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Online Betting Overview

Those simultaneous hissing noises you hear coming from Washington, DCand Pittsburgh, PAare the air being let out of the Capitals’ and Penguins’ seasons. The Penguins used to be resilient. It used to be that Pittsburghcould at least be competitive without its captain Sidney Crosby. But the price per head bookie experts have watched the Penguins fall from the top of the Atlantic Division to fourth place. One of the more distressing thing for Penguins’ fans is thatPittsburgh is holding on to the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference by only one point. A little more stumbling and the Penguins could find itself on the outside looking in.

It has become extremely obvious by now that firing Bruce Boudreau as head coach of the Washington Capitals was not the answer to improving the team. The price per head sports experts would also like to point out that replacing Boudreau with rookieNHL head coach Dale Hunter was an even worse move. Hunter never had any leadership qualities when he was a player and that lack of leadership is spilling over into his head coaching style. The Capitals are afloat in a sea of mediocrity and it is hard to tell what can bring the team out of it. Even winning a couple of games last week did not seem to help. When things like this happen, fans look first at the coach and then the captain. The coach has been replaced, and team captain Alex Ovechkin is getting more and more disinterested by the day.

Pittsburgh Penguins

The Penguins are still playing hard every night and it could just be going through a stretch where nothing is going right. A 5 dimes review of the Penguins’ last 10 games shows a record of4-6-0. But that stretch includes a four-game losing streak where the Penguins cannot seem to do anything right. The fans inPittsburgh need to be patient asPittsburgh is only 10 points out of first place in the division. If there is a team in the NHL that has the capability to suddenly go on an extended winning streak, then that team would be the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Washington Capitals

For the first time in a very long time, the Washington Capitals have allowed more goals than it has scored. The other very noticeable attribute of the Capitals’ 2011-2012 record is that the NHL scores the Capitals are logging on the road are terrible. The Capitals are7-12-1 on the road, but the team is14-5-1 at home. The Capitals come into this game on a two-game losing streak and it is just one of many losing streaks the Caps have been on since Dale Hunter took over.

The Bottom Line

The Pittsburgh Penguins have shown an ability to fight back all season long despite long odds against them. The Washington Capitals have displayed signs of giving up at several points in the season. The goaltending with Tomas Vokoun has not panned out as it was supposed to and the Caps are not scoring. There is much more wrong with the Caps than just questionable coaching.

Pick: Pittsburgh Penguins

The beginning of January brings the close of the cupcake season for college basketball betting lines and the beginning of inter-conference play. It is during the start of January, that sharp handicappers, begin to place their wagers, as we find out which teams are actually good and which were the beneficiaries of the first half of their schedules. Today we’ll look at the best teams entering inter-conference month and which teams provide the best value for tonight’s NCAAB price per head action.

Depending on which site you use, you will either see the Syracuse Orange on top and Kentucky Wildcats in second overall, or vice versa. For all intents and purposes, Kentucky is the top seed despite a lower win loss record then Syracuse. The reason for Kentucky’s surge to the top is two fold, as they have the best roster in the country, and they recently destroyed the Louisville Cardinals, to jump ahead in the standings. However, with that in mind, it is important that bookie software agents, do not completely bank on Kentucky, while writing off Syracuse.

From a betting stand point, the Orange provide better value then the Wildcats, as the Orange are 10 – four – one against the spread, while the Wildcats are a miserable three – nine and one overall against the spread, but zero – eight – one in their last nine. Both Kentucky and Syracuse should remain one and two in the AP polls over the next couple weeks, as they face the cellar dwellers of their respective conference.

Looking ahead to tonight’s college basketball games, fans should keep an eye on the sixth ranked Missouri Tigers. Although they have an outstanding overall ranking, the Tigers similar to the Louisville Cardinals, are a bit overrated. In essence, the Tigers are undefeated through 13 games, but actually are five and three against the spread. Last game against Old Dominion, the Tigers big stars struggled against a stingy Old Dominion defense.

