Cnotes53 2017 NHL Best Bets-News-Trends-Thru The Stanley Cup ! !

[Cnotes53]

Matthews, Marleau help Maple Leafs beat Bruins in Game 3
April 16, 2018

TORONTO (AP) Auston Matthews got the go-ahead goal in the second period, Patrick Marleau scored twice, and the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Boston Bruins 4-2 on Monday night in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round series.

James van Riemsdyk also scored and Mitch Marner and Morgan Rielly added two assists each ti help Toronto pull to 2-1 in the best-of-seven set. Frederik Andersen stopped 40 shots.

Adam McQuaid and Zdeno Chara had the goals for Boston, Sean Kuraly had two assists, and Tuukka Rask finished with 26 saves.

The Maple Leafs will look to even the series at home in Game 4 on Thursday night.

DEVILS 5, LIGHTNING 2

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) - Taylor Hall had a goal and two assists, setting up Stefan Noesen's game-winner with 7:05 play, and New Jersey scored four times in the third to beat Tampa Bay in Game 3.

Rookie Will Butcher had a power-play goal earlier in the third to tie the score 2-all, and Blake Coleman and Ben Lovejoy added empty net goals late. Cory Schneider made 34 saves while starting in place of Keith Kinkaid.

Schneider, who seemed to hurt his groin in a collision with Lightning defenseman Ryan McDonagh midway through the final period, survived a late power play to nail down the win.

Alex Killorn and Steven Stamkos each had a power-play goal and an assist for the Lightning. Nikita Kucherov added two assists, and Andrei Vasilevskiy made 36 saves.

Game 4 of the best-of-seven series will be Wednesday night at the Prudential Center.

SHARKS 8, DUCKS 1

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - Joonas Donskoi scored one goal and set up another to start a four-goal barrage in the second period and San Jose raced past Anaheim for the third straight game to take a 3-0 series lead.

Donskoi scored and then set up Marcus Sorensen in the opening four minutes of the second period to seize control of the game and series.

Eric Fehr and Tomas Hertl added goals later in the second to turn this all-California series into a rout. Logan Couture had a goal and two assists, Joe Pavelski, Evander Kane and Chris Tierney scored power-play goals in the third period, for the Sharks, who have outscored the Ducks 14-3 through the first three games of the first-round series.

Martin Jones made 45 saves, the most for a Sharks goalie in a regulation playoff game.

San Jose will look to complete the sweep in Game 4 at home Wednesday night.

Rickard Rakell scored a power-play goal for Anaheim, which has scored three goals all series - including just one at even strength.

AVALANCHE 5, PREDATORS 3

DENVER (AP) - Nathan MacKinnon scored twice, including one as part of a three-goal first period and another to chase Nashville goalie Pekka Rinne from the game, and Colorado pulled to 2-1 in the first-round series.

Blake Comeau and Gabriel Bourque also scored in a furious opening period that revved up a pom-pom waving capacity crowd. Gabriel Landeskog was credited with an empty-net goal for the Avalanche, who snapped a 12-game skid against the Predators.

Game 4 is Wednesday in Denver.

MacKinnon's goal at 4:25 of the second period gave Colorado a 4-0 lead and prompted the Predators to pull Rinne in favor of backup Juuse Saros. Rinne allowed four goals on 15 shots.

Jonathan Bernier stopped 29 shots on a night when the Avalanche finished 0 for 5 on the power play. Ryan Johansen had a second-period goal and Colton Sissons scored another in the third to make it 4-2.

 

[Cnotes53]

SCHEDULE FOR TUESDAY APRIL 17, 2018
Time (ET) Away Home Site
7:30 PM Washington Capitals Columbus Blue Jackets Nationwide Arena
8:00 PM Winnipeg Jets Minnesota Wild Xcel Energy Center
10:30 PM Vegas Golden Knights Los Angeles Kings Staples Center

SCHEDULE FOR WEDNESDAY APRIL 18, 2018
Time (ET) Away Home Site
7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins Philadelphia Flyers Wells Fargo Center
7:30 PM Tampa Bay Lightning New Jersey Devils Prudential Center
10:00 PM Nashville Predators Colorado Avalanche Pepsi Center
10:30 PM Anaheim Ducks San Jose Sharks SAP Center at San Jose

SCHEDULE FOR THURSDAY APRIL 19, 2018
Time (ET) Away Home Site
7:00 PM Boston Bruins Toronto Maple Leafs Air Canada Centre
7:30 PM Washington Capitals Columbus Blue Jackets Nationwide Arena
10:00 PM Los Angeles Kings Vegas Golden Knights T-Mobile Arena

SCHEDULE FOR FRIDAY APRIL 20, 2018
Time (ET) Away Home Site
12:00 AM Colorado Avalanche Nashville Predators Bridgestone Arena
12:00 AM Minnesota Wild Winnipeg Jets Bell MTS Place
12:00 AM Philadelphia Flyers Pittsburgh Penguins PPG Paints Arena
12:00 AM San Jose Sharks Anaheim Ducks Honda Center


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


NHL PLAYOFF RECORD:

DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD

04/16/2018 5-3-0 62.50% +4.25
04/15/2018 5-1-2 83.33% +21.25
04/14/2018 1-6-1 14.29% -27.75
04/13/2018 2-3-1 40.00% -11.50
04/12/2018 4-5-1 44.44% -4.00
04/11/2018 4-2-0 66.67% +9.50

TOTALS..........25-20-5.......55.55%.....-8.25

 

[Cnotes53]

Vegas looks to sweep L.A.
April 17, 2018

A Golden sweep?

There were plenty of questions to be answered going into this NHL playoffs first round duel. Many experts were expecting the experienced Kings to give the league?s new-boys a real hard time and indeed end what has been a dream ice hockey season in Las Vegas.

Three games on, however, it?s the Golden Knights once again hogging all the headlines as they look to continue their fairytale Stanley Cup chase with a sweep of their first ever postseason series.

Tuesday sees Marc-Andre Fleury and co. take to the ice at the Staples Center looking to seal the deal on what has been yet another capital in an astonishing story. After taking both games at home, the Golden Knights went out West on Sunday and bagged three third-period goals to ensure a come-from-behind 3-2 win.

The momentum looks to be all on the road-team?s side, but can they hold their nerve when it comes to the crunch in California tonight?

