blackhawks' first 52 games, only two in his previous 15 games. That is a big drop-off from his normal production, having had only one season since 1998 in which he scored fewer than 24 goals. Left winger Bryan Bickell and center Marcus Kruger also scored for Chicago.

Center David Backes and right winger Vladimir Tarasenko scored for St. Louis, which suffered only its second home loss in regulation since Nov. 11. The Blues had gone 15-1-2 at home over that span, losing only to Dallas on Dec. 7.

Flyers 3, Capitals 1

WASHINGTON -- Right winger Wayne Simmonds scored his first even-strength goal since Dec. 23 to give Philadelphia a third-period lead, and goaltender Ray Emery stopped six shots in relief of starting netminder Steve Mason in a win over Washington at the Verizon Center.

The Flyers' win, which was sealed on right winger Jakub Voracek's empty-netter with 36.4 seconds remaining, was their fifth in six games (5-0-1), but they lost Mason to a lower-body injury in the process. Defenseman Mark Streit also scored for the Flyers, who moved within nine points of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference standings.

Left winger Alex Ovechkin scored the lone goal for the Capitals, who managed just 14 shots in the game. The Capitals had their three-game win streak snapped with the loss.

Predators 3, Panthers 2 (SO)

SUNRISE, Fla. -- Rookie left winger Filip Forsberg got the tying goal in regulation and the winning goal in the shootout as Nashville rallied from a two-goal deficit to defeat Florida at the BB&T Center.

Nashville also got a regulation goal from defenseman Seth Jones. Florida got regulation goals from left winger Tomas Fleischmann, his sixth, and Aaron Ekblad, his eighth, which is tops among rookie defensemen this season.

The Panthers got a strong game in goal from Roberto Luongo, who made 34 saves. Nashville, which rested starting goalie Pekka Rinne, went with backup Carter Hutton, who is now 4-0-2 in his past six games after making 23 saves.

Stars 3, Rangers 2 (OT)

NEW YORK -- Right winger Ales Hemsky scored 1:02 into overtime to give Dallas an overtime victory against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden.

Left winger Erik Cole and center Jason Spezza scored for the Stars, who ended a three-game losing streak with the.

Left wingers Chris Kreider and Carl Hagelin scored for the Rangers.

Lightning 5, Ducks 3

TAMPA, Fla. -- Center Brian Boyle scored two goals and center Valtteri Filppula scored a goal and two assists to lead Tampa Bay over Anaheim at Amalie Arena.

Right wingers Nikita Kucherov and Ryan Callahan also scored for Tampa Bay.

Defensemen Sami Vatanen and Eric Brewer and center Ryan Getzlaf scored for Anaheim.

Jets 5, Avalanche 3

WINNIPEG, Manitoba -- Right winger Dustin Byfuglien, playing up front for the third straight game after a long stint on the blue line, scored his 13th goal of the season and chipped in a pair of assists for to lead Winnipeg past Colorado.

Left winger Mathieu Perreault scored his 18th goal of the season, a career high, early in the middle frame and also had two assists, while defenseman Ben Chiarot fired his second goal of the year, center Bryan Little netted his club-leading 21st and blueliner Jacob Trouba scored his sixth.

Defenseman Tyson Barrie scored in his return, center Matt Duchene added his ninth goal of the season and left winger Alex Tanguay scored his 14th, while veteran right winger Jerome Iginla supplied two assists for Colorado.

Canadiens 3, Bruins 1

BOSTON -- Montreal finished off a four-game season sweep of rival Boston.

First-line wingers Dale Weise and Max Pacioretty both scored a goal and set up the other and defenseman Andrei Markov scored the other for Montreal. Goaltender Carey Price stopped 34 shots.

Rookie right winger David Pastrnak scored Boston's lone goal and goalie Tuukka Rask stopped 31 shots.

