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**Udog** · 05-03-2019, 07:31 AM

Armadillo: Friday's six-pack

Spreads on some random NFL games this fall:

— Week 10: Chargers (-4) @ Oakland

— Week 11: Patriots @ Philadelphia (-1.5)

— Week 12: Packers (-1) @ San Francisco

— Week 13: Saints (-3) @ Atlanta

— Week 14: Cowboys @ Chicago (-3.5)

— Week 15: Colts @ New Orleans (-4)

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

13) Mets 1, Reds 0— Noah Syndergaard threw a complete game 1-0 shutout and hit a home run; this is only the 7th time this has EVER happened, and only second time since 1971. Here are the other six times this happened (thanks to Andrew Simon for the research):

— Red Ruffing 8/13/32
— Spud Chandler, 5/21/38
— Early Wynn, 5/1/59
— Jim Bunning, 5/5/65
— Juan Pizarro, 9/16/71
— Bob Welch, 6/17.83

12) %age of runs scored on home runs the last four years:
2016: 40.2%
2017: 42.3%
2018: 40.3%
2019: 43.4% (thru Monday)

Before 2016, the all-time record was 37.3%.

11) Milwaukee Brewers have pitching issues; only once in their last 18 games has their starting pitcher finished the 6th inning; in half of those 18 games, the starter didn’t even finish the 5th inning, so there has been a tremendous strain on their bullpen.

10) Pac-12 is joining the ACC, Big 14 in moving to 20 conference basketball games, starting with the 2020-21 season. This does two main things:
— Creates more programming for the Pac-12 Network.
— Decreases the opportunities for mid-majors to schedule quality non-league games.

Now, if the geniuses who run the Pac-12 would allow their network to be shown on DirecTV. then maybe the league could get the exposure it deserves.

9) Golden State Warriors’ TV guy Jim Barnett was in the SF Giants’ TV booth during the game Wednesday night; he was saying how when he played in the NBA (Barnett had an 11-year career, scoring 11.7 ppg), he went through four pairs of sneakers per season.

Then he was saying that nowadays, Stephen Curry wears a different pair of sneakers every game. Must make the Warriors’ equipment manager’s job a real joy.

8) Apparently the family of a Chinese student admitted to Stanford in 2017 paid $6.5M to try to guarantee her spot there. My question is, why? Stanford is an excellent school, but still……

Why $6.5M? Why not $1M? Or $10M?

Is it that difficult to get into these schools? Or that lucrative to be an alumnus of one of these schools? Why not just save the $6.5M and go to a state school?

7) Baseball injuries:
— White Sox put P Carlos Rodon (edema in left arm) on IL.

6) College basketball transfer portal:
— Rutgers poaches Stony Brook grad transfer Akwasi Yeboah (16.7 ppg).

5) Wednesday night was 7th time in Jacob deGrom’s career that he’s thrown 7+ scoreless innings without getting the win in that game.

4) From the New York Post:

“Over last three fiscal years, Madison Square Garden paid CEO James Dolan $75.6M, according to a lawsuit filed on behalf of his shareholders. The average salary for CEO’s at similar companies is $17M a year.

The lawsuit claims Dolan is too focused on touring and recording as the frontman and guitarist for his band JD & the Straight Shot. In 2017 the band performed 50 times in six countries and 41 US cities.”

Lot fewer people would complain about Dolan if the Knicks didn’t suck every year. They’ve missed the playoffs the last six years, haven’t won an NBA title since 1973. NHL’s Rangers haven’t won the Stanley Cup since 1994; that is their only title since 1940- they missed the playoffs the last two years.

3) There are 16 players in the Pro Football Hall of Fame who weren’t drafted.

2) Sounds like Auburn is going to have a freshman QB starting this fall, which isn’t always good for a coach’s job security.

1) Get well soon to Celtics’ GM Danny Ainge, who suffered a mild heart attack in Milwaukee Tuesday night. He received immediate medical attention and is expected to make a full recovery.

**Udog** · 05-03-2019, 07:32 AM

**Udog** · 05-03-2019, 07:35 AM

79Ny Islanders -80 Carolina
CAROLINA is 10-0 ATS (10 Units) in home games after 2 consecutive division games in the current season.

81Dallas -82 St Louis
ST LOUIS are 18-8 ATS (10.7 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season in the current season.

