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

[StarDust Bum]

NHL
Dunkel

Nashville at Buffalo
The Predators head to Buffalo tonight and come into the contest with a 2-6 record in their last 8 road games. Buffalo is the pick (+220) according to Dunkel, which has the Sabres favored by 1. Dunkel Pick: Buffalo (+220). Here are all of today's NHL picks.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 22

Game 51-52: Boston at Chicago (3:30 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Boston 10.282; Chicago 11.679
Dunkel Line & Total: Chicago by 1 1/2; 4
Vegas Line & Total: Chicago (-175); 5
Dunkel Pick: Chicago (-175); Under

Game 53-54: Washington at Philadelphia (12:30 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Washington 12.649; Philadelphia 10.454
Dunkel Line & Total: Washington by 2; 6 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Washington -115); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Washington (-115); Over

Game 55-56: Florida at Pittsburgh (6:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Florida 11.734; Pittsburgh 10.620
Dunkel Line & Total: Florida by 1; 6
Vegas Line & Total: Pittsburgh (-170); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Florida (+150); Over

Game 57-58: Nashville at Buffalo (6:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Nashville 10.273; Buffalo 11.192
Dunkel Line & Total: Buffalo by 1; 4
Vegas Line & Total: Nashville (-260); 5
Dunkel Pick: Buffalo (+220); Under

Game 59-60: Vancouver at NY Islanders (6:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Vancouver 11.603; NY Islanders 12.479
Dunkel Line & Total: NY Islanders by 1; 6
Vegas Line & Total: NY Islanders (-150); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: NY Islanders (-150); Over

Game 61-62: Tampa Bay at Colorado (7:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Tampa Bay 10.819; Colorado 12.615
Dunkel Line & Total: Colorado by 2; 6 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Tampa Bay (-120); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Colorado (+100); Over

Game 63-64: Columbus at NY Rangers (7:30 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Columbus 12.178; NY Rangers 11.043
Dunkel Line & Total: Columbus by 1; 4 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: NY Rangers (-240); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Columbus (+200); Under

Game 65-66: Dallas at Minnesota (8:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Dallas 10.910; Minnesota 12.320
Dunkel Line & Total: Minnesota by 1 1/2; 4 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Minnesota (-160); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Minnesota (-160); Under

[StarDust Bum]

NHL

Sunday, February 22


Dubnyk to start for Wild against Stars

Devan Dubnyk gets the call between the pipes for the Minnesota Wild when they host the Dallas Stars later tonight.

Dubnyk has a 2.20 goals against average and a .925 save percentage in 31 games this season, however he is just 2-6-1 with a 3.43 gaa and an .866 save percentage in nine career starts versus the Stars.

The Wild are currently -160 favorites with a total set at 5.5.



NHL roundup: Red Wings outlast Stars in OT

DALLAS -- Center Pavel Datsyuk scored two goals and two assists and defenseman Niklas Kronwall added a goal and an assist, including the game-winner early in overtime, as the Detroit Red Wings defeated the Dallas Stars 7-6 in overtime on Saturday night at American Airlines Center.

Dallas led 4-2 after two periods but Detroit tied it early in the third thanks to two goals from defenseman Jakub Kindl.

The Stars then went ahead 6-4 with goals from rookie left winger Curtis McKenzie and center Shawn Horcoff, but again the visitors had an answer.

Left winger Justin Abdelkader and Datsyuk each scored with Datsyuk's goal coming as Detroit had the extra attacker with 1:48 remaining.

Kronwall then beat Stars goaltender Kari Lehtonen with a backhand 36 seconds into overtime to clinch the victory.

Detroit backup goaltender Jonas Gustavsson stopped both shots he faced in relief of starter Jimmy Howard to earn the win.

Kings 2, Sharks 1

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- San Jose took it outside Los Angeles and still didn't have any luck. The Sharks' nemesis to the south came into a sold-out Levi's Stadium and rained on the hosts outdoor game party in front of a California hockey attendance record of 70,205.

Right winger Marian Gaborik's tiebreaking goal 4:04 into the third period propelled the red-hot defending Stanley Cup champions to a seventh straight victory.

San Jose hoped to snap a five-game home losing streak on the makeshift rink in the middle of the 49ers' sparkling new facility. Instead, the Sharks fell out of a playoff spot as the Kings leapfrogged them into eighth place.

Los Angeles goalie Jonathan Quick stopped 31 of 32 shots, including the only seven San Jose managed in the third period.

Senators 4, Panthers 1

OTTAWA — Ottawa recovered from a 1-0 deficit with four unanswered goals to beat Florida.

The loss stopped the Panthers winning streak at two games and prevented them from moving into the final wild card spot in the East. The Senators have now won two in a row for the first time since Dec. 29-Jan. 3.

The victory also moved the Senators to within seven points of the final wild card spot, which is held by the Boston Bruins.

Ducks 2, Oilers 1

EDMONTON, Alberta -- The Anaheim Ducks knew it wasn't going to be easy, but they probably didn't think it would be that hard, either.

The fifth place team in the NHL needed a third-period fluke to beat 29th place Edmonton.

The Ducks broke open a 1-1 game with 7:13 to go in the game when Oilers defenseman Justin Schultz accidentally kicked a puck into his own net.

Anaheim centre Ryan Getzlaf, who had just dug the puck out from under Ben Scrivens pad in the Oilers crease, got credit for the winner.

It stood up as the winner.

Penguins 4, Blues 2

ST. LOUIS -- Left winger Blake Comeau scored twice and backup goalie Thomas Greiss stopped 21 of 23 shots to lead Pittsburgh past St. Louis.

Comeau put the Penguins in front at 16:31 of the first period and scored again at 15:38 of the second period, his 14th of the season, when he deflected a shot by defenseman Simon Despres past goalie Brian Elliott.

