Blackhawks visit Flyers in afternoon clash

Hockey Betting Lines

03/13/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - One of the top teams in the Western Conference will head to the East Coast today as the Chicago Blackhawks visit the Philadelphia Flyers for an afternoon battle at Wachovia Center.

The Blackhawks have 93 points on the year, placing them first in the Central Division and two points behind San Jose for the conference lead. With a 14- point lead over Nashville, Chicago is likely headed to its first division title since the 1992-93 campaign.

Chicago dropped a 5-4 regulation decision last Sunday against Detroit but bounced back with Wednesday's close victory over the visiting Los Angeles Kings. Patrick Sharp opened the scoring early in the contest and lit the lamp 2:08 into overtime to give the Blackhawks a 3-2 win in the final test of a four-game homestand at United Center.

An ill-timed turnover by Kings forward Brad Richardson in the neutral zone set up the game-winning tally. Dave Bolland picked up the puck and quickly dished to Sharp, who beat Los Angeles goaltender Jonathan Quick on a breakaway for his 21st goal of the season.

"There are a lot of games left. We just want to build as the playoffs come," Sharp said.

Kris Versteeg had the other goal for Chicago and Patrick Kane added an assist to push his point streak to nine game. Antti Niemi made 28 saves to pick up the win, Chicago's seventh in its last nine games.

The Blackhawks are 18-10-3 as the visiting team this year and, beginning with today's tilt, are playing four of their next five games on the road. Chicago will host Washington Sunday afternoon at United Center.

Cristobal Huet is expected to get the start in goal tonight and Niemi will return to the crease in Sunday's game against the Capitals.

Meanwhile, the Flyers come into today still very much in a fight for a playoff spot. With 74 points, Philadelphia is tied with Montreal for the sixth seed out of eight postseason berths in the East.

Philadelphia was dealt a decisive loss by visiting Boston on Thursday, marking just the second regulation loss for the Flyers in 10 games (7-2-1). Tuukka Rask stopped 31-of-32 shots and Patrice Bergeron added a goal and two assists to lead the Bruins to the 5-1 rout of the Flyers.

Jeff Carter recorded the lone goal for the Flyers, whose two-game win streak came to an end.

"We've been not playing the greatest (lately), and I think we've been getting away with it on the power play and scoring timely goals," said Flyers captain Mike Richards. "But tonight we got what we deserved."

Starter Michael Leighton was tagged for four goals on 25 shots in 31-plus minutes. Brian Boucher finished the game with 11 stops, but Leighton is likely to get the start today. Boucher could earn the start in Sunday's game versus the New York Rangers.

Today's test marks the end of a four-game homestand for the Flyers, who are 20-12-2 as the host this year. Philadelphia's test against the Rangers on Sunday kicks off a four-game road trip.

This afternoon's tilt marks the only regular season meeting between the Blackhawks and Flyers this year. Chicago pounded the visiting Flyers, 5-1, last year, ending Philadelphia's six-game winning streak in the series. The Blackhawks come into today with losses in their last seven games in the City of Brotherly Love.

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Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.