NHL
Long Sheet

Friday, May 3

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NY ISLANDERS (52-29-0-8, 112 pts.) at CAROLINA (53-31-0-8, 114 pts.) - 5/3/2019, 7:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
CAROLINA is 37-17 ATS (+9.0 Units) second half of the season this season.
CAROLINA is 26-11 ATS (+12.0 Units) after a division game this season.
CAROLINA is 15-6 ATS (+8.5 Units) in the second round of the playoffs since 1996.
NY ISLANDERS are 52-37 ATS (+13.3 Units) in all games this season.
NY ISLANDERS are 22-13 ATS (+35.8 Units) vs. division opponents this season.
NY ISLANDERS are 22-12 ATS (+9.1 Units) after a division game this season.
NY ISLANDERS are 12-8 ATS (+22.9 Units) in road games revenging a loss versus opponent this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
CAROLINA is 9-7-0 straight up against NY ISLANDERS over the last 3 seasons
7 of 15 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=-1.8 Units, Under=-0.4 Units)

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DALLAS (49-35-0-8, 106 pts.) at ST LOUIS (51-31-0-10, 112 pts.) - 5/3/2019, 9:30 PM
Top Trends for this game.
DALLAS is 28-43 ATS (-24.3 Units) after a win by 2 goals or more over the last 3 seasons.
DALLAS is 33-46 ATS (-22.4 Units) after scoring 4 goals or more in their previous game over the last 3 seasons.
ST LOUIS is 36-19 ATS (+7.9 Units) second half of the season this season.
ST LOUIS is 30-20 ATS (+2.9 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
ST LOUIS is 18-8 ATS (+9.8 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
DALLAS is 11-7 ATS (+20.1 Units) in road games vs. division opponents this season.
DALLAS is 221-242 ATS (+514.3 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record since 1996.

Head-to-Head Series History
DALLAS is 9-8 (+0.9 Units) against the spread versus ST LOUIS over the last 3 seasons
DALLAS is 9-8-0 straight up against ST LOUIS over the last 3 seasons
9 of 15 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+3.2 Units)

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NHL

Friday, May 3

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Trend Report
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New York Islanders
NY Islanders is 6-3 SU in its last 9 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of NY Islanders's last 6 games
NY Islanders is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games on the road
NY Islanders is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of NY Islanders's last 5 games on the road
NY Islanders is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Carolina
NY Islanders is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing Carolina
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of NY Islanders's last 7 games when playing Carolina
NY Islanders is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Carolina
NY Islanders is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Carolina
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of NY Islanders's last 7 games when playing on the road against Carolina
Carolina Hurricanes
Carolina is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games
Carolina is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Carolina's last 6 games
Carolina is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing NY Islanders
Carolina is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing NY Islanders
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Carolina's last 7 games when playing NY Islanders
Carolina is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games when playing at home against NY Islanders
Carolina is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against NY Islanders
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Carolina's last 7 games when playing at home against NY Islanders

Dallas Stars
Dallas is 8-3 ATS in its last 11 games
Dallas is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Dallas's last 7 games
Dallas is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
Dallas is 10-4 SU in its last 14 games on the road
Dallas is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing St. Louis
Dallas is 8-3 SU in its last 11 games when playing St. Louis
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Dallas's last 6 games when playing St. Louis
Dallas is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against St. Louis
St. Louis Blues
St. Louis is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games
St. Louis is 14-6 SU in its last 20 games
St. Louis is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games at home
St. Louis is 16-5 SU in its last 21 games at home
St. Louis is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Dallas
St. Louis is 3-8 SU in its last 11 games when playing Dallas
The total has gone OVER in 4 of St. Louis's last 6 games when playing Dallas
St. Louis is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Dallas

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**Udog** · 05-03-2019, 08:00 AM

NHL
Dunkel

Friday, May 3

NY Islanders @ Carolina

Game 79-80
May 3, 2019 @ 7:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
NY Islanders
12.792
Carolina
11.479
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
NY Islanders
by 1 1/2
6
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Carolina
-140
5
Dunkel Pick:
NY Islanders
(+120); Over

Dallas @ St. Louis

Game 81-82
May 3, 2019 @ 9:30 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Dallas
12.579
St. Louis
11.077
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Dallas
by 1 1/2
6
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
St. Louis
-145
5
Dunkel Pick:
Dallas
(+125); Over

**Udog** · 05-03-2019, 09:46 AM

NHL Stanley Cup playoffs best bets and prop predictions: Sportsbooks keep low total for Blues, Stars
Monty Andrews

The Stars and Blues series has gone 3-0-1 to the Over so far, but that hasn't deterred oddsmakers from setting the O/U for tonight's game at just 5.

The Carolina Hurricanes are in cruise control, while the New York Islanders are scrambling for answers as the teams prepare to do battle Friday night in Game 4 of their Stanley Cup second-round series in Raleigh. Big changes could be in the offing for the Isles, and it's hard to know how they'll look coming out of the gate. Meanwhile, Dallas and St. Louis are now playing a best-of-three series that continues to surprise in the goal-scoring department. Here are the top betting tips for Friday's playoff games:

NEW YORK ISLANDERS AT CAROLINA HURRICANES

Moneyline Odds: New York +120/Carolina -140
Over/Under: 5 goals
Series Price: Carolina -3334/New York +1400

Start Time: 7 p.m. ET, PNC Arena, Raleigh, N.C.