The Penguins also got a power-play goal from right wing Patric Hornqvist in the second period, snapping an 0-for-20 streak on power-play opportunities over their past nine games dating back to Jan 30.

Lightning 4, Coyotes 2

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Tampa Bay knows that if it wants to be considered a legitimate Stanley Cup contender, it has to improve on a mediocre road record that was better than only Boston among current Eastern Conference playoff teams.

The Lightning might be establishing a little road mojo after beating slumping Arizona at Gila River Arena.

Left winger Odrej Palat scored twice and right winger Ryan Callahan added a goal and an assist as the Lightning won for the third time on a five-game road trip that concludes Sunday in Colorado and already includes wins over San Jose and Anaheim.

Canadiens 3, Blue Jackets 1

MONTREAL -- Montreal beat Columbus to snap a two-game skid and end the Jackets' two-game winning streak.

Canadiens left winger Max Pacioretty extended his scoring streak to four games with his 28th goal of the season 2:29 into the first period.

Blue Jackets defenseman Kevin Connauton was in the penalty box for tripping right winger Brendan Gallagher and Pacioretty took advantage on the power play, beating Blue Jackets goaltender Curtis McElhinney with a shot to the top right corner. Defenseman Andrei Markov and Gallagher had assists.

Maple Leafs 4, Jets 3 (OT)

TORONTO -- Left winger James van Riemsdyk scored with 1:13 remaining in overtime as Toronto defeated Winnipeg.

Van Riemsdyk scored his 22nd goal of the season from the right faceoff circle to snap a five-game winless streak for the Maple Leafs.

Center Mark Scheifele scored a goal and added an assist as the Jets who lost their second game in a row.

The Jets started overtime shorthanded when defenseman Mark Stuart was penalized for interference with six seconds remaining in the third period. Winnipeg killed the penalty but did not survive the overtime.

Devils 3, Hurricanes 1

NEWARK, N.J. – Rookie goaltender Keith Kinkaid stopped all 17 shots he faced before leaving with an apparent groin injury and defenseman Andy Greene scored his first goal in almost a full calendar year leading New Jersey over Carolina.

The victory was the third straight for New Jersey, which had dropped four straight before starting its longest home stand of the season, a six-game stint. Carolina lost for the fourth time in its last six contests. It was the third time this season that the Devils won three straight.

Flyers 3, Predators 2 (SO)

PHILADELPHIA -- After dropping two straight games at home to teams sitting below .500, Philadelphia notched a shootout victory over NHL-best Nashville.

"Unfortunately, we don't play like that every night," Flyers right winger Wayne Simmonds said. "We have to find a way to play that way against teams that are below us."

Simmonds scored in the shootout and tallied a goal in the first period, while right winger Jakub Voracek netted the game-winner in the shootout, when goalie Rob Zepp stopped the Predators' only two shots.

Capitals 3, Islanders 2 (SO)

WASHINGTON -- In what could be an early preview to an entertaining Eastern Conference playoff series, Washington and New York needed extra time to decide a winner for the third time in four meetings.

After the teams traded goals in the final five minutes of regulation, rookie center Evgeny Kuznetsov scored the only goal of the shootout to give the Capitals the win.

"I look at that game as, hopefully, a playoff series at some point," Capitals coach Barry Trotz said after seeing his team achieve its first four-game winning streak of the season. "Two very good hockey teams that mirror each other in a lot of ways, in terms of style.

[StarDust Bum]

NHL

Sunday, February 22


Caps are red hot, but Flyers have their number

The Washington Capitals are red hot, winning eight of their last 10 games, but face a Philadelphia Flyers team that has had their number, with the Flyers have topping the Capitals in five of their last six meetings.

For their meeting this afternoon the Capitals are slight -115 favorites with a total set at 5.5.

[StarDust Bum]

Armadillo: Monday's six-pack

Six of the best minor league prospects for the Washington Nationals......

1) Lucas Giolito, P-- 12-3, 2.17 in 32 minor league starts, all in A ball.

2) Michael Taylor, OF-- Got promoted to majors, has only 44 AAA ABs

6) AJ Cole, P-- Was 7-0 in AAA LY; has 500 minor league IPs.

7) Wilmer Difo, 2B/SS-- Played in 360 minor league games, all in A ball.

11) Austin Voth, P-- Allowed 122 hits in 173 minor league IP.

16) Taylor Hill, P-- Another in increasingly long line of Vanderbilt pitchers.



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

13) Louisville threw senior PG Chris Jones off the team for good Sunday, a day after he played 36:00 off the bench in their win over Miami; Jones missed the loss at Syracuse because he was suspended. Lot of drama in Louisville this winter.

12) Sunday was Julius Erving's 65th birthday; I remember getting into arguments with a friend of mine in high school; who was better, Erving or Rick Barry? I was on Barry's side; still think he was a highly underrated player.

11) There are lot of reasons why the San Antonio Spurs are really good, but team chemistry plays into it too; Saturday night Patty Mills was honored by St Mary's, and Manu Ginobili, Boris Diaw and Tiago Splitter were all there with him. Pretty cool to see them watching a college game, considering none of those three played college ball.

10) It is amazing to me to watch a NASCAR race and see how close 20-30 cars are driving together, all over 195 mph. Do those guys drive out on the street in real life? Do they get mad at some bad driver who changes lanes all the time?

9) Knicks were a 17-point home underdog to Cleveland Sunday; its really hard to be so bad that you're a 17-point home dog, but Cleveland had the spread covered before the first quarter was over. This Knick team is an epic disaster; the coach and GM make a combined $17M a year and they're this bad. Wow.

8) Possible big trouble for Oklahoma City, as Kevin Durant had "minor surgery" done on his foot. Minor surgery is generally "surgery somebody else has"; if Durent has to shut it down for rest of the season, its curtains for the Thunder this year.

