Announcement

**Udog** · 02-27-2015, 09:28 AM

Armadillo: Friday's six-pack

Six of the best minor league prospects of the Houston Astros.........

1) Carlos Correa, SS-- Hit .325 in half season of A ball after breaking his leg.

2) Mark Appel, P-- High draft pick is 6-8, 5.93 as a pro. No bueno.

3) Mike Foltynewicz, P-- Threw 19 innings in big leagues LY; not bad.

20) Max Stassi, C-- Got 20 ABs with the big club last summer.

24) Ronald Torreyes, 2B-- Hit .298 in AAA LY, will have to change positions.

28) Asher Wolchiechowski, P-- Has already thrown 210 innings in AAA.

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Armadillo: Friday's List of 13: Random stuff with weekend here......

13) Some quick thoughts on Bill Walton, basketball announcer.......
-- He is one of the greatest college basketball players ever, winning two national titles and losing in the national semi-finals the third year he played.
-- He had a bad stuttering problem as a young man, so his getting paid to talk now is an act of courage, something to be admired.
-- He is positive, upbeat and different; Lord knows ESPN needs someone as an analyst who isn't bland- they've gone that way with most of their recent hires.
-- He does not talk about the game all the time-- I guarantee you that you will learn something you did not know during a Walton broadcast; I cannot guarantee that it will have anything to do with basketball.
-- He prepares and works at it; Who else would tell you it was Vanna White's birthday or that the guy who wrote One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest lives in Oregon?
-- He tends to be more reserved when he works UCLA home games, and he feeds off the game he is working-- he is way better on close, fast-paced games.
-- If you don't like him, hit the mute button, but we need more positive energy in this world, and Walton is a 6-foot-11 fountain of positive energy.

12) Idaho 92, Montana 87 OT-- Griz gagged away a road game, fell out of a tie for first in Big Sky, which means they're unlikely to host the Big Sky tournament- they could knock Eastern Washington out of first place Saturday. .

11) Green Bay's Kiefer Sykes went over the 2,000-point mark last night; his team has won 46 games (14 losses) the last two years. Not sure he has enough help for them to win the Horizon tourney next month, but he is one hell of a player.

10) Minnesota 96, Michigan State 90 OT-- Gophers won for the first time in last 15 tries in East Lansing, as Spartans gagged away a late lead with horrendous defense. Not sure why a team like Michigan State plays so much better on the road, but they do.

9) Vanderbilt 73, Tennessee 65-- Commodores shot 84% in second half, then one of its players taunted an opponent after the game, prompting Vandy coach Stallings to flip out on his player in a public/profane way, so in the end, everyone lost in this one.

8) If you bet the road team in all of Tennessee's SEC games, you'd be 14-1 against the spread, which just doesn't happen very much.

7) Utah 83, Arizona State 41-- Game was 41-9 at the half. 41 to freakin' 9. It is safe to assume the Utes weren't looking ahead to the Arizona game.

6) Albany Great Danes will be the top seed in the America East tourney; my alma mater won this tourney the last two years, as the #4/#5 seed. Now the pressure is on them to win as the top seed. Easier said than done.

5) My cousin Kevin went to St Francis NY, one of five original D-I teams that has never been in the NCAA tournament, but they've got a 4-game lead in the NEC and are a favorite to win the tournament. Terriers started out 0-5 in November, but they're rolling now at 21-9, winning their last nine games.

4) Look out for UCSB in the Big West tournament; they got star big man Williams back from a shoulder injury, have a sharp coach (also named Williams) and are gaining positive momentum as they head towards the tournament in Anaheim.

3) Murray State is 25-4, 15-0 in the OVC but it looks like they still have to win the OVC tournament to make the NCAAs; lot of pressure on the top seeds in these middle of the road or lower leagues- their season is a failure if they don't win the tournament.

2) Its funny that Terry Collins can't get fired by the Mets, despite no winning seasons in four tries; he got fired at his other two jobs (Angels/Astros) despite having winning seasons in five of those six years. Life is funny sometimes.

1) Mets hitting coach Kevin Long once played CF on a summer league team with Curt Schilling, who says Long was the fastest guy on the team. It is unclear why Bronx cut the well-regarded Long loose after last year, but he didn't have to move, seeing as the two taxpayer-funded baseball stadiums in NYC are eight miles apart.