Carolina's recipe for success in the postseason has closely mirrored what the Hurricanes did so well in the regular season; namely, dominating the shot attempt game. Carolina finished with a league-best +750 shot attempts differential in 2018-19, and is sitting at +25 through the first three games of this series. And while the Hurricanes could be doing a much better job with their shot attempts (they've have 48 missed shots compared to the Islanders' 34), they're doing a sensational job of limiting New York's high-danger attempts. Look for the Hurricanes to do just enough to wrap things up at home Friday night.

Having said that, neither team looked particularly strong on offense in the first two games of the series, but did generate more chances in Carolina's 5-2 triumph in Game 3. The Hurricanes appear to have solved their offensive woes – and with Thomas Greiss a possibility in goal for the Isles despite not having played since April 4, Carolina could find itself shooting on a rusty netminder. On the other side, New York has posted a pitiful 1.6 percent shooting rate at 5-on-5 in the series, and positive regression could be in the works. The O5 is a strong option here at +100.

DALLAS STARS AT ST. LOUIS BLUES

Moneyline Odds: Dallas +120/St. Louis -140
Over/Under: 5 goals
Series Price: St. Louis -167/Dallas +125

Start Time: 9:30 p.m. ET, Enterprise Center, St. Louis, Mo.

Oddsmakers remain stubborn on the total for Game 5, despite the fact that these teams have going 3-0-1 O/U against that number through the first four games. And the teams have wasted little time getting the offense going for the majority of this series, having produced nine first-period goals in their last three meetings. The game's first goal has come inside the opening 7 1/2 minutes in every game this series, as well. Banking on the continuation of these trends could mean big profit for those taking the first goal to be scored within the first 9:30 (-120), as well as the Over on the 1.5-goal first-period total.

The team scoring first has won three of the first four games in the best-of-seven – but you could do worse than wagering on that not being the case in Game 5. St. Louis struck first Wednesday night, only to see the Stars score four consecutive goals and put the game away. It's also worth considering that, while both teams finished seventh and eighth in the league in winning percentage when scoring first during the regular season, they also had 20 victories between them when allowing the first goal, while Dallas is a -68 in shot attempts when leading during the playoffs. Consider the No on the team scoring first to win the game at +195.

**Udog** · 05-03-2019, 12:16 PM

Preview: Islanders (48-27) at Hurricanes (46-29)
Date: May 03, 2019 7:00 PM EDT

With all the momentum on their side, the Carolina Hurricanes will be in no mood to give it back.

The Hurricanes will go for the series sweep of the New York Islanders in Friday night's Game 4 of the best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinals at PNC Arena in Raleigh, N.C.

"That's what we'll try to do," Hurricanes right winger Sebastian Aho said. "It's going to be a battle."

The Hurricanes are coming off Wednesday night's 5-2 victory in Game 3, albeit a deceiving result because the final two goals were empty-net tallies.

Still, the Hurricanes have continued to excel on home ice, where they're unbeaten in four playoff games.

"It's a big motivation to be able to close it out," Carolina defenseman Jaccob Slavin said. "If we can win, that's great. To be able to sweep here at home would be huge."

The Islanders never led in Game 3, though they were competitive from the get-go. It has been a series of missed chances for New York.

The Islanders lost for the first time in three road outings in this postseason. They'll need to claim another road victory in order to return the series to Brooklyn.

"We've got to earn the right to keep playing," Islanders coach Barry Trotz said. "Our backs are against the wall. We got to come with our best effort, and if we don't, then we won't earn the right to play."

The Hurricanes are aware that a big challenge awaits. Friday's game marks the fifth game in 10 days for Carolina.

When defenseman Justin Faulk came out of the penalty box to score in the second period, he became the sixth Carolina player to register his first career playoff goal this postseason.

It was a rather fortunate sequence for the Hurricanes.

"I thought we had big breaks, too," Trotz said. "I'm a big believer in that. We earned some opportunities. We've got to push harder to get more opportunities and more breaks. ... We haven't been able to find the extra goal to be on the positive side."

Carolina has scored five goals in three of its playoff home games.

"We're up 3-0. The last one is the hardest, and it always is," captain Justin Williams said. "The other team's backs are against the wall. We certainly don't want to go back there (to Brooklyn). If we have to, we will. We're going to work our tails off to hopefully get it done in four."