Tonight when they face the Oklahoma Sooners, if the Tigers struggle early, they could be looking at their first loss of the season. Oklahoma was projected to be at the bottom of the Big 12 this year, but has shocked many NBA handicapping sites, with their early success, only losing two of their first 15 contests. We believe that the Sooners will pull out their 14^th win tonight against the Tigers.

The 11^th ranked Michigan State Spartans will be looking to build off the momentum of their football contemporaries, as they travel to Wisconsin, to take on the 19^th ranked Badgers tonight. Michigan State kicked off the Big 10 league play last week, by destroying both Indiana and Nebraska. Meanwhile, the Badgers will be looking to rebound after an underwhelming performance against Iowa last week. With the Spartans playing on a whole different level than Wisconsin, we feel the Spartans will win this game as handily as they did against Indiana and Nebraska.

Sports Betting Overview

The Washington Capitals are in trouble. As most people expected, firing head coach Bruce Boudreau and replacing him with rookie NHLhead coach Dale Hunter was not the answer to the Capitals’ woes. The pay per head sportsbook experts do not seem phased by the recent challenges facing the Capitals asWashington is still a 6 ½ to 1 favorite to win the Stanley Cup this season. But anyone that has been watching the Capitals play lately has seen signs that this team is far from being a Stanley Cup contender. Team captain Alex Ovechkin is taking dumb penalties out of frustration and the Caps’ goaltending situation is not as stable as the team once thought. Tomas Vokoun is doing just fine, but Michal Neuvirth is not playing well at all. Vokoun cannot play every game this season, so Neuvirth is going to need to step up his game or get replaced.

By contrast, everyone has been able to see the Rangers play as of late thanks to the HBO series “24/7” that has been following the Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers as each team gets ready to compete in the 2012 Winter Classic. The thing that has been impressing the price per head sports experts about the Rangers is the consistency with which the Rangers play. The Rangers are tied for the lead in the Eastern Conference with those same Philadelphia Flyers mostly because the Rangers are a very well-balanced hockey team. The defense is steady and able to join in the offensive rush once in a while, and the offense is spreading the scoring around. When you back all of that up with goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, then you have a very potent hockey team.

Washington Capitals

A betonline.com review of the Capitals’ last 10 games shows a record of5-4-1. But it is the Caps’ overall road record that is raising eyebrows throughout the league. The Caps are6-10-1 on the road and it looks like a completely different team when it is away fromWashington,DC. At home, the Caps are11-5-1 and play a completely different brand of hockey. The Caps score a lot of goals but it also gives up a lot of goals as well. IfWashington wants to maintain its status as a Stanley Cup contender, then it will need to start playing better defense. This game against the Rangers is a chance forWashington to show that it can play the defense it needs to play to compete.

New York Rangers

The Rangers are riding a five-game winning streak and look like a John Tortorella coached team. They are aggressive but smart and always able to cover their mistakes in their own end. The Rangers have that level of discipline that the Capitals need. But the Rangers get their discipline from their coach. Henrik Lundqvist is having an all-star season and has to be considered an early candidate for the Vezina Trophy. But the Rangers are also getting some good play from backup Martin Biron as well. This is a very balanced hockey team that is able to lift itself up when it is having a bad night. It is up to the challenge of going intoWashingtonand facing a good home team.

The Bottom Line

NHL fans inWashington really thought that they had a Cup contender on their hands the past few years. But now the frustration is starting to show on the players and the fans inWashington. This game is not going to help the demeanor of the hockey fans and players inWashington,DC.

Pick: New York Rangers

Considering that the college basketball betting season gets underway at the end of the NCAA Football season, it is easy to understand why players looking to get in on the action on the hard court are so quick to jump on the top-ranked teams across the nation. But while the LSU, Alabama, Oklahoma State, and Stanford will combine for just three losses all year, it is unlikely that Syracuse, Ohio State, Kentucky, and Louisville will all remain in the top-four in college goops through the entire season. Even though it is still early, upsets should be expected at the college level, especially for teams with a lot of incoming talent in situations where coaches haven’t yet gotten the time to really work in their game plans and teach their squads the way that they would like to see them perform night in and night out. So while the favorite from a given matchup could be more talented, factors such as experience, chemistry, and environment all have to be taken in to consideration.