Golden Knights at Kings Game 4

Los Angeles Kings 4/5

To Win the Western Conference

Nashville Predators 19/10
Vegas Golden Knights 21/10
San Jose Sharks 9/2
Winnipeg Jets 9/2
Minnesota Wild 16/1
Colorado Avalanche 25/1
Anaheim Ducks 50/1
Los Angeles Kings 50/1

To Win The Stanley Cup ? Intertops.eu

Nashville Predators 15/4
Vegas Golden Knights 4/1
Tampa Bay Lightning 9/2
Boston Bruins 5/1
Pittsburgh Penguins 8/1
San Jose Sharks 8/1
Winnipeg Jets 8/1
Columbus Blue Jackets 12/1
Toronto Maple Leafs 18/1
Washington Capitals 30/1
Minnesota Wild 33/1
Philadelphia Flyers 33/1
New Jersey Devils 40/1
Colorado Avalanche 50/1
Anaheim Ducks 100/1
Los Angeles Kings 100/1

Odds subject to change ? Updated 4.17.18

 

[Cnotes53]

NHL

Tuesday, April 17

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Washington Capitals
Washington is 12-5 SU in its last 17 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Washington's last 5 games
Washington is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
Washington is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games on the road
Washington is 2-6 ATS in its last 8 games when playing Columbus
Washington is 6-3 SU in its last 9 games when playing Columbus
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Washington's last 6 games when playing Columbus
Washington is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Columbus
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Washington's last 12 games when playing on the road against Columbus
Columbus Blue Jackets
Columbus is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games
Columbus is 15-4 SU in its last 19 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Columbus's last 5 games
Columbus is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games at home
Columbus is 9-2 SU in its last 11 games at home
Columbus is 6-2 ATS in its last 8 games when playing Washington
Columbus is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games when playing Washington
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Columbus's last 6 games when playing Washington
Columbus is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games when playing at home against Washington
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Columbus's last 12 games when playing at home against Washington


Winnipeg Jets
Winnipeg is 3-10 ATS in its last 13 games
Winnipeg is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Winnipeg's last 5 games
Winnipeg is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Winnipeg's last 5 games on the road
Winnipeg is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games when playing Minnesota
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Winnipeg's last 6 games when playing Minnesota
Winnipeg is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Minnesota
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Winnipeg's last 7 games when playing on the road against Minnesota
Minnesota Wild
Minnesota is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
Minnesota is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Minnesota's last 12 games
Minnesota is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games at home
Minnesota is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home
Minnesota is 2-6 SU in its last 8 games when playing Winnipeg
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Minnesota's last 6 games when playing Winnipeg
Minnesota is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Winnipeg
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Minnesota's last 7 games when playing at home against Winnipeg


Vegas Golden Knights
Vegas is 1-8 ATS in its last 9 games
Vegas is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games
The total has gone UNDER in 14 of Vegas's last 21 games
Vegas is 17-8 ATS in its last 25 games on the road
Vegas is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Vegas's last 12 games on the road
Vegas is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games when playing Los Angeles
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Vegas's last 6 games when playing Los Angeles
Los Angeles Kings
Los Angeles is 9-4 ATS in its last 13 games
Los Angeles is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games
Los Angeles is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games at home
Los Angeles is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games when playing Vegas
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Los Angeles's last 6 games when playing Vegas

 

[Cnotes53]

NHL
Dunkel

Tuesday, April 17


Washington @ Columbus

Game 51-52
April 17, 2018 @ 7:35 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Washington
12.413
Columbus
10.892
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Washington
by 1 1/2
7
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Columbus
-140
5 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Washington
(+120); Over

Winnipeg @ Minnesota

Game 53-54
April 17, 2018 @ 8:05 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Winnipeg
12.312
Minnesota
10.887
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Winnipeg
by 1 1/2
7
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Minnesota
-115
5 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Winnipeg
(-105); Over

Vegas @ Los Angeles

Game 55-56
April 17, 2018 @ 10:35 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Vegas
10.120
Los Angeles
11.634
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Los Angeles
by 1 1/2
7
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Los Angeles
-125
5
Dunkel Pick:
Los Angeles
(-125); Over




NHL
Long Sheet

Tuesday, April 17

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

WASHINGTON (49-26-0-9, 107 pts.) at COLUMBUS (47-30-0-7, 101 pts.) - 4/17/2018, 7:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
COLUMBUS is 24-11 ATS (+11.1 Units) on Tuesday nights over the last 2 seasons.
WASHINGTON is 50-35 ATS (+5.1 Units) in all games this season.
WASHINGTON is 19-13 ATS (+5.7 Units) in a road game where where the total is 5.5 this season.
WASHINGTON is 51-36 ATS (+92.7 Units) in road games in April games since 1996.
WASHINGTON is 245-243 ATS (+510.5 Units) in road games second half of the season since 1996.
WASHINGTON is 19-8 ATS (+9.5 Units) in road games revenging a home loss versus opponent over the last 3 seasons.
WASHINGTON is 23-11 ATS (+8.0 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent this season.
WASHINGTON is 26-17 ATS (+6.9 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
WASHINGTON is 9-6 (+0.5 Units) against the spread versus COLUMBUS over the last 3 seasons
WASHINGTON is 9-6-0 straight up against COLUMBUS over the last 3 seasons
7 of 11 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+2.6 Units)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

WINNIPEG (54-21-0-10, 118 pts.) at MINNESOTA (46-28-0-11, 103 pts.) - 4/17/2018, 8:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
MINNESOTA is 18-7 ATS (+6.8 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
WINNIPEG is 54-32 ATS (+10.7 Units) in all games this season.
WINNIPEG is 10-1 ATS (+8.8 Units) in April games over the last 2 seasons.
WINNIPEG is 28-21 ATS (+55.6 Units) in road games on Tuesday nights since 1996.
WINNIPEG is 36-22 ATS (+13.6 Units) vs. division opponents over the last 2 seasons.
WINNIPEG is 27-13 ATS (+9.5 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent this season.
WINNIPEG is 52-40 ATS (+11.7 Units) after allowing 4 goals or more over the last 3 seasons.
WINNIPEG is 17-10 ATS (+31.1 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season over the last 3 seasons.
MINNESOTA is 73-77 ATS (-15.0 Units) second half of the season over the last 3 seasons.
MINNESOTA is 14-20 ATS (+41.0 Units) after a win by 2 goals or more this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
WINNIPEG is 10-7 (+4.7 Units) against the spread versus MINNESOTA over the last 3 seasons
WINNIPEG is 10-7-0 straight up against MINNESOTA over the last 3 seasons
10 of 17 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+2.9 Units)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