7) Anyone have any theories on why so many NBA players are getting hurt? Are the sneakers not sturdy enough to protect guys' feet? Do players overtrain, stressing maximum performance over durability? Are players just getting softer?

6) Want to win a bar bet?. Sam Snead is the oldest golfer to win a PGA Tour event, at 52 years of age. Sunday was Vijay Singh's 52nd birthday; he was tied for the lead for a while in the final round of the LA Open, but he faded late.

5) Bad beat of the day: Central Florida (+7.5) loses to Memphis by 10 in OT; Knights had fought back from a 16-point first half deficit.

4) According to Mapquest, it is 1,474 miles from Storrs, CT to New Orleans, but somehow, UConn and Tulane are league rivals, even though neither one has a football program that is worth screwing over your basketball team for. Go figure.

3) If you bet the road team in every Tennessee conference game this season, you'd have 13 wins and one loss. Vols' next game is at Vanderbilt.

2) Golfer James Hahn is a nice guy; walking up the fairway in a driving rainstorm in Los Angeles Sunday, Hahn turned to the CBS cameraman behind him and offered to share his umbrella with the guy. Not everyone would do that.

1) JK Simmons won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor last night, but I missed it because, for some odd reason, that was the first award they gave out- I was watching the Michigan State game on another channel. Simmons has been on Law and Order for 15 years, has been in many commercials/movies and is a terrific actor.

Thankfully the Internet exists and I saw his speech a couple hours later. Seems like a fairly normal guy for a celebrity-- good for him.

[StarDust Bum]

NHL
Dunkel

Detroit at Anaheim
The Red Wings head to Anaheim tonight and come into the contest with a 5-1 record in their last 6 games versus Pacific Division opponents. Detroit is the pick (+120) according to Dunkel, which has the Red Wings favored by 2. Dunkel Pick: Detroit (+120). Here are all of today's NHL picks.

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 23

Game 1-2: Arizona at New Jersey (7:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Arizona 9.854; New Jersey 12.298
Dunkel Line & Total: New Jersey by 2 1/2; 4
Vegas Line & Total: New Jersey (-200); 5
Dunkel Pick: New Jersey (-200); Under

Game 3-4: Detroit at Anaheim (10:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Detroit 12.363; Anaheim 10.435
Dunkel Line & Total: Detroit by 2; 6 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Anaheim (-140); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Detroit (+120); Over




NHL
Long Sheet

Monday, February 23

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ARIZONA (20-32-0-7, 47 pts.) at NEW JERSEY (24-26-0-9, 57 pts.) - 2/23/2015, 7:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
NEW JERSEY is 14-34 ATS (+49.7 Units) in non-conference games over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
ARIZONA is 2-0 (+2.0 Units) against the spread versus NEW JERSEY over the last 3 seasons
ARIZONA is 2-0-0 straight up against NEW JERSEY over the last 3 seasons
0 of 0 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+0.0 Units)

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DETROIT (33-14-0-10, 76 pts.) at ANAHEIM (37-16-0-7, 81 pts.) - 2/23/2015, 10:05 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
ANAHEIM is 7-6-0 straight up against DETROIT over the last 3 seasons
5 of 10 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+0.7 Units)

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NHL
Armadillo's Write-Up

Monday, February 23

Hot teams
-- New Jersey won last three games, allowing four goals.
-- Red Wings won four of their last five games.

Cold teams
-- Arizona lost last five games, outscored 20-8.
-- Ducks lost five of their last eight games.

Series records
-- Devils lost four of last five games with Arizona.
-- Detroit is 7-5 in its last 12 games with Anaheim.

Totals
-- Last four Arizona games went over the total; five of last six Devil games stayed under.
-- Six of last eight Detroit games stayed under the total.

Back-to-back
-- None




NHL

Monday, February 23

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Trend Report
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7:00 PM
ARIZONA vs. NEW JERSEY
Arizona is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games
Arizona is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing New Jersey
New Jersey is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games when playing at home against Arizona
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of New Jersey's last 6 games

10:00 PM
DETROIT vs. ANAHEIM
Detroit is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing Anaheim
Detroit is 11-4 SU in its last 15 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Anaheim's last 6 games at home
Anaheim is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing Detroit

[StarDust Bum]

NHL

Monday, February 23


NHL roundup: Bruins snap skid, rout Blackhawks

CHICAGO -- Center Patrice Bergeron scored his 200th career goal and notched two assists, and the Boston Bruins cruised to a 6-2 win against the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday afternoon.

Right winger Reilly Smith added a goal and an assist for Boston, which set a season-high in goals. The Bruins snapped a six-game winless skid with their first victory since Feb. 7.

Center Jonathan Toews and left winger Bryan Bickell scored for Chicago. The four-goal losing margin matched the most lopsided defeat of the season for the Blackhawks.

The Bruins pulled away with four goals in the second period by left winger Milan Lucic, center Gregory Campbell, defenseman Dougie Hamilton and Smith. Along with Bergeron, right winger Loui Eriksson scored in the first period.

Boston goaltender Tuukka Rask stopped 26 of 28 shots to improve to 24-15-9.

Chicago goaltender Corey Crawford allowed four goals on 14 shots before he was replaced with 7:41 remaining in the second period. Goaltender Antti Raanta stopped 14 of 16 shots in relief.

Flyers 3, Capitals 2

PHILADELPHIA -- Center Claude Giroux and right winger Wayne Simmonds each scored power-play goals and defenseman Michael Del Zotto added a late go-ahead goal to lead Philadelphia to a win over Washington.

Flyers goaltender Rob Zepp made 21 saves in the victory.

Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby stopped 25 of 28 shots. Right winger John Carlson and right winger Joel Ward each scored for the Capitals, who saw their season-high four-game winning streak end.