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NHL
Long Sheet

Monday, February 9

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EDMONTON (14-30-0-9, 37 pts.) at NEW JERSEY (21-23-0-9, 51 pts.) - 2/9/2015, 7:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
EDMONTON is 14-39 ATS (+72.7 Units) in all games this season.
EDMONTON is 8-28 ATS (+51.4 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent this season.
EDMONTON is 4-21 ATS (+36.8 Units) after allowing 4 goals or more this season.
EDMONTON is 6-17 ATS (+27.1 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record this season.
NEW JERSEY is 5-0 ATS (+5.0 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record in the second half of the season this season.
NEW JERSEY is 13-31 ATS (-19.6 Units) in non-conference games over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
NEW JERSEY is 2-1 (+1.0 Units) against the spread versus EDMONTON over the last 3 seasons
NEW JERSEY is 2-1-0 straight up against EDMONTON over the last 3 seasons
2 of 3 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+0.9 Units)

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LOS ANGELES (22-18-0-12, 56 pts.) at COLUMBUS (23-25-0-3, 49 pts.) - 2/9/2015, 7:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
LOS ANGELES is 22-30 ATS (-22.3 Units) in all games this season.
LOS ANGELES is 6-17 ATS (-13.0 Units) in a road game where where the total is 5 or less this season.
LOS ANGELES is 4-10 ATS (-9.6 Units) second half of the season this season.
LOS ANGELES is 7-14 ATS (-12.0 Units) after a non-conference game this season.
LOS ANGELES is 8-14 ATS (-14.0 Units) in non-conference games this season.
LOS ANGELES is 5-10 ATS (-10.3 Units) after scoring 4 goals or more in their previous game this season.
LOS ANGELES is 8-12 ATS (-14.2 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record this season.
COLUMBUS is 35-29 ATS (+67.4 Units) second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
COLUMBUS is 15-12 ATS (+30.2 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent this season.
COLUMBUS is 37-26 ATS (+67.1 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record over the last 2 seasons.
COLUMBUS is 20-8 ATS (+11.4 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
LOS ANGELES is 5-1 (+3.8 Units) against the spread versus COLUMBUS over the last 3 seasons
LOS ANGELES is 5-1-0 straight up against COLUMBUS over the last 3 seasons
3 of 6 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=-0.3 Units, Under=-0.4 Units)

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VANCOUVER (29-19-0-3, 61 pts.) at MINNESOTA (25-20-0-6, 56 pts.) - 2/9/2015, 8:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
VANCOUVER is 21-36 ATS (-21.0 Units) second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
MINNESOTA is 13-3 ATS (+9.8 Units) after shutting out their opponent in their previous game over the last 2 seasons.
MINNESOTA is 84-51 ATS (+15.4 Units) in home games after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game since 1996.
MINNESOTA is 12-4 ATS (+7.4 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
VANCOUVER is 119-107 ATS (+233.8 Units) in a road game where where the total is 5 or less since 1996.
VANCOUVER is 146-111 ATS (+257.6 Units) in road games after scoring 4 goals or more in their previous game since 1996.
VANCOUVER is 70-49 ATS (+18.7 Units) in road games after playing 3 consecutive home games since 1996.
VANCOUVER is 10-3 ATS (+6.6 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a losing record this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
MINNESOTA is 5-3 (+2.2 Units) against the spread versus VANCOUVER over the last 3 seasons
MINNESOTA is 5-3-0 straight up against VANCOUVER over the last 3 seasons
3 of 6 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=-0.3 Units, Under=-0.4 Units)

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ARIZONA (19-27-0-7, 45 pts.) at CHICAGO (33-18-0-2, 68 pts.) - 2/9/2015, 8:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
ARIZONA is 2-12 ATS (+18.3 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent this season.
ARIZONA is 5-18 ATS (+31.4 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
CHICAGO is 37-38 ATS (-8.8 Units) second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
CHICAGO is 9-12 ATS (-11.6 Units) after scoring 4 goals or more in their previous game this season.
CHICAGO is 32-27 ATS (-5.1 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record over the last 2 seasons.
CHICAGO is 7-13 ATS (-18.4 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
CHICAGO is 5-2 (+2.0 Units) against the spread versus ARIZONA over the last 3 seasons
CHICAGO is 5-2-0 straight up against ARIZONA over the last 3 seasons
5 of 6 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+4.5 Units)