All three of those factors were present over the weekend when the former No. 1 Kentucky Wildcats suffered their first loss of the season at the hands of the unranked Indiana Hoosiers. Despite a combined 37 points between Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Doron Lamb, the Wildcats couldn’t keep pace with the Hoosiers on the road inside of Assembly Hall. A young Kentucky team that has a ton of talent but hasn’t spent a lot of time together was not able to rely on their talent alone as Indiana was able to hit a ton of wide open looks, especially after Terrence Jones got in to some early foul trouble and spent too much time on the bench. Considering that loss, combined with Ohio State also losing their first game of the year with Jared Sullinger out marked the first time since February of 2012 that the top two teams both lost on the same day, it really isn’t that rare of an occurrence on the Betonline basketball listings after all.

That said, it makes sense to take the success of the Syracuse Orange with a grain of salt after they moved to the top of the national rankings with their unblemished record, but their anointment is as much about the teams ahead of them losing as it is about the numbers that they have put up. Just because the Buckeyes and Wildcats both lost last week, that doesn’t mean they are not as good or even better than Syracuse, with the only difference at this point being timing. Playing within the confines of the Carrier Dome has been a boost for the Orange early on, one that they definitely needed in a close win over the Florida Gators, their lone contest to this point against a nationally ranked opponent. With the controversy surrounding the program in the wake of the latest scandal, it wouldn’t be a surprise if the team stumbles over their next couple of games, regardless of where they are ranked. Unlike in college football, college basketball teams will stumble multiple times throughout the course of the season, as even the best teams lose. That means taking every game with a grain of salt regardless of the labels that the pay head bookies put on them, because every game can be different.

Over the weekend the NCAA released the college football betting Bowl Game list set to take place over the course of the end of December to the middle of January. To say that the Bowl Games opened up a debate amongst fans, media and schools alike would be putting it lightly. Today, we’ll look at why the Rose Bowl game featuring Oregon and Wisconsin would be a much better option for the National Title Game, then the pay per head game SEC rematch between LSU and Alabama.

Since the BCS rankings came into play in the late 1990s, the NCAA has prided itself on allowing for the best teams in division one football to face one another in each of their Bowl Games. For the 2011 season, you can’t really say that the two best teams are facing each other, as the National Title game appears more like a cash grab for all involved, then finding out who the true Champion is. Essentially, for those people using this article for bookie software purposes, you should know, that the National Title game is a rematch of a regular season game between LSU and Alabama. Theoretically, this goes against everything the BCS Bowl format stands for, as the idea is for two teams that have not faced off throughout the season to face in the game they are awarded.

For that reason, the Rose Bowl game featuring the Oregon Ducks taking on the Wisconsin Badgers provides plenty more intrigue then the aforementioned LSU v Alabama game. Oregon and Wisconsin share not only identical overall records, but also identical offenses. What’s more? Both the Badgers and Ducks, have a Heisman Trophy candidate, coincidentally at the same position. Oregon is led by the smash mouth run game of running back LaMichael James, while Wisconsin counters with the running attack of Montee Ball.

On paper, whichever team is able to stop the run should come out on top in this game. Looking at the numbers, Montee Ball is supposed to be the better running back this season, as LaMichael James has missed time due to injury. Ball was dominant in last weekend’s Big 10 Championship game against Michigan State, as he rushed for over 130 yards while scoring three touchdowns. Overall, Ball has been the catalyst to the Badgers offense, as he has accumulated 17000 rushing yards and 32 touchdowns, putting him in the top five for Heisman conversation.