VEGAS (54-24-0-7, 115 pts.) at LOS ANGELES (45-32-0-8, 98 pts.) - 4/17/2018, 10:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
VEGAS is 55-31 ATS (+17.7 Units) in all games this season.
VEGAS is 23-9 ATS (+11.0 Units) vs. division opponents this season.
VEGAS is 28-15 ATS (+12.2 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
LOS ANGELES is 84-84 ATS (-14.1 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
LOS ANGELES is 18-24 ATS (-15.4 Units) in a home game where where the total is 5 or less over the last 2 seasons.
LOS ANGELES is 7-14 ATS (-17.5 Units) in April games over the last 3 seasons.
LOS ANGELES is 43-49 ATS (-31.0 Units) second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
LOS ANGELES is 13-19 ATS (+33.0 Units) vs. division opponents this season.
LOS ANGELES is 16-28 ATS (-21.7 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
VEGAS is 5-2 (+2.8 Units) against the spread versus LOS ANGELES over the last 3 seasons
VEGAS is 5-2-0 straight up against LOS ANGELES over the last 3 seasons
5 of 5 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+5.1 Units)

 

[Cnotes53]

TUESDAY, APRIL 17
GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS

WAS at CLB 07:30 PM
WAS +110
O 5.5

WIN at MIN 08:00 PM
MIN -105
U 5.5

VEG at LA 10:30 PM
VEG +100
U 5.0

 

[Cnotes53]

Eller, Capitals beat Blue Jackets in 2OT to tighten series
April 18, 2018

LOS ANGELES (AP) Brayden McNabb scored against his former team in the second period, lifting Vegas to a 1-0 victory over the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday night that made the Golden Knights the first expansion team in NHL history to sweep its first playoff series.

Marc-Andre Fleury turned in another stellar performance, stopping 31 shots as the Knights finished off their fourth one-goal victory of the series. It was his second shutout of the series.

The Knights poured into the net to hug Fleury at the final horn. Vegas fans in the crowd chanted the goalie's name in celebration.

The Knights became the second team to win their first four playoff games, joining the 1970 Pittsburgh Penguins.

Jonathan Quick made 20 saves for the Kings. who managed just three goals in this series and lacked offensive punch from center Anze Kopitar (one goal) and wings Brown and Tyler Toffoli (no goals).

CAPITALS 3, BLUE JACKETS 2, 2OT

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Lars Eller scored 9 minutes into the second overtime and Washington beat Columbus to tighten up the first-round playoff series.

The Capitals won at Nationwide Arena after Columbus won the first two games - both in overtime - in Washington. It was the Capitals' turn to prevail in OT, this time on the Blue Jackets' home ice, to pull to 2-1 in the best-of-seven series.

On the winner, Eller tapped a rebound past Sergei Bobrovsky for his first goal in the playoff series.

Tom Wilson and John Carlson also scored, and Braden Holtby stopped 33 shots for the Capitals.

Game 4 is Thursday night back here with Game 5 set for Washington on Saturday.

Pierre-Luc Dubois and Artemi Panarin scored for Columbus, and Bobrovsky finished with 42 saves after getting 54 in the Game 2 on Sunday.

JETS 2, WILD 0

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - Mark Scheifele scored both goals for Winnipeg and Connor Hellebuyck made 30 saves for his seventh shutout this season, as the Jets took a 3-1 lead in the first-round playoff series.

Scheifele scored with 28 seconds left in the first period and tacked on an empty-netter with 11 seconds remaining, pushing the Wild to the brink of elimination.

Devan Dubnyk stopped 26 shots for the Wild, who played without star left wing Zach Parise because of a broken sternum suffered in Game 3. After a six-goal outburst in their last appearance, the Wild had trouble generating the same kind of relentless attack and simply couldn't slide any pucks past Hellebuyck.

Now the series shifts back to Winnipeg, with Game 5 on Friday night.

 

[Cnotes53]

SCHEDULE FOR WEDNESDAY APRIL 18, 2018
Time (ET) Away Home Site
7:00 PM Pittsburgh Penguins Philadelphia Flyers Wells Fargo Center
7:30 PM Tampa Bay Lightning New Jersey Devils Prudential Center
10:00 PM Nashville Predators Colorado Avalanche Pepsi Center
10:30 PM Anaheim Ducks San Jose Sharks SAP Center at San Jose

SCHEDULE FOR THURSDAY APRIL 19, 2018
Time (ET) Away Home Site
7:00 PM Boston Bruins Toronto Maple Leafs Air Canada Centre
7:30 PM Washington Capitals Columbus Blue Jackets Nationwide Arena
10:00 PM Los Angeles Kings Vegas Golden Knights T-Mobile Arena

SCHEDULE FOR FRIDAY APRIL 20, 2018
Time (ET) Away Home Site
7:00 PM Philadelphia Flyers Pittsburgh Penguins PPG Paints Arena
7:30 PM Minnesota Wild Winnipeg Jets Bell MTS Place
9:30 PM Colorado Avalanche Nashville Predators Bridgestone Arena
10:30 PM San Jose Sharks Anaheim Ducks Honda Center


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


NHL PLAYOFF RECORD:

DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD

04/17/2018 4-2-0 66.67% +9.75
04/16/2018 5-3-0 62.50% +4.25
04/15/2018 5-1-2 83.33% +21.25
04/14/2018 1-6-1 14.29% -27.75
04/13/2018 2-3-1 40.00% -11.50
04/12/2018 4-5-1 44.44% -4.00
04/11/2018 4-2-0 66.67% +9.50

TOTALS..........29-22-5.......56.86%.....+1.50

 

[Cnotes53]

Wednesday?s 6-pack

Odds for the Valero Texas Open this weekend:

Sergio Garcia 12-1

Matt Kuchar, Charley Hoffman 18-1

Luke List 22-1

Ryan Moore 25-1

Kevin Chappell 28-1

Adam Scott 30-1

Quote of the Day
?I know my role, and that?s to play as well as I possibly can at quarterback.?
Aaron Rodgers

Wednesday?s quiz
Who did the Knicks play the last time they made the NBA Finals?