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CALGARY (29-21-0-3, 61 pts.) at SAN JOSE (28-19-0-7, 63 pts.) - 2/9/2015, 10:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
CALGARY is 29-24 ATS (+53.8 Units) in all games this season.
CALGARY is 16-5 ATS (+21.2 Units) vs. division opponents this season.
CALGARY is 90-90 ATS (+200.8 Units) in road games after a loss by 2 goals or more in their previous game since 1996.
SAN JOSE is 6-10 ATS (-8.0 Units) in a home game where where the total is 5 or less this season.
SAN JOSE is 2-6 ATS (-8.9 Units) in home games after a non-conference game this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
CALGARY is 6-6 (+2.1 Units) against the spread versus SAN JOSE over the last 3 seasons
SAN JOSE is 6-6-0 straight up against CALGARY over the last 3 seasons
8 of 10 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+6.4 Units)

[StarDust Bum]

NHL
Dunkel

Los Angeles at Columbus
The Kings head to Columbus tonight and come into the contest with a 5-1 record in their last 6 games versus the Blue Jackets. Los Angeles is the pick (-125) according to Dunkel, which has the Kings favored by 1 1/2. Dunkel Pick: Los Angeles (-125). Here are all of today's NHL picks.

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9

Game 1-2: Edmonton at New Jersey (7:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Edmonton 10.598; New Jersey 9.513
Dunkel Line & Total: Edmonton by 1; 4
Vegas Line & Total: New Jersey (-200); 5
Dunkel Pick: Edmonton (+170); Under

Game 3-4: Los Angeles at Columbus (7:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Los Angeles 12.308; Columbus 10.607
Dunkel Line & Total: Los Angeles by 1 1/2; 5 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Los Angeles (-125); 5
Dunkel Pick: Los Angeles (-125); Over

Game 5-6: Vancouver at Minnesota (8:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Vancouver 12.630; Minnesota 10.996
Dunkel Line & Total: Vancouver by 1 1/2; 6
Vegas Line & Total: Minnesota (-145); 5
Dunkel Pick: Vancouver (+125); Over

Game 7-8: Arizona at Chicago (8:30 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Arizona 10.995; Chicago 12.620
Dunkel Line & Total: Chicago by 1 1/2; 4 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Chicago (-300); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Chicago (-300); Under

Game 9-10: Calgary at San Jose (10:30 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Calgary 10.634; San Jose 12.326
Dunkel Line & Total: San Jose by 1 1/2; 5 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: San Jose (-160); 5
Dunkel Pick: San Jose (-160); Over

[StarDust Bum]

Preview: Oilers (14-30) at Devils (21-23)

Date: February 09, 2015 7:00 PM EDT

The New Jersey Devils enjoyed their best stretch of the season during a lengthy homestand before stumbling upon leaving the Prudential Center.

If they hope to spark another run, they'll need to quickly return to form on their home ice Monday night against the woeful Edmonton Oilers.

New Jersey (21-23-9) had won five of six contests and went 4-0-1 on a five-game homestand before losing 6-2 Saturday in Montreal. The Devils' defense allowed a season-high 44 shots, and rookie Keith Kincaid surrendered a season-high six goals.

'Their juice and execution was a little better than ours,' winger Michael Cammalleri said. 'There were a couple of spurts where we took the game back a bit, and there were some untimely penalties and they really took advantage of them.

New Jersey will likely turn back to Cory Schneider on Monday for his NHL-leading 46th start. Schneider is 4-0-1 with a 1.37 goals-against average in his last five starts and has a .944 save percentage in 10 starts since the calendar flipped to 2015.

As good as Schneider's been, he hasn't posted a shutout since stopping all 29 shots he saw Nov. 21 in a 2-0 win at Edmonton. The former Canucks goaltender is 4-1-0 with a .951 save percentage and two shutouts in his last five starts against the Oilers, two of which have come in a Devils uniform.

Edmonton (14-30-9) can only wish it had a similarly solid option. Viktor Fasth has started the last three games ahead of Ben Scrivens, but he's posted an .879 save percentage in doing so after giving up four goals on 28 shots in Saturday's 5-1 loss at Toronto.

The Maple Leafs had lost their previous 11 games, totaling 11 goals.