Penguins 5, Panthers 1

PITTSBURGH -- Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury made 34 saves and Pittsburgh came alive in the third period to beat Florida at Consol Energy Center.

Right winger Patric Hornqvist and center Evgeni Malkin scored two goals each and defenseman Paul Martin added one while Fleury, who allowed two goals or fewer in his past seven games, held the fort on the back end.

Right winger Scottie Upshall spoiled Fleury's bid for a ninth shutout when he scored off of a faceoff play to make it 5-1 at 12:23. Center Vincent Trocheck got the only assist on the goal.

Canucks 4, Islanders 0

UNIONDALE, N.Y. -- Right winger Zack Kassian scored the first of Vancouver's three second-period goals while goalies Ryan Miller and Eddie Lack combined to stop all 37 shots they faced in a victory over the New York Islanders at Nassau Coliseum.

Right winger Radim Vrbata and center Bo Horvat also scored in the second, while defenseman Yannick Weber added an empty-netter with 10.2 seconds left in the third.

Islanders goalie Jaroslav Halak recorded 20 saves.

Predators 2, Sabres 1 (SO)

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Center Filip Forsberg scored in the fourth round of the shootout to lead Nashville to a win over Buffalo.

Center Mike Ribeiro scored in regulation for Nashville, which snapped a two-game losing skid. Goalie Carter Hutton made 16 saves for the Predators.

Right winger Tyler Ennis scored for Buffalo and goalie Michal Neuvirth finished with 37 saves.

Avalanche 5, Lightning 4

DENVER -- Center Nathan MacKinnon broke a 13-game goal drought with his first career hat trick, leading Colorado over Tampa Bay.

Center Matt Duchene and left winger Alex Tanguay also scored and goaltender Semyon Varlamov had 28 saves for the Avalanche, who won four of five.

Center Tyler Johnson had a goal and two assists, right winger Nikita Kucherov had a goal and an assist and wingers Ondrej Palat and Brett Connolly added goals for the Lightning, who ended their five-game road trip 3-2.

Rangers 4, Blue Jackets 3 (SO)

NEW YORK -- Left winger Rick Nash scored the deciding goal in a shootout as the New York Rangers defeated Columbus at Madison Square Garden.

Right winger Martin St. Louis scored his 17th and 18th goals of the season for the Rangers, who are 6-0-2 in their past eight games, all without injured No. 1 goaltender Henrik Lundqvist. Backup Cam Talbot made 27 saves to earn the victory. Center Kevin Hayes also scored for the Rangers.

The Blue Jackets erased a three-goal deficit, receiving goals from left wingers Marko Dano and Artem Anisimov and a tying goal from defenseman David Savard with 4:19 remaining in the third period. Goaltender Curtis McElhinney made 34 saves and took the loss.

Wild 6, Stars 2

SAINT PAUL, Minn. -- Minnesota got a pair of goals from left winger Zach Parise and single goals from center Mikko Koivu, left winger Stephane Veilleux, defenseman Matt Dumba and center Mikael Granlund, improving to a NHL-best 13-2-2 in its past 17 games with a win over Dalls.

For the first time since late November, Minnesota moved into the top eight in the Western Conference with the win. Minnesota goalie Devan Dubnyk continued his run of success with 18 saves.

Center Jason Spezza scored twice -- a second-period power-play goal and an even-strength goal in the final minutes -- for Dallas, which is now winless (0-2-1) in its past three games. Goalie Jhonas Enroth, making his third start for the Stars since coming over in a trade from Buffalo, made 29 saves in the loss.

[StarDust Bum]

Ducks place goalie Bryzgalov on waivers

February 22, 2015

A person familiar with the move tells The Associated Press that the Anaheim Ducks have placed goalie Ilya Bryzgalov on waivers.

The person spoke Sunday on the condition of anonymity because the team has not announced the decision.

Bryzgalov hasn't played since allowing three goals on eight shots in a 6-2 loss at Florida on Feb. 10. The 34-year-old went 1-4-1 in eight appearances since signing a one-year, $2.88 million contract with Anaheim in December.

The Ducks were in need of goaltending depth behind Frederik Andersen after rookie John Gibson was sidelined by a groin injury.

Gibson has played six games since being recalled Feb. 10 following a two-month stint in the minors. Andersen is day to day after missing six games with an upper-body injury.

[StarDust Bum]

Sharks playoff streak in jeopardy

February 23, 2015

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - After celebrating the success of hockey in Northern California with an outdoor party that included more than 70,000 fans, the San Jose Sharks now must deal with the fact that the franchise is in danger of hitting its lowest point in more than a decade.

When the Sharks return to the ice following their outdoor loss against Los Angeles, they will be stuck in 10th place in the Western Conference with plenty of work to do over the final 21 games to extend their playoff streak.

San Jose has qualified for the past 10 postseasons, a streak surpassed only by the Detroit Red Wings and the NBA's San Antonio Spurs in North America's four major sports.

''You want to push toward that second season, and right now we're not there,'' forward Joe Pavelski said. ''So there's nothing given to us and we got to go earn it.''

The push for a playoff spot over the final 21 games begins Thursday night against the Red Wings. The Sharks have lost eight of their last 11 games, including a 2-1 defeat on Saturday night to the Los Angeles Kings in front of 70,205 fans at Levi's Stadium - the third-largest crowd in NHL history.

With seven of the next eight games at home, San Jose needs to make a move now.

''They're smart guys, and they have 42 (points) left on the table,'' coach Todd McLellan said. ''We'll have to go out and earn more than we lose, if we do that, we'll take care of ourselves.''

The outdoor loss to the Kings was just the latest disappointment delivered to the Sharks by their Southern California rivals, who have knocked San Jose out of the playoffs the past two seasons.

Last year's defeat was especially painful and still lingers with the team 10 months later. San Jose became the fourth NHL team to lose a best-of-seven playoff series after winning the first three games.