**Udog** · 02-27-2015, 09:31 AM

NHL
Dunkel

Chicago at Tampa Bay
The Blackhawks head to Tampa Bay tonight to face a Lightning team that is 1-4 in its last 5 games versus Central Division opponents. Chicago is the pick (+120) according to Dunkel, which has the Blackhawks favored by 1. Dunkel Pick: Chicago (+120). Here are all of today's NHL picks.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 27

Game 1-2: Washington at Carolina (7:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Washington 12.297; Washington 10.792
Dunkel Line & Total: Carolina by 1 1/2; 6
Vegas Line & Total: Washington -140); 5
Dunkel Pick: Carolina (+120); Over

Game 3-4: Boston at New Jersey (7:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Boston 12.430; New Jersey 10.772
Dunkel Line & Total: Boston by 1 1/2; 6
Vegas Line & Total: Boston (-140); 5
Dunkel Pick: Boston (-140); Over

Game 5-6: Calgary at NY Islanders (7:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Calgary 11.373; NY Islanders 12.529
Dunkel Line & Total: NY Islanders by 1; 4 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: NY Islanders (-175); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: NY Islanders (-175); Under

Game 7-8: Chicago at Tampa Bay (7:30 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Chicago 11.696; Tampa Bay 10.600
Dunkel Line & Total: Chicago by 1; 5
Vegas Line & Total: Tampa Bay (-140); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Chicago (+120); Under

Game 9-10: Colorado at Dallas (8:30 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Colorado 10.184; Dallas 11.410
Dunkel Line & Total: Dallas by 1; 6 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Dallas (-125); 5 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Dallas (-125); Over

Game 11-12: Los Angeles at Anaheim (10:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Los Angeles 11.017; Anaheim 12.134
Dunkel Line & Total: Anaheim by 1; 4
Vegas Line & Total: Anaheim (-110); 5
Dunkel Pick: Anaheim (-110); Under

**Udog** · 02-27-2015, 09:35 AM

NHL
Long Sheet

Friday, February 27

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WASHINGTON (33-19-0-10, 76 pts.) at CAROLINA (22-30-0-7, 51 pts.) - 2/27/2015, 7:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
WASHINGTON is 52-39 ATS (+94.3 Units) in road games in February games since 1996.

Head-to-Head Series History
WASHINGTON is 8-4 (+2.5 Units) against the spread versus CAROLINA over the last 3 seasons
WASHINGTON is 8-4-0 straight up against CAROLINA over the last 3 seasons
7 of 12 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+1.1 Units)

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BOSTON (29-22-0-9, 67 pts.) at NEW JERSEY (25-27-0-9, 59 pts.) - 2/27/2015, 7:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
BOSTON is 29-31 ATS (-15.4 Units) in all games this season.
BOSTON is 6-14 ATS (-10.3 Units) in a road game where where the total is 5 or less this season.
BOSTON is 2-8 ATS (-8.3 Units) in February games this season.
BOSTON is 9-15 ATS (-11.2 Units) after a non-conference game this season.
NEW JERSEY is 81-39 ATS (+9.6 Units) in home games after 3 or more consecutive unders since 1996.
NEW JERSEY is 8-1 ATS (+6.8 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record in the second half of the season this season.
NEW JERSEY is 9-21 ATS (-13.3 Units) on Friday nights over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
BOSTON is 6-2 (+2.8 Units) against the spread versus NEW JERSEY over the last 3 seasons
BOSTON is 6-2-0 straight up against NEW JERSEY over the last 3 seasons
4 of 7 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+0.8 Units)

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CALGARY (33-24-0-4, 70 pts.) at NY ISLANDERS (40-20-0-2, 82 pts.) - 2/27/2015, 7:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
CALGARY is 1-7 ATS (-6.2 Units) on Friday nights this season.
NY ISLANDERS are 40-22 ATS (+64.4 Units) in all games this season.
NY ISLANDERS are 7-1 ATS (+5.5 Units) on Friday nights this season.
CALGARY is 33-28 ATS (+62.1 Units) in all games this season.
NY ISLANDERS are 152-210 ATS (+413.2 Units) in a home game where where the total is 5.5 since 1996.

Head-to-Head Series History
CALGARY is 2-1 (+1.4 Units) against the spread versus NY ISLANDERS over the last 3 seasons
CALGARY is 2-1-0 straight up against NY ISLANDERS 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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CHICAGO (37-20-0-5, 79 pts.) at TAMPA BAY (37-19-0-6, 80 pts.) - 2/27/2015, 7:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
CHICAGO is 12-13 ATS (-12.3 Units) second half of the season this season.
CHICAGO is 10-12 ATS (-11.1 Units) after a non-conference game this season.
CHICAGO is 27-26 ATS (-17.0 Units) after a win by 2 goals or more over the last 2 seasons.
CHICAGO is 21-8 ATS (+8.6 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
TAMPA BAY is 2-1 (+1.9 Units) against the spread versus CHICAGO over the last 3 seasons
TAMPA BAY is 2-1-0 straight up against CHICAGO over the last 3 seasons
2 of 3 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+0.8 Units)