The Oregon Ducks meanwhile, appear to be a team looking to make a statement, after being snubbed of a rebirth in the National Title game. Where the Wisconsin Badgers primarily rely on Ball to carry the team, the Ducks are led by a more balanced attack. Aside from LaMichael James, NFL fans are also talking about quarterback Darron Thomas, as a potential late first round draft pick. While James takes most of the credit for the Ducks attack, Thomas has quietly struck gold in Oregon.

All of the NCAA basketball betting talk this past preseason was centered around the North Carolina Tar Heels and the amounts of money that they would make those willing to risk it on them this season. It didn’t take long for the No. 1 ranked preseason team to falter, and following a loss to the UNLV Rebels, the hammer came down hard from the social networks and those that felt the Tar Heels didn’t play with enough urgency during their trip toLas Vegas. At the end of the day however, that loss to the Rebels may have been exactly what head coach Roy Williams needed to get the attention of his players in the early going, and the team responded well with a 60-57 win over the No. 7 and previously undefeated Wisconsin Badgers on Wednesday night.

The Tar Heels did a lot of things right in that win over Wisconsin, although it did take even more steam from Williams, who at one point even ripped off his jacket and threw it to the floor as he screamed at his players. UNC responded, with Harrison Barners coming alive to score 10 of his 20 points during a second-half surge that helped the Tar Heels regain some of the momentum and swagger that they had been missing since early on against UNLV. Tyler Zeller helped out Barnes and his teammates by adding 12 points, while John Henson finished with 17 rebounds and five blocks. The win for those that took the game with the per head bookies was a relief after watching them battle resiliency through the first two quarters, but after finally prevailing they have to be feeling good about their game as they get set to clash with the new No. 1 team in the country, when they travel to Rupp Arena to take on the Kentucky Wildcats.

While the Tar Heels undoubtedly felt the burden of being the No. 1 team heading in to this season, Wildcats’ head coach John Calipari won’t have his team become overwhelmed by that number, as they prepare for every game as though it is the SEC championship. Kentucky has done an excellent job of working as a team and staying humble, and with Doron Lamb and Terrence Jones getting the job done at both ends of the floor it isn’t difficult to understand why Calipari once again has the Wildcats at the top of the table for those who have bet on them with the pay per head bookies.

If UNC is going to have any chance at countering Kentucky’s will to play as a single unit and get the job done, they are going to have to play a similar style, and rely on all aspects of their game with Barnes, Zeller, and Henson all working together. The talent is there for the Tar Heels to make the early-season trip a successful one, but once again it will come down to execution as the difference maker in the final outcome for those that wager with betonline.

Thanks to a wild and crazy week 12, week 13 of the college football betting season, has giant implications on the overall BCS picture. For the first time in the last three years, only one team in the top three remains undefeated. In fact, you could argue, that the top three this season may be the weakest of any year, as teams more deserving belong higher up the BCS Rankings. With so much still to decide, here is a look at some of the biggest games entering week 13 of the price per head college football season.

(3) Arkansas v (1) LSU – It was only a couple of weeks ago, that college football handicappers were in awe of two mega games, LSU v Alabama the first and second ranked teams, and Oklahoma State v Kansas State the third and seventh ranked teams. Now for the first time in NFL NCAA history, the top ranked team in the nation faces both the second and third ranked teams prior to a BCS Bowl game.

Despite being ranked third in the country, the odds are heavily against Arkansas to upset the best team in the nation LSU. After all, how many other games featuring two top programs in the final weeks of the season, do you see, with a 12 – point spread. Arkansas junior Tyler Wilson takes over for former quarterback Ryan Mallett currently of the New England Patriots. Wilson has flown under the radar this season, seemingly picking up where Mallett left off last season. Wilson has a 63.1 percent completion rate, to go a long with 21 touchdowns and five interceptions on the season. His strong play, has allowed the Razorbacks to accumulate a record of 10 and one, as they sit in third place in the entire nation.