Tuesday?s quiz
Vice-President Mike Pence is from Indiana.

Monday?s quiz
Bartolo Colon begin his major league career with the Cleveland Indians, in 1997.

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

Wednesday?s List of 13: Mid-week musings??.

Its easy to shred the Miami Marlins after they traded their whole OF from last year, plus 2B Dee Gordon. A team that went 77-85 last year is off to a 5-12 start this season.

What did the Marlins get back for those four players? Here is a look at the 14 players they got back in their fire sale:

13) Players acquired from Bronx for Giancarlo Stanton, a move that was a salary dump:
? Starlin Castro 2B? 28-year old major league infielder who has a .282 career BA in nine big league seasons; he is likely to get flipped for more prospects in July. Castro is hitting .295 so far this season.
? Jose Devers SS? 18-year old hit .245 in A ball last year; his season hasn?t started yet.
? Jorge Guzman P? 22-year old was 5-3, 2.30 in 13 starts in NY-Penn League LY, a Class A short season league. His season hasn?t started yet.

12) Players acquired from St Louis for Marcell Ozuna:
? Daniel Castano P? 23-year old who is still in A ball? He is 2-0, 4.35 in Florida State League this month; Class A hitters are batting .275 against him.
? Zac Gallen P? 22-year old is 1-1, 3.18 in three AAA starts, allowing 23 hits in 17 IP this season.
? Sandy Alcantara P? 22-year old is said to be the best prospect Miami landed in these four deals. He is 0-0, 4.82 in two starts (9.1 IP) this season, allowing 8 hits, 8 walks in 9.1 IP, with 12 strikeouts. Alcantara allowed six runs in 8.1 IP in the majors (8 games) last year.
? Magneuris Sierra OF? 22-year old is 6-44 (.136) in AAA this season; he was 19-60 (.317) hitting in 22 games with St Louis last season.

11) Players acquired from Milwaukee for Christian Yelich:
? Iban Diaz 2B? 21-year old hit .222 in A-ball last year; he is off to a 1-24 start in the AA Southern League this year.
? Monte Harrison OF? 22-year old is off to a 5-31 (.161) start in AA, wth 16 strikeouts.
? Jordan Yamamoto P? 21-year old is heading into his 5th season of A ball; he was 17-19, 4.19 in his first four minor league seasons. Class A hitters have hit .267 against him.
? Lewis Brinson OF? 23-year old is hitting .131 for the Marlins this season. He hit .106 in 47 AB?s for Milwaukee last season.

10) Players acquired from Seattle for Dee Gordon:
? Robert Dugger P? 22-year old is 1-1, 4.91 in two starts in A ball; last year, he was 6-6, 2.75 in 31 games (18 starts) in A ball last year.
? Nick Neidert P? 21-year old is 1-0, 5.19 in two AA starts, allowing 14 hits in 8.2 IP. He was 1-3, 6.56 in the AA Texas League last year.
? Chris Torres SS? 20-year old hit .248 in three years of A ball; his 4th season of A ball hasn?t started yet.

It is still very early this season and most of these guys are young, but if you were a Marlins? fan, how many of the 14 players they traded for would make you optimistic for the future?

Elsewhere in the world??.
9) Reading lot of stuff about Montreal and Portland, OR getting MLB expansion teams, which would put baseball at 32 teams and actually make scheduling easier, with an even amount of teams in both leagues. Wouldn?t have to have interleague games every day.

8) Lot of college athletic programs have fundraisers at golf courses; boosters pay to play golf with coaches or former players and programs raise a lot of money that way. UNLV?s football team had one of those this week at Spanish Trail golf course.

Boy, times have changed; back when UNLV basketball was a national power, Jerry Tarkanian wouldn?t hire an assistant coach who owned golf clubs. Seriously.

7) Atlanta 2B Ozzie Albies is the youngest player in the major leagues (21 years, 100 days old) and he is a damn good second baseman.

6) Mavericks-76ers will play couple of preseason games in China in October; Yale-Stanford will also play in China, in the annual game AliBaba sponsors.

5) Marlins 9, New York 1? JT Realmuto comes off the DL and hit a 3-run homer as Miami won in the Bronx. Rookie Jarwin Garcia allowed only one hit in five shutout innings; in his two starts this season, he?s allowed one hit, no runs in 11 IP.

Marlins? payroll for their Opening Day lineup was $21,092,142.

Giancarlo Stanton is making $25,000,000 this season; he is 3-35 at home. No sympathy for him getting booed at home? he chose to go to New York, as opposed to St Louis/San Francisco.

4) Brett Favre tried out for the analyst?s job on Monday Night Football recently and apparently didn?t do too well- he won?t be hired.

NFL schedule comes out on Thursday and ESPN still doesn?t know who will be calling their MNF games. Sounds like Joe Tessitore will be the play-by-play guy.

3) It was so cold at the Rockies-Pirates game last night in Pittsburgh that all fans got a ticket voucher good for a free ticket to a future (Mon-Thurs) home game.

2) Question of the Day: If you owned an NFL team and had a really good QB, like Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady or Ben Roethlisberger, would you seek his input on personnel decisions regarding the offense? I?m curious what people think about this.

1) RIP Barbara Bush, 92. Only two people have been both a First Lady and the mother of a President, Mrs Bush and Abigail Adams. RIP, ma?am.

 

[Cnotes53]

Wednesday's NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs Betting Preview and Odds

There are four Stanley Cup playoff games on Wednesday's NHL schedule, including Game 4 between the Penguins and Flyers with Philly looking to lock the series up at two wins apiece on home ice..

Pittsburgh Penguins at Philadelphia Flyers (+125, 6)

Penguins lead series 2-1.

The Philadelphia Flyers were still licking their wounds after sustaining two pronounced beatings at the hands of the Pittsburgh Penguins before the team suffered another potential key loss during Tuesday's practice. First-line center Sean Couturier collided with teammate Radko Gudas and will be re-evaluated on Wednesday prior to Game 4 of the Eastern Conference first-round series versus the visiting Penguins.

