Pens down Bruins, who lose Savard

Hockey Betting Lines

03/07/2010 - Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Evgeni Malkin scored early in the third period to lift the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 2-1 win over the Boston Bruins at Mellon Arena.

Pascal Dupuis also tallied for the Penguins, who have won four straight coming out of the Olympic break. Pittsburgh goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury made 21 saves, while his counterpart, Tim Thomas, took the loss despite a 31 save- effort.

Blake Wheeler had the lone goal for Boston, which beat the Islanders on Saturday to open its seven-game road trip.

Not only did the Bruins lose the game, they lost crafty center Marc Savard late in regulation to a blindside hit by Pittsburgh's Matt Cooke.

Cooke, who is known for his physical nature, caught an unsuspecting Savard in the head with a shoulder moments after he released a shot from the high slot.

Savard lay motionless for several minutes while being attended to by the medical staff. He was eventually taken off the ice on a stretcher.

No penalty was called on the play, which occurred with 5:37 remaining in the third period.

Wwwgamblecom Hockey Betting News

<< Bordeaux maintains edge over Montpellier
Bordeaux, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alberto Costa scored in stoppage time, but Montpellier wasted a chance to take over the lead in France's Ligue 1, because Bordeaux goalie Cedric Carrasso saved two penalties in a 1-1 tie Sunday at the Stade J

<< Kurt Busch prevails in a wild one at Atlanta
Hampton, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kurt Busch avoided tire issues and held off the field in a second green-white-checkered finish to win the Kobalt Tools 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway for the second year in a row. Busch squeezed his way from

<< Canucks rally in third to beat Preds
Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jannik Hansen scored the game-winner in the third, as the Vancouver Canucks rallied for a 4-2 win over the Nashville Predators. Henrik Sedin had a goal and an assist, while Alexander Edler and

<< UConn crushes Syracuse to tie record
Hartford, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tina Charles tied a career-high with 34 points, as top-ranked Connecticut clobbered Syracuse, 77-41, in the quarterfinals of the Big East Tournament. It's the 70th consecutive win for the

<< Inter held to scoreless draw by Genoa
Milan, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Inter Milan was held to a 0-0 draw at San Siro by Genoa on Sunday, the third time in its last four Serie A matches is has not scored. Inter has tied four of its last five matches in Italy's top flight, with th

Villegas earns five-shot win at Honda Classic >>
Palm Beach Gardens, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Camilo Villegas captured his third PGA Tour win on Sunday, leaving the rest of the field in the dust with a closing two-under 68 at the Honda Classic. The 28-year-old Colombian posted a 13-

Iginla's hat trick helps Flames beat Wild >>
St. Paul, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jarome Iginla recorded his second hat trick of the season, as the Calgary Flames handled the Minnesota Wild, 5-2, in a battle between Northwest Division foes at the XCel Energy Center. Iginla also dished out a

Magic survive Kobe, Lakers to win fifth straight >>
Orlando, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vince Carter scored a team-high 25 points, and Dwight Howard added 15 points and 16 rebounds, as the Orlando Magic escaped with a 96-94 win over the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers in a rematch of last

NFL suspends free agent DT Ferguson >>
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The National Football League has reportedly suspended defensive tackle Jason Ferguson for the first eight games of the 2010 season for a violation of the league's performance enhancing drug program

Morgan, Spartans earn share of Big Ten title with rout of Michigan >>
East Lansing, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Raymar Morgan led all scorers with 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, as 11th-ranked Michigan State claimed a share of the Big Ten regular-season title with a 64-48 rout of conference rival M

Super Bowl XLIV Odds

Super Bowl XLIII isn't even a week old yet and oddsmakers have already released Super Bowl XLIV odds.

Despite the Pittsburgh Steelers winning Super Bowl 43, the New England Patriots are 8/1 favorites to win Super Bowl 44.

Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds

With their 27-23 victory over the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII, the Steelers became the latest NFL champion. But believe it or not, oddsmakers from online sports book MySportsbook.com don't have the Steelers the favorites to win Super Bowl XLIV next season.

That honor belongs to the New England Patriots, who are 8/1 favorites to win despite not even qualify for the postseason in 2008. The Pats also have a major decision to make regarding what to do with Matt Cassel, who played well in Tom Brady's (knee surgery) absence last year but is also a free agent this offseason.

Ironically, the Steelers aren't even oddsmakers second choice to win Super Bowl 44, as the Dallas Cowboys are listed right behind the Patriots at 9/1 despite not making the playoffs themselves. Clearly oddsmakers think the public will hop back on the Cowboys' bandwagon considering the immense talent they have and the opening of a brand new stadium.

After Dallas, then comes Pittsburgh at 10/1, but they share those odds with the New York Giants, who won Super Bowl XLII. The Indianapolis Colts and San Diego Chargers round out the top six teams at 12/1, while the Baltimore Ravens (14/1), Tennessee Titans (16/1), Carolina Panthers (18/1) and Philadelphia Eagles (18/1) complete the top 10.

The NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals got no love from oddsmakers as they were established as a 30/1 long shot to win next year's Super Bowl. They share those same odds with the Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers – two teams that didn't even qualify for the postseason. Other long shots are the Kansas City Chiefs (100/1), Detroit Lions (100/1), St. Louis Rams (75/1) and Oakland Raiders (75/1).

To see a complete list of all the team's odds to win Super Bowl XLIV, check below.

NFL TEAM FUTURE ODDS TO WIN SUPER BOWL XLIV

New England Patriots 8/1

Dallas Cowboys 9/1

New York Giants 10/1

Pittsburgh Steelers 10/1

Indianapolis Colts 12/1

San Diego Chargers 12/1

Baltimore Ravens 14/1

Tennessee Titans 16/1

Carolina Panthers 18/1

Philadelphia Eagles 18/1

New Orleans Saints 20/1

Atlanta Falcons 25/1

Denver Broncos 25/1

Green Bay Packers 25/1

Jacksonville Jaguars 25/1

Minnesota Vikings 25/1

New York Jets 25/1

Arizona Cardinals 30/1

Chicago BearS 30/1

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30/1

Buffalo Bills 35/1

Houston TexaNS 35/1

Miami Dolphins 35/1

Washington Redskins 35/1

Seattle SeahawkS 50/1

Cleveland Browns 55/1

Cincinnati Bengals 60/1

San Francisco 49ers 60/1

Oakland Raiders 75/1

St. Louis Rams 75/1

Detroit Lions 100/1

Kansas City Chiefs 100/1

Odds as of: 2/2/09

Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds

To visit this online sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.

FOOTBALL BETTING : Crabtree's base deal: six years, $32 million

Football Betting

In the wake of the news that the 49ers have signed receiver Michael Crabtree after an extended holdout, there has been not a hint of the dollars to be paid to Crabtree.

And since this means that his agent hasn't leaked the numbers, it means that his agent feels no specific motivation to do so.

Possibly because his agent isn't all that thrilled to have his name on the deal.

So the numbers will come from sources other than Crabtree's agent. And we've gotten our mitts into them.

Per a league source, Crabtree has signed a six-year, $32 million contract. (The total includes guaranteed money, base salaries, and the one-time incentive based on achieving minimum playing time.)

The deal also includes $17 million in guaranteed money.

As reported elsewhere, the deal can void to five years based on performance triggers, wiping out a final year base salary of $4 million. But they won't be easily reached.

The source tells us that, in his first four seasons (including 2009), Crabtree must either qualify for two Pro Bowls, or he must qualify for one Pro Bowl in one year and he must participate in 80 percent of the offensive snaps in a separate year in which the team makes the playoffs.

In other words, if in 2010 he qualifies for the Pro Bowl and the team makes the playoffs and he participates in 80 percent of the snaps, he'll still need to make it to the Pro Bowl or achieve the 80-percent/playoffs in another season.

Since the chances of Crabtree making the Pro Bowl or participating in 80 percent of the offensive snaps this year is roughly zero percent, he'll have three years to get it done.

And it won't be easy. Frankly, he'll be hard pressed to make it to one Pro Bowl in three years with the likes of Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith, the other Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, DeSean Jackson, Johnny Knox, Percy Harvin, Greg Jennings, Roddy White, T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the same conference for sportsbook betting.

So, by all appearances, it's a six-year deal. And at $17 million in guaranteed money, the per-year guarantee is a tepid $2.83 million per year.

There's another problem with the deal -- it has no mid-tier incentive package. Instead, the additional $8 million that Crabtree can earn (pushing the max value to six years, $40 million) requires the kind of unrealistic, mega-star performances that no rookie is likely to ever achieve.

So while the contract paid to Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji covers five years and pays $22.5 million, he has the ability (if he's a solid player) to make up the difference between his base deal and Crabtree's five-year, $28 million haul via the mid-tier incentive package in Raji's deal.

And unless Crabtree meets the performance thresholds necessary to void the sixth year, he'll be stuck under contract for another year at a base salary of only $4 million.

There's one other area of concern with the deal. Crabtree, per the source, received no option bonus. Instead, he has significant money tied to a fairly new device known as a "discretionary salary advance," which unlike an opition bonus is subject to forfeiture if Crabtree decides in a year or two that he wants to hold out for a better deal. (We're also told that the 49ers have included language that would make certain escalators subject to forfeiture, too.)

Meanwhile, the deal falls well short of the mark for which Crabtree and agent Eugene Parker were aiming -- the five-year, $38.25 million contract paid by the Raiders to receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, the seventh overall pick in the draft.

Even if Crabtree successfully voids the final year, he'll make more than $2 million per year less on average than Heyward-Bey.

Thus, as we explained earlier in the day, this is a deal that Crabtree could have done in July, which would have given him a much better chance of making a contribution to the 49ers during his rookie year.

So while the final outcome can be described as win-win, the broader view suggests that it's really a lose-lose situation.

NFL Betting Lines

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your college football betting needs.