That was perhaps the most crushing moment in a decade of postseason disappointment. While San Jose has been one of the league's most consistent teams since the start of the 2003-04 season, the Sharks have failed to make it past the conference finals while the California rival Kings and Anaheim Ducks have won three of the past eight titles.

Last year's playoff collapse led to Joe Thornton being stripped of his captaincy and general manager Doug Wilson talking about the need to take one step backward before taking two steps forward.

''Right now I think we're trying to define, and I've said this a number of times over the last week, we're trying to define and clarify expectations,'' McLellan said. ''We can't give ourselves permission to be average. We're better than average and we have to play that way.''

They sure haven't during this latest funk. The Sharks showed signs of progress by beating Los Angeles, Anaheim and Chicago in successive games surrounding the All-Star break.

But a home loss to last-place Edmonton started this latest slump as San Jose has allowed 38 goals in the past 11 games. Poor defensive play has been a constant for most of the season as the Sharks are allowing their most goals per game since 2005-06 - when offensive numbers spiked in the first year following the lockout.

There have been other problems as well, including inconsistent goaltending from Antti Niemi and a lack of depth scoring. Patrick Marleau is on pace for his fewest goals since his rookie year in 1997-98, second-year player Tomas Hertl has been in a season-long scoring slump and the Sharks have been unable to generate any consistent scoring from their bottom two lines.

That will need to change over these next seven weeks if the Sharks are to have a chance to make the playoffs.

''We'll fight until the end of the season,'' forward Logan Couture said. ''We'll push as hard as we can to make the playoffs. If we don't make it, shame on us.''

[StarDust Bum]

Armadillo: Tuesday's six-pack

-- Louisville 52, Georgia Tech 51-- Cards were down 13 in second half.

-- St John's 58, Xavier 57-- Game of spurts; Red Storm won five of last six.

-- Kansas State 70, Kansas 63-- K-State has to do a better job of security after games, someone is going to get hurt with ridiculous court storming.

-- Did the Red Sox sign Yoan Moncada as a precursor to a Cole Hamels trade?

-- Did the Miami Heat lower ticket prices when Lebron James skipped town?

-- UCLA hired former Penn State DC Tom Bradley as defensive coordinator; these college coaches are nomads, many of them. Change jobs a lot.



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Armadillo: Tuesday's List of 13: Ranking the months of the year.......

Keep in mind I live in the northeast, so weather is a factor in these rankings.......

12) January-- 31 days of potentially horrible weather. NFL playoffs help, college hoop helps, golf on TV helps, but if you live in upstate NY, January generally sucks.

11) February-- Same as January, except three days shorter and spring training starts, though the exhibition games belong to March. Since I'm retired now, Monday holidays in January/February don't help this rating anymore- every day is a holiday.

10) May-- NBA/NHL playoffs, baseball and better weather, not much else.

9) June-- US Open, NBA Finals, summer starts and if you're a kid or a teacher, school ends for the summer, but I'm not a kid or a teacher.

8) April-- Opening Day of baseball is special, college hoop Final Four, playoffs start in NBA/NHL, the Masters and winter is officially over. Plus I usually go to Las Vegas in April, though this year my trip is in March.

7) October-- World Series, football, some downtime in between baseball and basketball seasons. If you've never done Halloween in Las Vegas, its quite an experience.

6) March-- NCAA tournament is my favorite event of the year, but other than that and spring training baseball, March is a slightly better version of February.

5) August is a great month to live in upstate New York, lot of fun stuff going on and it is only the end of summer if you're a kid/teacher. Plus football season is approaching so there's lot of studying to be done, preferably ourdoors by a pool.

4) July-- Horse racing in Saratoga, me in Las Vegas for couple weeks-- NBA Summer League, lot of AAU games, baseball's All-Star Game, the British Open, even start of NFL training camps. July is a very good month.

3) September-- Football starts, baseball pennant races, a very interesting month.

2) November-- Ton of activity; college hoop starts, college football winds down, NFL, NHL, NBA; when I was working, you also had two days off in there. Election Night is an underrated night of good live TV, if its an even-numbered year.

1) December-- Bowl games, college hoop, end of the NFL regular season, Christmas, New Year's Eve, hey its my birthday too!!! So what if it snows sometimes.....

[StarDust Bum]

NHL
Long Sheet

Tuesday, February 24

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ARIZONA (20-33-0-7, 47 pts.) at NY ISLANDERS (39-20-0-2, 80 pts.) - 2/24/2015, 7:05 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
NY ISLANDERS is 2-1 (+1.0 Units) against the spread versus ARIZONA over the last 3 seasons
NY ISLANDERS is 2-1-0 straight up against ARIZONA over the last 3 seasons
2 of 3 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+1.1 Units)

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VANCOUVER (34-22-0-3, 71 pts.) at BOSTON (29-21-0-9, 67 pts.) - 2/24/2015, 7:05 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

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

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CALGARY (32-23-0-4, 68 pts.) at NY RANGERS (36-16-0-6, 78 pts.) - 2/24/2015, 7:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
CALGARY is 32-27 ATS (+59.9 Units) in all games this season.
CALGARY is 17-7 ATS (+9.9 Units) after a division game this season.
CALGARY is 91-90 ATS (+201.8 Units) in road games after a loss by 2 goals or more in their previous game since 1996.
NY RANGERS are 199-197 ATS (-90.0 Units) in home games second half of the season since 1996.
NY RANGERS are 47-59 ATS (-42.5 Units) in home games on Tuesday nights since 1996.
NY RANGERS are 123-124 ATS (-58.6 Units) in home games after a division game since 1996.
NY RANGERS are 77-88 ATS (-58.9 Units) in home games in non-conference games since 1996.
NY RANGERS are 107-113 ATS (-57.5 Units) in home games after scoring 4 goals or more in their previous game since 1996.
NY RANGERS are 162-195 ATS (-159.4 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record since 1996.