ABOUT THE PENGUINS (49-30-4-2, 48-33 O/U): Pittsburgh's superstar captain Sidney Crosby has seven points (four goals, three assists) in the series to move within one of Mario Lemieux's franchise postseason record of 172 (76 goals, 96 assists). Patric Hornqvist has provided both a physical presence as well as an important one on the scoresheet during his 10-game point streak (seven goals, five assists), but coach Mike Sullivan noted that Pittsburgh will be without the gritty 31-year-old Swede for Game 4 due to an upper-body injury. Forward Dominik Simon, who had 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in 33 games this season, replaced Hornqvist at right wing on a line with Crosby and Jake Guentzel during Tuesday's practice.

ABOUT THE FLYERS (43-28-7-7, 44-37 O/U): Versatile captain Claude Giroux could return to his center position should the 25-year-old Couturier be sidelined as the Flyers bid to even their best-of-seven series with the Penguins at two victories apiece. Prior to Couturier's injury, coach Dave Hakstol was bidding to light a spark under a team that has mustered just six goals in three contests - with five coming in Game 2. While rookie Nolan Patrick was summoned to replace Couturier on line with Giroux and Jakub Voracek in Tuesday's practice, Hakstol also inserted Jordan Weal on the third line with the 26-year-old set to make his series debut. Weal, who will replace Oskar Lindblom, recorded a team-high four points (two goals, two assists) in the season series versus Pittsburgh.

SERIES PRICE (PER SPORTS INTERACTION):

LINE HISTORY: The Penguins opened as -145 road favorites and, as of Tuesday night, that moneyline has yet to move. The total hit betting boards at 6 and has also been steady.

INJURY REPORT:

Penguins - D Kris Letang (Probable, Undisclosed), RW Patric Hornqvist (Out, Upper Body), RW Carter Rowney (Out Indefinitely, Upper Body).

Flyers - C Sean Couturier (Questionable, Undisclosed), G Michal Neuvirth (Questionable, Upper Body).

MATCHUP CHART:

TRENDS:

* Penguins are 9-2 in their last 11 Conference Quarterfinals games.
* Flyers are 5-1 in their last 6 home games.
* Over is 12-3-1 in Penguins' last 16 road games.
* Over is 12-3-2 in Flyers' last 17 vs. Eastern Conference.
* Over is 8-1-2 in the last 11 meetings.




Tampa Bay Lightning at New Jersey Devils (+130, 6)

Lightning lead series 2-1.

The New Jersey Devils climbed back into the Eastern Conference first-round series with a comeback win and can even the slate when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning for Game 4 on Wednesday night. Taylor Hall registered a goal and two assists as the Devils rallied from one-goal deficits twice and scored four times in the third period for a 5-2 victory Monday.

ABOUT THE LIGHTNING (56-24-3-2, 52-31 O/U): Nikita Kucherov had a pair of assists to increase his team-leading total to six points in the series for Tampa Bay, which led 1-0 in the second period and then 2-1 after captain Steven Stamkos? goal 38 seconds into the third. However, the Lightning gave the Devils seven power plays - four in the third period - and New Jersey tied it on a 5-on-3 advantage to spark the four-goal uprising. The Lightning have scored five of their 12 goals in the series with the power play on nine chances and their much-maligned penalty kill is 10-for-12 - giving up one of those while down two men. Right wing Ryan Callahan (upper-body), a key on the penalty-killing unit, sat out Game 3 but participated in the morning skate Monday and could return to the lineup soon.

ABOUT THE DEVILS (45-31-5-4, 45-38 O/U): Cory Schneider replaced Keith Kinkaid in net for Game 3 and was outstanding when he needed to be, especially in the third period when he gloved a Tyler Johnson point-blank chance while laying on the ice. Forward Blake Coleman had an empty-netter Monday for his second goal in two games and boasts a series-high, plus-3 rating. New Jersey F Marcus Johansson (concussion) had two shots while logging 14:30 of ice time Monday in his first game since Jan. 23.

SERIES PRICE (PER SPORTS INTERACTION):

LINE HISTORY: The Lightning opened as -150 road favorites and, as of Tuesday night, that moneyline has not moved. The total hit betting boards at 6 and has also been steady.

INJURY REPORT:

Lightning - RW Ryan Callahan (Questionable, Upper Body), LW Adam Erne (Out Indefinitely, Lower Body).

Devils - No injuries to report.

MATCHUP CHART:

TRENDS:

* Lightning are 8-2 in their last 10 Conference Quarterfinals games.
* Devils are 4-0 in their last 4 home games.
* Over is 5-0 in Lightning's last 5 when their opponent scores 5 goals or more in their previous game.
* Over is 4-0 in Devils' last 4 overall.
* Over is 5-1-1 in the last 7 meetings.




Nashville Predators at Colorado Avalanche (+150, 6)

Preds lead series 2-1.

The Nashville Predators are skating a fine line after surrendering the first goal in each of their first three playoff contests. While the Predators overcame early deficits in the first two, they were unable to do the same in the third and are in jeopardy of seeing their Western Conference first-round series knotted at two wins apiece should Game 4 at the Pepsi Center follow a similar path.

ABOUT THE PREDATORS (55-19-4-7, 44-40 O/U): The Predators permitted three first-period goals and have been outscored 5-0 over the course of the opening 20 minutes of each game in the series. P.K. Subban caused a stir by unleashing an open-ice shot to the back of the head of MacKinnon during Game 3, but the defenseman didn't pull any punches when asked about it. "Yeah, I'd do it again next game," the 28-year-old Subban told the Tennessean.

ABOUT THE AVALANCHE (44-32-8-1, 45-32 O/U): Potential Hart Trophy finalist Nathan MacKinnon scored twice to help Colorado snap a 12-game winless skid to Nashville while continuing his torrid play in Denver, as he has recorded 69 of his 102 points at Pepsi Center in the 2017-18 regular season and playoffs. While MacKinnon collected his fifth multi-point performance in nine career playoff contests, captain Gabriel Landeskog recorded a personal postseason best with three points (one goal, two assists) in Game 3 while linemate Mikko Rantanen notched his first multi-point playoff outing with a pair of assists.

SERIES PRICE (PER SPORTS INTERACTION):

LINE HISTORY: The Predators opened as -175 favorites for Game 4 and some early betting action on the underdog Avalanche has pushed that number down slightly to -170. The total hit betting boards at 6 and has yet to move off that opening number.