"I was disappointed," Oilers coach Todd Nelson said Sunday. "We had a healthy discussion in the room today. I liked our practice, but we need to focus on what's going to happen (Monday) night. It was disappointing but we addressed it and hopefully we can learn from it."

Things are unlikely to improve without Taylor Hall, who has missed the past two games with an injured left ankle and was sent back to Edmonton on Sunday for further evaluation.

Benoit Pouliot is also unlikely to play. Like Hall, he has 11 goals, but has missed Edmonton's last two games with a foot injury.

The Oilers haven't won on the road in regulation since Nov. 9, but they had won three of four overall away from home prior to opening this six-game trip in ugly fashion in Toronto.

They've lost four of their last five trips to New Jersey dating back to 2004, all in overtime or a shootout.

The Devils' Jaromir Jagr has tallied a point in four consecutive games to move into the team lead with 29 points. New Jersey is 6-1-2 this season when Jagr scores a goal, and he can tie Phil Esposito's mark of 717 - fifth-most in NHL history - with another one Monday.

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Preview: Kings (22-18) at Blue Jackets (23-25)

Date: February 09, 2015 7:00 PM EDT

If the Los Angeles Kings plan on getting a chance to defend their Stanley Cup title, they're almost certainly going to have to start stringing together some victories.

Coming off a much-needed road win, the Kings look for their first consecutive victories in more than seven weeks Monday night when they wrap up a five-game road trip against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Los Angeles (22-18-12) sits five points outside of the playoff picture in the Western Conference and had lost 10 of 12 before snapping Tampa Bay's 10-game home winning streak with a 4-2 victory Saturday.

Justin Williams broke a seven-game point drought with two goals, and Jonathan Quick made 26 saves for only his second win since Jan. 3.

"It was big," Anze Kopitar told the Kings' official website. "We didn't get points for quite a bit now. So to get on the board again and kind of stop this bleeding right now, it feels nice."

The Kings have lost at least three straight following each of their past three wins, most recently falling to Boston, Washington and Florida to begin this trip after defeating Chicago on Jan. 28.

Los Angeles has not won consecutive games since Dec. 18-20.

"It's certainly important for us on this road trip to beat a quality team like Tampa," Williams said. "We had lost three straight here on the road. We got to try to salvage the trip in Columbus.

"The attitude has to be backs against the wall. It's where we've put ourselves yet again. We have to win a lot of games here."

Columbus (23-25-3) ranks toward the bottom of the NHL standings, but it enters Monday's game off two impressive victories. The Blue Jackets halted St. Louis' seven-game winning streak with a 7-1 blowout Friday, then scored all of their goals in the third period of a 4-1 victory in Ottawa on Saturday.

"Coming off an emotional win (Friday) night, there were some things I didn't like," coach Todd Richards said. "But we found a way to win a hockey game. ... Curtis (McElhinney) was excellent, made some huge saves."

Despite looking good Friday, the Blue Jackets have been dreadful defensively at home. They've allowed an NHL-worst 3.27 goals per game at Nationwide Arena compared to 2.84 per game on the road.

Nick Foligno has three goals over Columbus' past two wins, while Scott Hartnell and Ryan Johansen have tallied four points apiece. Foligno, however, has managed only one goal in 10 career matchups with the Kings.

Columbus has gone cold on the power play lately, but could again find success on the man advantage against the Kings, whose 78.0 penalty-kill percentage ranks among the worst in the NHL. The Blue Jackets sit among the top teams in the league with 38 power-play goals, yet have failed to convert on 17 of 18 in their last seven games.

The Kings have lost two of their last three in Columbus, but downed the Blue Jackets 5-2 in Los Angeles on Oct. 26. Jeff Carter and Tyler Toffoli each had a goal and three assists and Quick made 22 saves.

Quick has won seven of his last eight games against Columbus, posting a 1.43 goals-against average in his last seven.

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Preview: Canucks (29-19) at Wild (25-20)

Date: February 09, 2015 8:00 PM EDT

The Minnesota Wild's surge has them back in the playoff picture and within a manageable distance of those also in the discussion for Western Conference wild-card positions.

They host one of those teams, the Vancouver Canucks, on Monday night with hopes of further gains while adding to a season-best five-game winning streak.