Head-to-Head Series History
NY RANGERS is 2-1 (+0.4 Units) against the spread versus CALGARY over the last 3 seasons
NY RANGERS is 2-1-0 straight up against CALGARY over the last 3 seasons
3 of 3 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+3.0 Units)

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BUFFALO (17-38-0-5, 39 pts.) at COLUMBUS (26-28-0-4, 56 pts.) - 2/24/2015, 7:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
BUFFALO is 38-104 ATS (+225.1 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
BUFFALO is 13-51 ATS (+106.8 Units) second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
BUFFALO is 14-50 ATS (+102.4 Units) after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game over the last 2 seasons.
BUFFALO is 15-50 ATS (+91.3 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record over the last 2 seasons.
BUFFALO is 6-25 ATS (+44.2 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
COLUMBUS is 38-33 ATS (+82.4 Units) second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
COLUMBUS is 29-24 ATS (+3.6 Units) after a division game over the last 2 seasons.
COLUMBUS is 39-27 ATS (+72.4 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record over the last 2 seasons.
COLUMBUS is 22-9 ATS (+12.5 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
COLUMBUS is 3-1 (+1.1 Units) against the spread versus BUFFALO over the last 3 seasons
COLUMBUS is 3-1-0 straight up against BUFFALO over the last 3 seasons
2 of 3 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+0.8 Units)

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PHILADELPHIA (26-23-0-11, 63 pts.) at CAROLINA (21-30-0-7, 49 pts.) - 2/24/2015, 7:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
PHILADELPHIA is 2-10 ATS (-8.5 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a losing record this season.
CAROLINA is 7-16 ATS (-11.4 Units) in home games vs. division opponents over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
CAROLINA is 5-4 (+1.1 Units) against the spread versus PHILADELPHIA over the last 3 seasons
CAROLINA is 5-4-0 straight up against PHILADELPHIA over the last 3 seasons
5 of 9 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+1.2 Units)

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MONTREAL (38-16-0-5, 81 pts.) at ST LOUIS (38-17-0-4, 80 pts.) - 2/24/2015, 8:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
ST LOUIS is 41-16 ATS (+14.0 Units) in non-conference games over the last 2 seasons.
MONTREAL is 38-21 ATS (+9.1 Units) in all games this season.
MONTREAL is 13-5 ATS (+7.9 Units) in a road game where where the total is 5 or less this season.
MONTREAL is 23-15 ATS (+40.8 Units) in road games second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
MONTREAL is 15-6 ATS (+7.5 Units) after a win by 2 goals or more this season.
MONTREAL is 17-7 ATS (+9.6 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
MONTREAL is 6-0 ATS (+6.0 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
ST LOUIS is 2-1 (+0.8 Units) against the spread versus MONTREAL over the last 3 seasons
ST LOUIS is 2-1-0 straight up against MONTREAL over the last 3 seasons
1 of 1 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+1.0 Units)

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EDMONTON (17-34-0-10, 44 pts.) at MINNESOTA (31-21-0-7, 69 pts.) - 2/24/2015, 8:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
EDMONTON is 17-44 ATS (+85.6 Units) in all games this season.
EDMONTON is 3-18 ATS (+33.0 Units) after a division game this season.
EDMONTON is 10-32 ATS (+60.6 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent this season.
EDMONTON is 19-54 ATS (+110.9 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
MINNESOTA is 13-3 ATS (+8.8 Units) in February games over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
MINNESOTA is 7-2 (+2.6 Units) against the spread versus EDMONTON over the last 3 seasons
MINNESOTA is 7-2-0 straight up against EDMONTON over the last 3 seasons
5 of 9 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+0.9 Units)

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COLORADO (26-23-0-11, 63 pts.) at NASHVILLE (40-13-0-7, 87 pts.) - 2/24/2015, 8:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
NASHVILLE is 40-20 ATS (+64.9 Units) in all games this season.
NASHVILLE is 16-1 ATS (+14.7 Units) in a home game where where the total is 5 or less this season.
NASHVILLE is 11-1 ATS (+9.2 Units) in home games second half of the season this season.
NASHVILLE is 11-1 ATS (+9.3 Units) in home games on Tuesday nights this season.
NASHVILLE is 14-7 ATS (+3.7 Units) vs. division opponents this season.
NASHVILLE is 11-1 ATS (+9.6 Units) in home games after a non-conference game this season.
NASHVILLE is 38-26 ATS (+10.0 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent over the last 2 seasons.
NASHVILLE is 21-6 ATS (+12.5 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record this season.
COLORADO is 81-68 ATS (+7.4 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
COLORADO is 43-30 ATS (+10.9 Units) second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
COLORADO is 34-25 ATS (+59.0 Units) after a non-conference game over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
COLORADO is 6-4 (+1.2 Units) against the spread versus NASHVILLE over the last 3 seasons
COLORADO is 6-4-0 straight up against NASHVILLE over the last 3 seasons
5 of 10 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=-0.2 Units, Under=-0.9 Units)

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DALLAS (27-24-0-9, 63 pts.) at WINNIPEG (30-20-0-11, 71 pts.) - 2/24/2015, 8:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
DALLAS is 5-17 ATS (+24.7 Units) vs. division opponents this season.
DALLAS is 6-15 ATS (-10.2 Units) after a division game this season.
WINNIPEG is 10-3 ATS (+6.7 Units) on Tuesday nights this season.
WINNIPEG is 29-22 ATS (+54.3 Units) after allowing 4 goals or more over the last 2 seasons.
DALLAS is 193-131 ATS (+35.9 Units) after a loss by 2 goals or more in their previous game since 1996.