On the contrary, LSU Tigers are showing that this year is their best ever. The quarterback tandem of Jared Jefferies and Jared Lee has carried the Tigers offense all season long. However, if you are a bookie software analyzing this game closer, you have to believe that the LSU defense will make or break this game. If the game ends up being similar to LSU Alabama, the defense will have to carry the bulk of the load. Anything short of that and the Razorbacks could pull off an unlikely upset.

(2) Alabama Crimson Tide v (24) Auburn Tigers – In this year’s addition of the Iron Bowl, the Crimson Tide are a 21- point favorite over inter-state rivals Auburn. Last season, the Tide defense let them down, as Cam Newton and the Tigers made quick work, in a 27 – 21 victory.

This season, the Tide will be looking to make a statement, as they hope a victory is enough to help them in the standings. In essence, a victory and an LSU loss almost certainly allows Alabama to have the number one seed as they face Arkansas for the National title. On the other hand, if LSU and Alabama both win they will have a rematch of their nine to six overtime game from a few weeks ago, in the National Title game.

When asked about the significance of win No. 903 and moving past his former coach and mentor Bobby Knight in to first place on the all-time wins list, Duke Blue Devils’ head coach Mike Krzyzewski talked down the actual number in terms of importance and alluded to the journey as being what brings him satisfaction. But while coach K made for some interesting language in that response, the truth is that the journey may never have been what it was if it wasn’t for the fact that he had been so successful. In any sport, the bottom line for a head coach is to produce wins, and everything else that comes with it beyond the ultimate results are just secondary objectives. At Duke, they want to win always. As long as coach K is overseeing the Blue Devils, there is no reason to think that they won’t even though many are projecting they won’t be the same sportsbook reviews force they were a year ago as ACC champions.

When you get to the level that Krzyzewski has hit, it is no longer about the negatives, the problems encountered along the way, the bad decisions that were few and far between. In 35 years as a head coach, Krzyzewski has had just four losing seasons. If you asked him he would tell you that he is more about avoiding losses than he is about just winning, and we can understand his terminology when we look back on those four losing seasons in comparison to 11 final fours and an incredible four Final Four appearances. The fact that a head coach has been to a March Madness Final Four as many times as he has had a losing season is almost surreal, and yet another pay head reason why there is promise for this coming year.

Heading in to this season, all of the talk in the ACC has been about Tyler Zeller and a veteran North Carolina Tar Heels’ team that has only gotten better since it pushed the Blue Devils to the sports betting brink last year. But considering the kind of talent turnover a program like Duke experiences every year, and even more importantly how the coach has handled the talent he has over that time, there really doesn’t appear any reason to doubt the Blue Devils. Coach K will look to work his magic once again with the No. 1 prospect of all high school students in Austin Rivers, as well as freshman Quinn Cook and Marshall Plumlee. Duke retained several key scorers including Seth Curry and Andre Dawkins as well as Josh Hairston, and if the scoring gels this team could be downright dangerous. Unlike in professional sports where a big part of success is on the superstar, the game at the college level is more about coaching than in any other sport. Coach K is a winner, and he will continue to win per head games this season.

Online Sportsbook Overview

Two very different teams, that play two very different styles, and are on two very different streaks meet in what should be a very entertaining hockey game. Last year, the New Jersey Devils got head coach John MacLean fired by December 22 because the team would not score goals. Notice that the term was “would not” as opposed to “could not.” The effort was not there for the Devils and the production was non-existent. Former Devils head coach Jacques Lemaire took over just before Christmas and almost took the Devils to the playoffs. Peter DeBoer is the head coach of the Devils now and the team is not scoring. The Lemaire countdown has already begun inNew Jersey.

The bookie software usually has the Washington Capitals at the top of the Southeast Division every year. This year is no different, but the Capitals are showing signs of inconsistency this season. In the early going of the year, the Capitals looked unstoppable. Alex Ovechkin was scoring goals and Tomas Vokoun was a monster in net. But in the last four or five games, the Capitals have slowed down. The team is showing that it is still unsure as to whether or not Michal Neuvirth should be the starter or not. Vokoun had struggled a little so Neuvirth went in and has gone 1-1 in his last two starts. There just does not seem to be any consistency from the Capitals’ roster, which is something that the price per head Capitals fans have been dealing with for years.