Another victory would give the Wild their best streak since taking seven straight March 14-27, 2013, and they're in position to achieve that due to shutdown defensive play.

After Saturday's 1-0 home win over Colorado, Minnesota (25-20-6) has recorded shutouts in two straight games and three of four, with three goals allowed during the win streak.

Coach Mike Yeo could stand to see some improvement offensively, though, with his team limited to 11 goals in the last five games.

"We're hammering away right now," Yeo said. "We have to keep getting better in front. It's an area of our game that we're stressing."

Minnesota's power play has been all but absent in its sparing employment with a 1-for-11 mark over the five wins, but the penalty kill has been flawless at 12 for 12. One of those kills came late in the third period against the Avalanche, during which Devan Dubnyk made five of his 18 saves.

Playing with his fourth team in 13 months, Dubnyk has been in goal for the entire winning streak with a 0.60 goals-against average. He's 7-1-0 with a 1.31 GAA in nine games since being acquired from Arizona on Jan. 14.

One of those wins came in Vancouver last Monday - a 4-2 victory to give Dubnyk four victories in his last six starts against the Canucks.

"It's nice to enjoy (reflecting on the past three weeks) on the days between games, but the reason of why we've been successful as a group is because we're just taking it by each game," Dubnyk told the team's official website. "We approach each game as its own single game that's important and we have to win and not look at the big picture. It's the same thing for me personally."

Ryan Miller, however, is also coming off a shutout against a considerably more potent offensive team. The Canucks (29-19-3) won 5-0 at home over Pittsburgh on Saturday with Miller stopping 31 shots.

"I like this one mainly because the attitude we came out with was sustained during the game," said Miller, who had lost four of five with a 3.28 GAA after the defeat to Minnesota. "It was the right kind of attitude. We wanted to have a response for (Thursday's 5-1 home loss to San Jose)."

Five players scored for Vancouver on Saturday. Daniel Sedin had a goal against the Penguins and Wild, while Alexandre Burrows recorded a power-play goal and an assist versus Pittsburgh.

The Canucks' special teams came around with a 2-for-5 power-play effort after going 4 of 45 in the previous 13 games. The penalty kill was 4 for 4 in the wake of killing 12 of 18 (66.7) and allowing at least one power-play tally in five straight games.

Minnesota has won five of six in the series. Zach Parise scored last Monday and has five goals and an assist in that six-game span against Vancouver.

Wild defenseman Justin Fontaine (groin) has been out for three games but could face Vancouver, while goaltender Darcy Kuemper has completed a conditioning stint with AHL Iowa after missing five games.

Canucks defenseman Christopher Tanev has missed two consecutive contests with an undisclosed injury.

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Preview: Coyotes (19-27) at Blackhawks (33-18)

Date: February 09, 2015 8:30 PM EDT

The Chicago Blackhawks appear to have put their recent struggles behind them with a convincing end to their Frozen on Ice road trip.

Playing their first home game since facing Arizona on Jan. 20, the Blackhawks open an eight-game homestand that will keep them at the United Center for more than two weeks when they again welcome the Coyotes on Monday night.

Chicago (33-18-2) won two straight to close its seven-game trek, the last six of which came as a result of Disney's Frozen on Ice occupying the United Center. The Blackhawks, who also played at Pittsburgh in their final game before the All-Star break Jan. 21, had dropped three of four prior to the last two victories but went 4-3-0 on the road stretch.

'I don't think I've ever been on any team that had eight straight home games,' coach Joel Quenneville said. 'It should be fun.'

Sunday's opponent only added to the positive feelings, as Marian Hossa's power-play goal broke a third-period tie before he added an empty-netter in a 4-2 victory over St. Louis. Chicago, which was hardly in a hostile arena with thousands of red-clad Blackhawks fans in the crowd, pulled to within four points of the Blues for the second playoff berth in the Central Division.

'When you come to this building, it always feels like playoffs,' Hossa said. 'We have lots of fans so they make it a great atmosphere for us.

'It's a big rivalry and a huge two points.'

Five of the seven opponents on this upcoming homestand are from the Eastern Conference, against which Chicago is 11-5-1 on the season and 6-1-0 at the United Center.