Head-to-Head Series History
WINNIPEG is 4-4-0 straight up against DALLAS over the last 3 seasons
4 of 8 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=-0.6 Units, Under=-0.5 Units)

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FLORIDA (26-21-0-12, 64 pts.) at CHICAGO (35-20-0-5, 75 pts.) - 2/24/2015, 8:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
FLORIDA is 12-6 ATS (+6.0 Units) after allowing 4 goals or more this season.
CHICAGO is 28-38 ATS (-26.4 Units) in home games in February games since 1996.
CHICAGO is 10-13 ATS (-14.1 Units) second half of the season this season.
CHICAGO is 8-12 ATS (-15.0 Units) after a non-conference game this season.
CHICAGO is 6-12 ATS (-13.3 Units) after playing 3 consecutive home games over the last 3 seasons.
CHICAGO is 13-13 ATS (+13.0 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record this season.
CHICAGO is 3-6 ATS (-9.2 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record in the second half of the season this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
CHICAGO is 2-0 (+2.0 Units) against the spread versus FLORIDA over the last 3 seasons
CHICAGO is 2-0-0 straight up against FLORIDA over the last 3 seasons
1 of 2 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+0.0 Units)

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DETROIT (33-14-0-11, 77 pts.) at LOS ANGELES (28-18-0-12, 68 pts.) - 2/24/2015, 10:35 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
DETROIT is 5-1 (+4.9 Units) against the spread versus LOS ANGELES over the last 3 seasons
DETROIT is 5-1-0 straight up against LOS ANGELES over the last 3 seasons
3 of 4 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+1.9 Units)

[StarDust Bum]

NHL
Armadillo's Write-Up

Tuesday, February 24

Hot teams
-- Canucks won five of their last seven games.
-- Rangers won six of their last seven games.
-- St Louis won 11 of its last 15 games. Canadiens won six of their last nine games.
-- Minnesota won 11 of its last 13 games.
-- Avalanche won four of its last five games. Nashville won seven of last nine games.
-- Kings won their last seven games, allowing 13 goals.

Cold teams
-- Arizona lost its last six games, scoring 8 goals. Islanders lost last two games,. 3-2/4-0.
-- Boston lost six of its last seven games.
-- Flames lost three of last four road games.
-- Sabres lost six of their last seven games. Columbus is 5-7 in its last 12 games.
-- Columbus lost four of last six games. Flyers lost nine of last twelve road games.
-- Edmonton lost four of its last five games.
-- Dallas Stars lost four of their last five games. Winnipeg is 4-9 since All-Star break.
-- Panthers, Blackhawks both lost five of their last seven games.
-- Red Wings lost four of their last six games.

Series records
-- Arizona is 5-3 in its last eight games with the Islanders.
-- Canucks won three of last four games with Boston.
-- Rangers won four of last five games with Calgary.
-- Blue Jackets won three of last four games with Buffalo.
-- Carolina won five of last six games with Philadelphia.
-- Blues won five of their last six games with Montreal.
-- Minnesota won eight of last ten games with Edmonton.
-- Avalanche lost eight of last nine games in Nashville.
-- Road team won all three Dallas-Winnipeg games this season.
-- Blackhawks won their last five games with Florida.
-- Kings lost their last four games with Detroit.

Totals
-- Four of last five Arizona road games stayed under.
-- Last six Boston games went over the total.
-- Six of last seven Ranger games went over total.
-- Four of last five Columbus home games went over.
-- Five of last six Carolina home games stayed under.
-- Six of last seven Montreal road games stayed under.
-- Seven of last nine Edmonton road games went over.
-- Last four Nashvlle home games stayed under total.
-- Over is 12-6 in last 18 Dallas road games.
-- Four of last five Chicago home games stayed under.
-- Last four Los Angeles games stayed under the total.

Back-to-back
-- Arizona is 3-6 if it played the night before.
-- Red Wings are 4-2 if they played night before.

[StarDust Bum]

NHL

Tuesday, February 24

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Trend Report
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7:00 PM
ARIZONA vs. NY ISLANDERS
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Arizona's last 7 games when playing on the road against NY Islanders
Arizona is 3-5-2 SU in their last 10 games ,when playing on the road against NY Islanders
The total has gone OVER in 5 of the NY Islanders last 6 games when playing Arizona
NY Islanders are 6-11-3 SU in their last 20 games ,when playing Arizona

7:00 PM
BUFFALO vs. COLUMBUS
Buffalo is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing Columbus
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Buffalo's last 7 games when playing Columbus
Columbus is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Buffalo
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Columbus's last 5 games at home

7:00 PM
CALGARY vs. NY RANGERS
Calgary is 2-4 SU in their last 6 games when playing on the road against NY Rangers
Calgary is 1-4 SU in their last 5 games when playing NY Rangers
NY Rangers are 13-5 SU in their last 18 games at home
NY Rangers are 4-1 SU in their last 5 games when playing Calgary

7:00 PM
PHILADELPHIA vs. CAROLINA
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Philadelphia's last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Philadelphia's last 6 games when playing Carolina
Carolina is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing Philadelphia
Carolina is 7-16 SU in its last 23 games when playing Philadelphia

7:00 PM
VANCOUVER vs. BOSTON
Vancouver is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Vancouver's last 6 games when playing Boston
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Boston's last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Boston's last 6 games at home

8:00 PM
COLORADO vs. NASHVILLE
Colorado is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Colorado's last 13 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Nashville's last 7 games
Nashville is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games

8:00 PM
DALLAS vs. WINNIPEG
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Dallas's last 8 games when playing on the road against Winnipeg
Dallas is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Winnipeg's last 6 games when playing Dallas
Winnipeg is 7-15 SU in its last 22 games when playing Dallas

8:00 PM
EDMONTON vs. MINNESOTA
Edmonton is 4-17 SU in its last 21 games when playing Minnesota
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Edmonton's last 9 games on the road
Minnesota is 20-3 SU in its last 23 games when playing at home against Edmonton
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Minnesota's last 6 games when playing at home against Edmonton