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COLORADO (26-24-0-11, 63 pts.) at DALLAS (27-25-0-9, 63 pts.) - 2/27/2015, 8:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
DALLAS is 193-132 ATS (+17.1 Units) after a loss by 2 goals or more in their previous game since 1996.
COLORADO is 81-69 ATS (+6.7 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
COLORADO is 43-31 ATS (+10.2 Units) second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
COLORADO is 12-6 ATS (+18.6 Units) in road games after a loss by 2 goals or more in their previous game over the last 2 seasons.
COLORADO is 43-19 ATS (+18.1 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record over the last 2 seasons.
COLORADO is 19-7 ATS (+10.6 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
DALLAS is 5-18 ATS (-18.1 Units) vs. division opponents this season.
DALLAS is 6-16 ATS (+24.6 Units) after a division game this season.
DALLAS is 4-14 ATS (-16.7 Units) in home games revenging a loss versus opponent this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
COLORADO is 9-3 (+6.0 Units) against the spread versus DALLAS over the last 3 seasons
COLORADO is 9-3-0 straight up against DALLAS over the last 3 seasons
6 of 10 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+2.0 Units)

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LOS ANGELES (29-19-0-12, 70 pts.) at ANAHEIM (38-17-0-7, 83 pts.) - 2/27/2015, 10:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
LOS ANGELES is 29-31 ATS (-17.8 Units) in all games this season.
LOS ANGELES is 8-17 ATS (-11.5 Units) in a road game where where the total is 5 or less this season.
LOS ANGELES is 11-15 ATS (-10.7 Units) after a non-conference game this season.
LOS ANGELES is 1-7 ATS (-8.6 Units) in road games after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game this season.
ANAHEIM is 99-58 ATS (+31.6 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
ANAHEIM is 187-152 ATS (+27.3 Units) after a non-conference game since 1996.

Head-to-Head Series History
ANAHEIM is 11-8 (+2.8 Units) against the spread versus LOS ANGELES over the last 3 seasons
ANAHEIM is 11-8-0 straight up against LOS ANGELES over the last 3 seasons
8 of 15 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+0.4 Units)

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**Udog** · 02-27-2015, 09:37 AM

NHL
Armadillo's Write-Up

Friday, February 27

Hot teams
-- Devils won four of their last five games.
-- Islanders won eight of their last twelve games.
-- Blackhawks won last three road games, allowing three goals. Tampa Bay is 6-1 in game following its last seven losses.
-- Avalanche won four of its last six games.
-- Los Angeles won eight of its last nine games. Ducks won three of last four.

Cold teams
-- Bruins lost seven of their last eight games.
-- Calgary lost three of its last four games.
-- Washington lost last two games, after winning eight of previous ten. Carolina is 5-7 in its last twelve games.
-- Dallas Stars lost last four games, allowing 22 goals.

Series records
-- Bruins won 10 of last 12 games with New Jersey.
-- Islanders won six of last nine games with Calgary.
-- Hurricanes lost four of last five games with Washington.
-- Lightning won five of last six games with Chicago.
-- Dallas Stars lost seven of last eight games with Colorado.
-- Ducks won five of last eight games with the Kings.

Totals
-- Last five Boston road games went over total.
-- Four of last five Islander home games went over.
-- Six of last seven Carolina home games stayed under.
-- Four of last five Lightning home games went over.
-- Under is 10-4 in last fourteen Colorado road games.
-- Eight of last eleven LA road games stayed under.

Back-to-back
-- Chicago is 4-2 on road if it played night before.
-- Kings are 2-4 if they played the night before.

**Udog** · 02-27-2015, 09:38 AM

NHL

Friday, February 27

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Trend Report
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7:00 PM
BOSTON vs. NEW JERSEY
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Boston's last 6 games when playing New Jersey
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Boston's last 7 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of New Jersey's last 6 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 4 of New Jersey's last 6 games when playing Boston

7:00 PM
CALGARY vs. NY ISLANDERS
Calgary is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 13 of Calgary's last 19 games on the road
NY Islanders are 3-7 SU in their last 10 games when playing at home against Calgary
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of the NY Islanders last 12 games

7:00 PM
WASHINGTON vs. CAROLINA
Washington is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Carolina
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Washington's last 5 games when playing Carolina
The total has gone UNDER in 17 of Carolina's last 25 games when playing Washington
The total has gone UNDER in 19 of Carolina's last 23 games at home

7:30 PM
CHICAGO vs. TAMPA BAY
Chicago is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games on the road
Chicago is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Tampa Bay
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Tampa Bay's last 10 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Tampa Bay's last 5 games when playing at home against Chicago