The Blackhawks also didn't have much trouble against the Coyotes (19-27-7) in the first meeting of the season Jan. 20, with the home team cruising to a 6-1 victory after recording 51 shots and outshooting Arizona 20-9 in the first period. Andrew Shaw scored twice and Patrick Kane had a goal and assist for the Blackhawks, who also got 35 saves from backup Antti Raanta.

The Blackhawks have scored at least five goals five times during a 5-1-1 stretch in the series, although the Coyotes took the latest meeting in Chicago 2-0 last Feb. 7 behind Mike Smith's 30 saves.

Smith, also in net Jan. 20, stopped 23 shots Saturday but Arizona managed one goal for the second straight game and lost 3-1 to Detroit to give it back-to-back defeats. Smith has allowed two or fewer goals in four of his last five starts.

Defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson's 16th goal, his fourth in six games, allowed Arizona to avoid being shut out for the eighth time this season, but Martin Erat missed a penalty shot midway through the third period that would have tied it at 1.

"We played good and everyone battled hard, but it's hard to be happy about that right now," Ekman-Larsson told the team's official website. "We created a lot of power-play chances but they didn't go in for us. We just need to keep working hard and playing that way."

Chicago didn't score much during its road swing, totaling 15 non-shootout goals in the seven games. Jonathan Toews has two goals in his last 19 games, while Patrick Sharp has one in 12.

Corey Crawford, however, has helped the Blackhawks overcome that by going 3-1-0 with a 1.73 goals-against average in his last four, and he's expected to start opposite Smith on Monday.

Smith has posted a 4.16 GAA in his last seven starts in this series.

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Preview: Flames (29-21) at Sharks (28-19)

Date: February 09, 2015 10:30 PM EDT

The Calgary Flames have made the most of Pacific Division contests in their efforts to maintain position in the Western Conference playoff picture.

That has been especially true against the San Jose Sharks.

With both teams coming off disheartening losses, the Flames play at San Jose on Monday night looking to cap off a dominant season series against the Sharks.

Calgary (29-21-3) fell 4-0 to Pittsburgh on Friday after winning eight of its previous 10. Despite the defeat, the hot stretch has pushed the Flames into the second wild-card spot, and they're tied with Vancouver in points for the third automatic berth in the Pacific and two points behind San Jose (28-19-7) for the second.

"A good homestand," defenseman Mark Giordano said. "We did a lot of good things, put ourselves in a good position. We'll go on the road here and hopefully we'll pick up some much-needed points."

Jonas Hiller suffered through one of his worst starts of the season Friday, allowing four goals on 24 shots before being replaced by Karri Ramo in the third period. Prior to that, he had posted a 1.41 goals-against average and 4-1-0 record over his previous five starts.

One of those wins came Wednesday against San Jose. Hiller stopped 28 shots in a 3-1 victory, the Flames' third in four games against the Sharks this season going into the final matchup.

Jiri Hudler has four goals and an assist in the four meetings for the Flames.

San Jose followed the loss to Calgary by upping its record against division opponents to 16-4-1 with a 5-1 victory in Vancouver on Thursday, only to fall 5-4 at home to lowly Carolina on Saturday.

"We're an inconsistent team," center Logan Couture told the Sharks' official website. "That comes with youth, I think, although tonight our younger players played very well. We're an inconsistent team this year. We need to fix that going forward.

"We've got a stretch run here. We're going to need to win a lot of games to get into the playoffs. We've got some big games coming up."

The Sharks are 7-2-1 against teams that have reached the 70-point mark but 3-6-1 against the Hurricanes, Buffalo, Edmonton and Columbus - four of the worst clubs in the league.

Still, no team has caused more trouble for San Jose than the Flames. The Sharks are averaging 2.80 non-shootout goals but 1.75 against Calgary and their power play, among the best in the NHL with a 20.9 percent success rate, has scored on one of 10 opportunities in the season series.

San Jose's Antti Niemi has been inconsistent in his last four starts, allowing four goals in two of them - including Saturday's game - and a total of one in the other two. Backup Alex Stalock picked up the loss Wednesday.