INJURY REPORT:

Predators - C Calle Jarnkrok (Questionable, Upper Body), D Yannick Weber (Questionable, Upper Body).

Avalanche - D Samuel Girard (Questionable, Upper Body), G Semyon Varlamov (Out Indefinitely, Knee), D Erik Johnson (Late May, Knee).

MATCHUP CHART:

TRENDS:

* Predators are 8-1 in their last 9 Conference Quarterfinals games.
* Avalanche are 0-4 in their last 4 games following a win.
* Over is 5-0 in Predators' last 5 overall.
* Over is 6-0 in Avalanche's last 6 Conference Quarterfinals games.
* Over is 7-1-1 in the last 9 meetings in Colorado.




Anaheim Ducks at San Jose Sharks (-175, 5)

Sharks lead series 3-0.

The San Jose Sharks are one of only four teams in NHL history to lose a best-of-seven series after winning the first three games but, barring a stunning repeat of four years ago, they are heading to the second round of the Western Conference playoffs. San Jose can complete a four-game sweep and close out the series on home ice when it hosts the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday night.

ABOUT THE DUCKS (44-28-6-7, 33-50 O/U): Rickard Rakell, who paced Anaheim in goals (34) and points (69), finally got on the scoreboard with a first-period tally but the Ducks were shut down the rest of the way and have managed only three goals in the series while piling up penalty minutes at an alarming rate. Getzlaf has been limited to two assists while Ondrej Kase, Adam Henrique, Jakob Silfverberg and Corey Perry have one goal and one point between them after combining for 74 goals during the season.

ABOUT THE SHARKS (48-27-7-3, 38-44 O/U): The Sharks have shown no residual effects from the late wobble down the stretch that enabled the Ducks to snag the No. 2 seed and home ice in the series, winning twice in Anaheim before returning home to destroy their Pacific Division rivals in an 8-1 drubbing Monday to set up an elimination game. Almost loss in the offensive showcase was the play of goaltender Martin Jones, who registered a playoff career-high 45 saves. San Jose is 6-for-17 on the power play in the series after converting on half its eight chances in Game 3.

SERIES PRICE (PER SPORTS INTERACTION):

LINE HISTORY: The Sharks opened as -175 favorites and, as of Tuesday night, that moneyline has not moved. The total hit betting boards at 5 and has also been steady.

INJURY REPORT:

Ducks - D Cam Fowler (Mid May, Shoulder), RW Patrick Eaves (Out For Season, Illness).

Sharks - D Brent Burns (Probable, Undisclosed), RW Barclay Goodrow (Questionable, Upper Body), C Joe Thornton (Questionable, Knee).

MATCHUP CHART:

TRENDS:

* Ducks are 12-5 in their last 17 games playing on 1 days rest.
* Sharks are 9-2 in their last 11 games following a win.
* Under is 10-3 in Ducks' last 13 road games.
* Over is 12-3-2 in Sharks' last 17 games following a win.
* Ducks are 0-5 in the last 5 meetings.

 

[Cnotes53]

NHL
Dunkel

Wednesday, April 18


Pittsburgh @ Philadelphia

Game 57-58
April 18, 2018 @ 7:05 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Pittsburgh
12.546
Philadelphia
10.461
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Pittsburgh
by 2
8
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Pittsburgh
-145
6
Dunkel Pick:
Pittsburgh
(-145); Over

Tampa Bay @ New Jersey

Game 59-60
April 18, 2018 @ 7:30 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Tampa Bay
11.172
New Jersey
10.248
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Tampa Bay
by 1
7
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Tampa Bay
-150
6
Dunkel Pick:
Tampa Bay
(-150); Over

Nashville @ Colorado

Game 61-62
April 18, 2018 @ 10:05 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Nashville
11.464
Colorado
12.858
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Colorado
by 1 1/2
7
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Nashville
-170
6
Dunkel Pick:
Colorado
(+150); Over

Anaheim @ San Jose

Game 63-64
April 18, 2018 @ 10:35 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Anaheim
12.242
San Jose
11.178
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Anaheim
by 1
7
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
San Jose
-175
5
Dunkel Pick:
Anaheim
(+155); Over