8:00 PM
MONTREAL vs. ST. LOUIS
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Montreal's last 9 games when playing on the road against St. Louis
Montreal is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games when playing St. Louis
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of St. Louis's last 9 games when playing at home against Montreal
St. Louis is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing Montreal

8:30 PM
FLORIDA vs. CHICAGO
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Florida's last 6 games when playing on the road against Chicago
Florida is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games
Chicago is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games
Chicago is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games at home

10:30 PM
DETROIT vs. LOS ANGELES
Detroit is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games on the road
Detroit is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games
Los Angeles is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home
Los Angeles is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games when playing Detroit

[StarDust Bum]

NHL

Tuesday, February 24


Red Wings' LW Henrik Zetterberg, Doubtful Tuesday

Zetterberg missed Monday's game due to an upper-body injury and is not expected to play Tuesday against the Kings.


Canucks' G Ryan Miller, Early April

Miller is expected to miss four-to-six weeks with a lower-body injury.


Schneider making Devils a hot under play

The New Jersey Devils continue to be one of the hottest under plays in the NHL thanks in large part to the play of goaltender Cory Schneider.

With Schneider making 38 saves in the Devils 3-0 shutout win over the Arizona Coyotes Monday night, New Jersey went under yet another total. The under is 9-1-1 in Schneider's last 11 starts, in a streak that has seen him give up just 1.54 goals per game.

The streak has made the Devils the NHL's third best under play at 20-35-5 O/U.

Next up, Schneider and the Devils host the Calgary Flames Wednesday.

[StarDust Bum]

NHL
Dunkel

Montreal at St. Louis
The Canadiens head to St. Louis tonight to face the Blues (38-17-2) and come into the contest with an 8-0 record in their last 8 games versus a team with a winning record. Montreal is the pick (+135) according to Dunkel, which has the Canadiens favored by 1 1/2. Dunkel Pick: Montreal (+135). Here are all of today's NHL picks.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 24

Game 51-52: Arizona at NY Islanders (7:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Arizona 9.681; NY Islanders 12.260
Dunkel Line & Total: NY Islanders by 2 1/2; 6 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: No Line
Dunkel Pick: N/A

Game 53-54: Vancouver at Boston (7:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Vancouver 12.822; Boston 11.381
Dunkel Line & Total: Vancouver by 1 1/2; 6
Vegas Line & Total: No Line
Dunkel Pick: N/A

Game 55-56: Calgary at NY Rangers (7:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Calgary 10.610; NY Rangers 13.058
Dunkel Line & Total: NY Rangers by 2 1/2; 4 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: NY Rangers (-185); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: NY Rangers (-185); Under

Game 57-58: Buffalo at Columbus (7:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Buffalo 11.201; Columbus 10.163
Dunkel Line & Total: Buffalo by 1; 4
Vegas Line & Total: Columbus (-260); 5
Dunkel Pick: Buffalo (+220); Under

Game 59-60: Philadelphia at Carolina (7:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Philadelphia 10.035; Carolina 11.689
Dunkel Line & Total: Carolina by 1 1/2; 6 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Carolina (-120); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Carolina (-120); Over

Game 61-62: Montreal at St. Louis (8:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Montreal 11.819; St. Louis 10.462
Dunkel Line & Total: Montreal by 1 1/2; 5 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: St. Louis (-155); 5
Dunkel Pick: Montreal (+135); Over

Game 63-64: Edmonton at Minnesota (8:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Edmonton 11.608; Minnesota 10.515
Dunkel Line & Total: Edmonton by 1; 4 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Minnesota (-300); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Edmonton (+250); Under

Game 65-66: Colorado at Nashville (8:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Colorado 10.834; Nashville 12.264
Dunkel Line & Total: Nashville by 1 1/2; 4
Vegas Line & Total: Nashville (-200); 5
Dunkel Pick: Nashville (-200); Under

Game 67-68: Dallas at Winnipeg (8:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Dallas 11.622; Winnipeg 9.709
Dunkel Line & Total: Dallas by 2; 6 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Winnipeg (-140); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Dallas (+120); Over

Game 69-70: Florida at Chicago (8:30 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Florida 9.388; Chicago 10.580
Dunkel Line & Total: Chicago by 1; 4
Vegas Line & Total: Chicago (-215); 5
Dunkel Pick: Chicago (-215); Under

Game 71-72: Detroit at Los Angeles (10:30 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Detroit 12.260; Los Angeles 11.328
Dunkel Line & Total: Detroit by 1; 6
Vegas Line & Total: No Line
Dunkel Pick: N/A

[StarDust Bum]

NHL

Tuesday, February 24


Darling to start for Blackhawks Tuesday

According to Chris Kuc, hockey writer for the Chicago Tribune, the Chicago Blackhawks will give Scott Darling the start in goal as they host the Florida Panthers Tuesday evening.

Chicago is currently mired in a three-game losing streak which includes a 6-2 loss versus the Boston Bruins Sunday. Starting goaltender Corey Crawford was pulled in the second period after allowing four goals on 14 shots.

Darling has made seven starts already this season and owns a 5-2 record, 1.97 goals against average and .937 save percentage.

The Blackhawks are presently -210 favorites with the Panthers in town.

NHL

Tuesday, February 24


Gustavsson to make first start in over two months

The Detroit Red Wings will start Jonas Gustavsson for the first time since the goaltender was placed on injured reserve in November. In limited appearances this season, 'The Monster' has a 2-1-1 record with a 2.18 goals against average and a .910 save percentage.

Gustavsson did make an appearance for the Red Wings on Feb. 21, when he spelled Jimmy Howard is a 7-6 Detroit win.

Currently, the Red Wings are +129 when they travel to Los Angeles Tuesday.