[StarDust Bum]

Armadillo: Tuesday's six-pack

Six of the best minor league prospects for the Boston Red Sox:

1) Blake Swihart, C-- Defense is ahead of offense, at this point.

2) Henry Owens, P-- Was starter for US team in Futures Game LY.

3) Rusney Castillo, OF-- Cuban defector got a $72.5M contract last summer

5) Brian Johnson, P-- Was 10-2, 1.75 in 20 AA starts last season.

12) Sam Travis 1B-- Indiana alum hit .313 in his first pro season.

17) Sean Coyle 2B/3B-- Hit 16 homers in AA LY, but has been injury-prone.

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Armadillo: Tuesday's List of 13: Nobody asked me, but......

13) Padres signed James Shields to a 4-year deal worth $72-76M; Shields has the most innings pitched (1,785.2) of any pitcher since 2007 (223+ IP a year).

12) Spurs 95, Pacers 93-- Gregg Popovich gets his 1,000th win as an NBA coach; San Antonio was down 14 points after the third quarter. How would you like to be the reporter who asked the sometimes-surly Popovich what 1,000 wins means to him?

Popovich is the ninth NBA coach with 1,000 wins; he has the second-best winning percentage of those nine. Only Phil Jackson's is better.

11) RIP, Mr Ed Sabol, founder of NFL Films, who made the NFL a lot more fun for a lot of us. Miking players, coaches and putting highlights to music were strokes of genius that helped the NFL become as popular as it is.

10) Oklahoma 94, Iowa State 83-- Game was 46-all at half, an entertaining game to see; Cyclones are struggling away from home. Oklahoma has now won five in a row.

9) Oregon gave football coach Mark Helfrich a new contract for five years, $17.5M; he is 24-4 in two years, with a Rose Bowl win this season.

8) Helfrich's new QB in 2015 will be Eastern Washington transfer Vernon Adams, which will be interesting; Ducks open the '15 season against Eastern Washington.

7) Lousy day in sports talk radio; someone in New York sent Knicks' owner James Dolan a nasty e-mail telling him low lousy he is, Dolan sent the guy an angrier e-mail in reply and somehow it all became public. Not only were the NYC shows talking about it, the national media was too. Dolan's a billionaire; just hit the delete key.

6) Virginia Tech 65, Georgia Tech 63-- Hokies came from behind to win at the end, a game played with great enthusiasm but not tremendous skill. I'm watching this game and I'm like, "This is ACC basketball???" Football has damaged ACC hoop; too many teams, too many smallish crowds at the bottom of this league.

Serious question; where does Syracuse basketball go when Jim Boeheim retires? With probation looming and Boeheim over 70, it could happen sooner than later, but they're in the ACC because of football and the money it generates. The basketball fanbase is spoiled; the next coach has very big shoes to fill. It won't be easy.

5) Sacramento Kings stupidly fired coach Mike Malone when they were 11-13; now they're 18-32 and changing coaches again, with George Karl apparently headed to northern California. Owner must have a lot of money to spend.

4) Dan Haren has a $10M contract to pitch this season, and said he only wanted to play for a west coast team, but the Dodgers traded him to Miami anyway. Haren did not say much, but did you really think he'd pass up $10M to make 25-30 starts and travel first-class all summer while living half the time in South Beach? He'll be with the Marlins this season, no surprise to anyone. Miami might be pretty good.

3) Clippers 115, Mavericks 98-- DeAndre Jordan had 22 points, 27 rebounds with Blake Griffin sidelined. big win for LA, ending a losing skid before the All-Star break. It is very, very difficult to get 27 rebounds in any basketball game.

2) I'm not a big NASCAR fan but I like watching it now and then because its fun to watch pit crews do their work and the announcers are so enthusiastic and its amazing that cars drive so close to each other while going so fast without crashing all the time.

Plus, the start of NASCAR means one big thing to me: winter is almost over. The last couple weeks around have totally sucked weather-wise; 30 inches of snow, few more nights with temps below zero. Spring training and NASCAR need to start and soon..

1) It feels strange to follow a baseball off-season where the White Sox, Padres spent a lot more money than the Bronx Bombers. What the hell is going on out there????