Carolina goalie Curtis McElhinney made his first start of this postseason as Petr Mrazek recovers from a lower-body injury sustained in Sunday's Game 2. At 35 years and 343 days old, McElhinney became the oldest goalie in NHL history to start a playoff game.

"We had some mistakes and our goalie came up huge when he had to," Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour said of McElhinney's 28-save performance.

The Hurricanes were energized in several ways, aided by the return from injury of forwards Andrei Svechnikov and Jordan Martinook.

Not only did they get the desired result, the Hurricanes had a good feeling about how it was achieved.

"I thought we were good all game and it looked more like our team throughout the game," Brind'Amour said. "It's just a battle that is sticking with your game and trying to create that one little gap."

--Field Level Media

*****************************

SERIES AT A GLANCE

GAME 1
Hurricanes at Islanders
Fri, Apr 26 Final 1 to 0
Recaps

GAME 2
Hurricanes at Islanders
Sun, Apr 28 Final 2 to 1
Recaps

GAME 3
Islanders at Hurricanes
Wed, May 1 Final 2 to 5
Recaps

GAME 4
Islanders at Hurricanes
Fri, May 3 - 7:00PM EDT

GAME 5
Hurricanes at Islanders
Sun, May 5 - 7:00PM EDT

**Udog** · 05-03-2019, 12:16 PM

Preview: Stars (43-32) at Blues (45-28)
Date: May 03, 2019 9:30 PM EDT

Bad blood. A bit of hatred. You can almost hear the Hanson brothers yelling: "Old-time hockey! Like Eddie Shore!"

The Western Conference semifinal series between the St. Louis Blues and Dallas Stars is not heading down the path of famed hockey movie "Slap Shot," but as the clubs head to Friday's Game 5 in St. Louis tied at 2-2, the emotions are elevated.

Or maybe the fracas that punctuated the middle frame of Dallas's 4-2 victory on Wednesday is just part of the ebb and flow of a Stanley Cup playoff series.

"There's nothing really to comment about," Dallas captain Jamie Benn told NHL.com. "Just a bunch of grown men being donkeys out there."

Well, there were some comically strange elements to the little dustup in the middle frame. First, Blues forward David Perron slashed Ben Bishop in the back after the Dallas goalie played the puck, and the towering Bishop fell like a redwood tree. Then, at the buzzer, Blues goalie Jordan Binnington took a swing at Benn while he was in his face. To cap it off, Binnington slashed at Bishop as the goalies crossed paths en route to the benches to head to the dressing room.

"Emotions were high," said Binnington, who was assessed roughing and slashing penalties. "I came back in (the dressing room) and regrouped. It's playoff hockey, it's exciting, and the fans are into it. So, it was an exciting game, and we are looking forward to the next game."

Don't be shocked, though, if that's the apex of the nastiness. Now that the series has become a best-of-three, clubs tend to focus on their execution with the knowledge a foolish penalty could end up costing the series.

And what a series it's already been, with outstanding back-and-forth performances. The Blues won the first and third games, while the Stars took the second and fourth, so it's up to St. Louis to respond after their first road loss of the playoffs.

"You turn the page, that's what the playoffs are all about," Perron said. "It's a tough one to swallow, but at the end of the day, it's 2-2. Both teams have played some really good hockey so far. We knew it was going to be a tough one. It's not going to be easy against this team, they're a really good team. They make you pay for your mistakes."

Stars head coach Jim Montgomery deserves some credit for his team's performance on Wednesday. He mixed up his lineup moving Tyler Seguin to a line with Jason Dickinson and Mats Zuccarello, and he put Roope Hintz between Benn and Alexander Radulov. Plus, Tyler Pitlick took the place of Mattias Janmark on the fourth line.

"I think you get some sparks from different line combinations," Benn said. "We've talked about that throughout the year. You're going to play with a lot of different guys at certain times. It worked out."

It's not likely the Blues will make sweeping roster changes, though, in response. They expect to rely on the experience that brought them to this point.

"We're disappointed," Blues forward Ryan O'Reilly said. "That wasn't the kind of game we wanted but it's a best out of three now and we're confident we'll turn it around."

--Field Level Media

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SERIES AT A GLANCE

GAME 1
Stars at Blues
Thu, Apr 25 Final 2 to 3
Recaps

GAME 2
Stars at Blues
Sat, Apr 27 Final 4 to 2
Recaps

GAME 3
Blues at Stars
Mon, Apr 29 Final 4 to 3
Recaps

GAME 4
Blues at Stars
Wed, May 1 Final 2 to 4
Recaps

GAME 5
Stars at Blues
Fri, May 3 - 9:30PM EDT

GAME 6
Blues at Stars
Sun, May 5 - 3:00PM EDT

Announcement

Friday's NHL Trends and Indexes - 5/3

Friday's NHL Trends and Indexes - 5/3

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