8:30 PM
COLORADO vs. DALLAS
Colorado is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Colorado's last 6 games when playing on the road against Dallas
Dallas is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing Colorado
Dallas is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games

10:00 PM
LOS ANGELES vs. ANAHEIM
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Los Angeles's last 6 games
Los Angeles is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games
Anaheim is 13-6 SU in its last 19 games at home
Anaheim is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games at home

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**Udog** · 02-27-2015, 09:42 AM

NHL

Friday, February 27

Hurricanes to start slumping Khudobin Friday

Despite dropping his last four starts, the Carolina Hurricanes will send Anton Khudobin to the net Friday. Khudobin has been faltering as of late with a poor .840 save percentage.

On the season, Khudobin is 6-11-3 with a 2.73 goals against average and .901 save percentage.

As of this writing, the 'Canes are +125 when they host the Washington Capitals.

Rask has been dominant versus the Devils

The Boston Bruins are expected to start Tukka Rask in nets Friday, which would make sense considering his dominance of the New Jersey Devils. In Rask's nine career starts against the Devils he has a 1.51 goals against average, which is his second-lowest against any team he has played more than five times.

Rask is sporting a .919 save percentage and a 2.37 goals against average this season.

As of this writing, the Bruins are -140 when they travel to New Jersey Friday.

Carey Price continues to be unstoppable on the road

There may be no better goalie in the NHL right now than Carey Price. After the Montreal Canadiens beat the Columbus Blue Jackets Thursday, Price now extends his franchise record for consecutive road wins to 10.

In Price's past past 10 road games the Habs netminder is 10-0 with a .955 save percentage, 1.20 goals against average and two shutouts.

The previous record of eight-straight road wins by a Canadiens goalie belonged to Rogie Vachon, who accomplished the feat in 1968-69.

The Canadiens 64.5 percent winning rate on the road is the top mark in the NHL this season.

Slumping Panthers drop fourth-straight Thursday

The Florida Panthers continue to move in the wrong direction, as they dropped their fourth-straight game Thursday night. Not only have the Panthers dropped four in a row, but they've also lost seven of their past nine.

In their past nine games, Florida has averaged 1.3 goals per game and have been shutout twice.

The Panthers next game is Saturday against the Buffalo Sabres.

Coyotes drop their seventh-straight versus East

With a 4-3 loss to the New York Rangers Thursday, the Arizona Coyotes continue their futility against the Eastern Conference. The 'Yotes have now lost seven consecutive games against the East, being outscored 26-10 during those games.

Arizona will try to reverse the trend when they travel to Boston Saturday night.

**Udog** · 02-27-2015, 09:45 AM

NHL

Friday, February 27

Road teams continue to be red-hot on the ice

With the stretch run kicking off and the playoff hunt on, teams have been travelling well in the NHL. Road teams are a stellar 9-3, or 75 percent, over the past two days on the ice.

Visiting teams have outscored their hosting counterparts 36-24 in those games, a scoring margin of 3-2, and have accomplished three shutouts in hostile environments.

The results could have easily favored the road side even heavier as the New York Rangers scored a late goal to top the visiting Arizona Coyotes and the Toronto Maple Leafs held off a late rush by the Philadelphia Flyers Thursday.

So far this season road teams have won 45.26 percent of hockey games.

**Udog** · 02-27-2015, 10:22 AM

NHL
Short Sheet

Friday, February 27

Washington at Carolina, 7:05 ET
Washington: 10-5 SU in road games after a game where they failed to cover the spread
Carolina: 5-18 SU revenging 2 consecutive losses to opponent as a favorite

Boston at New Jersey, 7:05 ET
Boston: 9-15 SU after a non-conference game
New Jersey: 82-33 SU in home games after 3 or more consecutive unders

Calgary at NY Islanders, 7:05 ET
Calgary: 1-7 SU on Friday nights
NY Islanders: 27-12 SU after a game where they covered the spread

Chicago at Tampa Bay, 7:35 ET
Chicago: 11-17 SU in road games after scoring 3 goals or more in 2 straight games
Tampa Bay: 9-0 SU in home games after 2 or more consecutive overs

Colorado at Dallas, 8:35 ET
Colorado: 81-69 SU in all games over
Dallas: 6-17 SU revenging a loss where opponent scored 4 or more goals

Los Angeles at Anaheim, 10:05 ET
Los Angeles: 8-18 SU in road games
Anaheim: 18-9 SU when playing their 4th game in 7 days

Announcement

Friday's NHL Trends and Indexes - 2/27

Friday's NHL Trends and Indexes - 2/27

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