NHL
Long Sheet

Wednesday, April 18

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PITTSBURGH (49-30-0-6, 104 pts.) at PHILADELPHIA (43-28-0-14, 100 pts.) - 4/18/2018, 7:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
PITTSBURGH is 3-10 ATS (-9.8 Units) in road games after a win by 2 goals or more this season.
PHILADELPHIA is 21-6 ATS (+13.4 Units) in home games after a division game over the last 2 seasons.
PHILADELPHIA is 63-60 ATS (+2.3 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 3 seasons.
PITTSBURGH is 22-8 ATS (+11.4 Units) in April games over the last 3 seasons.
PITTSBURGH is 117-67 ATS (+17.8 Units) second half of the season over the last 3 seasons.
PITTSBURGH is 48-25 ATS (+13.4 Units) vs. division opponents over the last 2 seasons.
PHILADELPHIA is 3-10 ATS (-8.6 Units) when playing with 2 days rest this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
PITTSBURGH is 11-4 (+4.7 Units) against the spread versus PHILADELPHIA over the last 3 seasons
PITTSBURGH is 11-4-0 straight up against PHILADELPHIA over the last 3 seasons
10 of 12 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+8.3 Units)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TAMPA BAY (56-24-0-5, 117 pts.) at NEW JERSEY (45-31-0-9, 99 pts.) - 4/18/2018, 7:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
NEW JERSEY is 46-40 ATS (-15.1 Units) in all games this season.
NEW JERSEY is 9-1 ATS (+10.1 Units) after 3 or more consecutive overs this season.
NEW JERSEY is 18-12 ATS (+30.9 Units) after scoring 4 goals or more in their previous game this season.
NEW JERSEY is 21-21 ATS (+43.3 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
TAMPA BAY is 12-3 ATS (+8.1 Units) in road games revenging a loss versus opponent this season.
TAMPA BAY is 226-233 ATS (+491.0 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season since 1996.
NEW JERSEY is 6-17 ATS (+25.6 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
TAMPA BAY is 7-5-0 straight up against NEW JERSEY over the last 3 seasons
6 of 10 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+1.7 Units)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NASHVILLE (55-19-0-11, 121 pts.) at COLORADO (44-32-0-9, 97 pts.) - 4/18/2018, 10:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
COLORADO is 45-41 ATS (-17.0 Units) in all games this season.
COLORADO is 17-5 ATS (+23.0 Units) in a home game where where the total is 6 or more this season.
COLORADO is 26-22 ATS (+63.4 Units) second half of the season this season.
COLORADO is 5-0 ATS (+5.0 Units) in home games after 3 or more consecutive overs this season.
COLORADO is 17-15 ATS (+45.9 Units) after a win by 2 goals or more this season.
COLORADO is 20-15 ATS (+39.7 Units) after scoring 4 goals or more in their previous game this season.
COLORADO is 16-8 ATS (+7.4 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
NASHVILLE is 55-31 ATS (+10.0 Units) in all games this season.
NASHVILLE is 44-24 ATS (+12.7 Units) vs. division opponents over the last 2 seasons.
NASHVILLE is 264-207 ATS (+36.0 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent since 1996.
NASHVILLE is 33-15 ATS (+12.6 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
NASHVILLE is 46-24 ATS (+18.6 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
NASHVILLE is 13-4 (+5.9 Units) against the spread versus COLORADO over the last 3 seasons
NASHVILLE is 13-4-0 straight up against COLORADO over the last 3 seasons
14 of 17 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+11.7 Units)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ANAHEIM (44-28-0-13, 101 pts.) at SAN JOSE (48-27-0-10, 106 pts.) - 4/18/2018, 10:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
ANAHEIM is 13-18 ATS (-11.2 Units) after a division game this season.
SAN JOSE is 24-8 ATS (+13.9 Units) vs. division opponents this season.
ANAHEIM is 557-444 ATS (+37.9 Units) second half of the season since 1996.
ANAHEIM is 27-16 ATS (+8.6 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent this season.
ANAHEIM is 28-13 ATS (+12.3 Units) after allowing 4 goals or more over the last 2 seasons.
ANAHEIM is 10-3 ATS (+6.6 Units) after 3 or more consecutive losses over the last 2 seasons.
ANAHEIM is 441-443 ATS (+908.7 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record since 1996.
ANAHEIM is 275-242 ATS (+526.8 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season since 1996.
SAN JOSE is 179-150 ATS (-79.3 Units) in home games after a division game since 1996.
SAN JOSE is 17-27 ATS (-14.4 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
SAN JOSE is 9-7 (+0.4 Units) against the spread versus ANAHEIM over the last 3 seasons
SAN JOSE is 9-7-0 straight up against ANAHEIM over the last 3 seasons
9 of 11 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+7.2 Units)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------




NHL

Wednesday, April 18

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
Pittsburgh is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 13 of Pittsburgh's last 19 games
Pittsburgh is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 11 of Pittsburgh's last 13 games on the road
Pittsburgh is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Philadelphia
Pittsburgh is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing Philadelphia
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Pittsburgh's last 8 games when playing Philadelphia
Pittsburgh is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Philadelphia
Philadelphia Flyers
Philadelphia is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games
The total has gone OVER in 10 of Philadelphia's last 15 games
Philadelphia is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games at home
Philadelphia is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Philadelphia's last 7 games at home
Philadelphia is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Pittsburgh
Philadelphia is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games when playing Pittsburgh
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Philadelphia's last 8 games when playing Pittsburgh
Philadelphia is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Pittsburgh


Tampa Bay Lightning
Tampa Bay is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games
Tampa Bay is 8-17 ATS in its last 25 games
Tampa Bay is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Tampa Bay's last 5 games
Tampa Bay is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games on the road
Tampa Bay is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 11 of Tampa Bay's last 15 games on the road
Tampa Bay is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing New Jersey
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Tampa Bay's last 6 games when playing New Jersey
Tampa Bay is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against New Jersey
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Tampa Bay's last 9 games when playing on the road against New Jersey
New Jersey Devils
New Jersey is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games
New Jersey is 8-4 SU in its last 12 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of New Jersey's last 6 games
New Jersey is 7-3 ATS in its last 10 games at home
New Jersey is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 5 of New Jersey's last 6 games at home
New Jersey is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing Tampa Bay
The total has gone OVER in 5 of New Jersey's last 6 games when playing Tampa Bay
New Jersey is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Tampa Bay
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of New Jersey's last 9 games when playing at home against Tampa Bay


Nashville Predators
Nashville is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Nashville's last 5 games
Nashville is 11-4 SU in its last 15 games on the road
Nashville is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games on the road
Nashville is 12-1 SU in its last 13 games when playing Colorado
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Nashville's last 5 games when playing Colorado
Nashville is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Colorado
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Nashville's last 8 games when playing on the road against Colorado
Colorado Avalanche
Colorado is 16-8 ATS in its last 24 games
Colorado is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Colorado's last 5 games
Colorado is 19-5 ATS in its last 24 games at home
Colorado is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Colorado's last 12 games at home
Colorado is 1-12 SU in its last 13 games when playing Nashville
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Colorado's last 5 games when playing Nashville
Colorado is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against Nashville
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Colorado's last 8 games when playing at home against Nashville


Anaheim Ducks
Anaheim is 3-7 ATS in its last 10 games
Anaheim is 10-5 SU in its last 15 games
Anaheim is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Anaheim's last 13 games on the road
Anaheim is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games when playing San Jose
Anaheim is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing San Jose
Anaheim is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing on the road against San Jose
Anaheim is 4-11 SU in its last 15 games when playing on the road against San Jose
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Anaheim's last 8 games when playing on the road against San Jose
San Jose Sharks
San Jose is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
San Jose is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 12 of San Jose's last 17 games
San Jose is 10-5 ATS in its last 15 games at home
San Jose is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 5 of San Jose's last 5 games at home
San Jose is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Anaheim
San Jose is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Anaheim
San Jose is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games when playing at home against Anaheim
San Jose is 11-4 SU in its last 15 games when playing at home against Anaheim
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of San Jose's last 8 games when playing at home against Anaheim

 

[Cnotes53]

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 18
GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS

PIT at PHI 07:00 PM
PIT -160
O 6.0

TB at NJ 07:30 PM
NJ +130
U 6.5

NAS at COL 10:00 PM
COL +150
O 6.0

ANA at SJ 10:30 PM
SJ -195
U 5.0

 

[Cnotes53]

Crosby helps Pens rout Flyers for 3-1 lead
April 18, 2018

PHILADELPHIA (AP) Sidney Crosby scored his fifth goal of the series and became the Pittsburgh Penguins' career postseason points leader in a 5-0 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday night.