New Jersey Devils

Because it has future hall of fame goaltender Martin Brodeur in net, the Devils have been able to maintain a strong defensive team. But a sportsbook reviewof the Devils’ season so far shows that the team has given up more goals than it has scored. The Devils have scored only 33 goals in 13 games played this year and given up 36 goals. The defensive numbers forNew Jersey are impressive, but the lack of goal scoring is going to haunt the Devils all season long. It is not out of the question that the Devils will turn to Lemaire yet again if the team cannot turn things around by January. The question this time would be whether or not Lemaire wants to put his cape back on and swoop in to save the day.

Washington Capitals

NHL fans inWashington know that the Capitals will turn this losing streak around and get back to winning very soon. But inconsistent goaltending is rearing its ugly head again, and fans are starting to wonder if maybe head coach Bruce Boureau may not be a little to blame. Rather than staying with Neuvirth last season when times got tough, Boudreau kept cycling Neuvirth and Semyon Varlamov in and out of net. Rather than getting a backup to Neuvirth for this season, the Capitals pick up veteran starting goaltender Tomas Vokun. Then Boudreau platoons those two goalies based on who won last. The Capitals need to show confidence in one of its goalies if it wants to start winning again.

The Bottom Line

The Devils are not producing offensively despite having plenty of scoring punch on the roster. Maybe the team only responds to Lemaire, but that is a poor excuse for professionals to lose hockey games. The Devils offer the Capitals an opportunity for a win, and the Capitals will be more than happy to take it.

Pick: Washington Capitals

The 2011 college football betting season has been one of the most exciting in recent memory, as literally every week, it feels as though something new is happening. That was until last Saturday, when something strange happened. Basically, in any given week, we have seen the price per head NCAA move a team down in the standings dramatically after losing a game. However, this past Saturday, several teams despite losing, were given almost a free pass, as their losses did not affect their place in the standings at all. Here is a look at the updated bookie software NCAA standings.

In a move that comes as no surprise, the LSU Tigers remained number one on the AP 25 rankings after a nine to six overtime victory against the Alabama Crimson Tide. After defeating what was believed to be their toughest opponent of the current season, LSU is now considered by many to be a lock to win the National Title. The combination of Jordan Jefferson and Jared Lee has been stellar this season, guiding the Tigers to one of the best seasons in school history. However, moving forward, if the Tigers expect to win the National Title, they should stick with Jefferson, as he was the better of the two quarterbacks against Alabama on Saturday.

While LSU remaining atop was obvious, what came as a surprise to many people, we included, was the fact that Alabama only dropped a single position with their loss on Saturday night. The former NFL number two school in the nation, saw their stock drop to number three thanks to the incompetence of their field goal kicker. The NCAA’s decision to only move Alabama down a single spot has many people up in arms.

Essentially, the main argument against this decision is that it allows Alabama to get back into the National Title game despite losing. For the reason that Oklahoma dropped out down to 10 when they lost to Texas Tech a few weeks ago, it doesn’t seem fair, that because Alabama lost to a superior opponent they are any less punished then the Sooners were.

Theoretically speaking, Alabama should not make the National Title game, as that game should feature the top two schools in the nation. With that in mind, look for LSU to face Oklahoma State, in a game that could turn into a shootout. While LSU and Alabama were boring fans with a defensive battle on Saturday, the Oklahoma State Cowboys were involved in a shootout with the Kansas State Wildcats. Not only did the game blow the 70 point total out of the water, but the Cowboys need to win the game on last minute heroics, as they narrowly got away with a 52-45 victory.

Ranked second in the nation and facing Texas Tech and Iowa to close out the season, the Oklahoma State Cowboys could enter the National Title game with the best offense in the nation.