The Penguins lead the first-round playoff series 3-1 as its shifts to Pittsburgh for Game 5.

Matt Murray stopped 26 shots for his second shutout of the series and the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Penguins are a win away from playing in the second round for the 11th time in the last 12 seasons.

Crosby scored in the second period for a 4-0 lead and passed Pittsburgh owner and Hall of Famer Mario Lemieux for most playoff points with 173. Crosby and the Penguins followed a 7-0 Game 1 win and a 5-1 Game 3 victory with another dominant outing.

Evgeni Malkin, Phil Kessel and Kris Letang each scored to give the Penguins a 3-0 lead in the second and chase Flyers goalie Brian Elliott. Riley Sheahan made it 5-0 late in the third.

LIGHTNING 3, DEVILS 1

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) - Nikita Kucherov scored two goals, set up another and knocked New Jersey's top defenseman out of the game with a big hit, and the Tampa Bay Lightning moved within a game of making the Devils' first trip to the playoffs in six years a short one.

J.T. Miller also scored and had two assists, and Vezina Trophy finalist Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped three breakaways in making 27 saves as the Lightning bounced back from a loss in Game 3 to tale a 3-1 lead in the first-round series.

Tampa Bay can wrap up the best-of-seven series in Game 5 at home on Saturday.

Kyle Palmieri scored on a 5-on-3 advantage for the Devils. Cory Schneider made 34 saves.

New Jersey's Sami Vatanen was knocked out of the game on the hit by Kucherov late in the first. No penalty was called but Kucherov appeared to jump before hitting Vatanen in the shoulder and head area.

PREDATORS 3 AVALANCHE 2

SHARKS 2 DUCKS 1

 

[Cnotes53]

SCHEDULE FOR THURSDAY APRIL 19, 2018
Time (ET) Away Home Site
7:00 PM Boston Bruins Toronto Maple Leafs Air Canada Centre
7:30 PM Washington Capitals Columbus Blue Jackets Nationwide Arena


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


NHL PLAYOFF RECORD:

DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD

04/18/2018 4-4-0 50.00% -1.00
04/17/2018 4-2-0 66.67% +9.75
04/16/2018 5-3-0 62.50% +4.25
04/15/2018 5-1-2 83.33% +21.25
04/14/2018 1-6-1 14.29% -27.75
04/13/2018 2-3-1 40.00% -11.50
04/12/2018 4-5-1 44.44% -4.00
04/11/2018 4-2-0 66.67% +9.50

TOTALS..........33-26-5.......55.93%.....+0.50

 

[Cnotes53]

Armadillo: Thursday's six-pack

2018 Kentucky Derby odds:

Justify +225

Mendelssohn +525

Bolt d?Oro +575

Audible +675

Magnum Moon +725

Good Magic +825


**********

Armadillo: Thursday's List of 13: Doing some thinking out loud

13) Interesting article in Forbes magazine, written by K. Sean Pickard, about athletes and the taxes they pay. From the article:

?LeBron James was the highest-paid athlete in the U.S. last year with more than $80 million from salary and endorsements. King James will pay his fair share of taxes, but the level of complication for James and his financial team when they are filing is off the charts since he earned money in at least the 21 states where NBA teams are located.?

12) From Sports Illustrated, on NFL players and their taxes:

?One All-Pro?s 2016 filing was 400 pages long. He spoke with his tax accountant on a near-daily basis, calling before scheduling a bye-week vacation to income tax-free Florida that saved him $20,000. And this is a guy who has played on the same team his entire career.?

This is the tax formula, for a player who earns $13M a year:

($13,000,000 x 1 day x 13.3% tax rate / 170-day season).

So spending his bye week in a tax-free state can save an NFL player a significant amount of money.

11) It was 29 degrees in Dodge City, KS at 5am Tuesday; by 3:00 Tuesday afternoon, the temperature had risen to 93 degrees, which is just a little weird.

10) Tuesday night?s Price-Ohtani pitching matchup in Anaheim was Angels? first home sellout on a Tuesday in four years. Ohtani got a blister on his pitching hand and left after throwing 66 pitches in two innings, allowing three runs.

9) This is the first time the Toronto Raptors have ever led a playoff series 2-0.

8) Brayden McNabb scored the series-winning goal for Las Vegas in their 1-0 win over the Kings Tuesday; it was Los Angeles that left him unprotected in the expansion draft, and the Golden Knights picked him up. Quite a season the expansion Knights are having, a team in their first-ever season still alive in the NHL playoffs.

7) Oakland reliever Ryan Dull struck out four White Sox in the 8th inning Tuesday night, he is the first A?s pitcher ever with four strikeouts in an inning at home (4th all-time).

6) Justin Timberlake owns a small part of the NBA?s Memphis Grizzlies.

5) Two years ago, the Phillies? mental skills department was essentially nonexistent. Now they have two full-time staffers and an intern. Mental. skills.

Phillies? GM Matt Klentak: ?Like a lot of things in our business, it?s tough to quantify the importance of it, but we know it?s very important. You can tell talking to current players, ex-players, coaches ? anybody that?s played the game knows there?s a tremendous amount of failure that goes along with it. Trying to identify ways to help players minimize the periods of failure even by one day can have an enormous impact on a player, on a team and on a franchise. We?re seeking as best we can to put our players in a position to succeed.?

24 of 30 major league teams have a mental skills coach; learning how to deal with failure is seen as a very big deal now.

4) Richmond Spiders tossed sophomore G De?Monte Buckingham off its basketball team for a violation of athletics department policy. Buckingham was the A-14 Rookie of the year two years ago; last year he averaged 12.2 ppg, third on the team, and a team-best 7 rpg

It won?t be hard for Buckingham to find a new home, maybe even at a higher level.

3) A?s 12, White Sox 11 (14)? Matt Olson got his first career walk-off hit off James Shields as the gritty Oaklanders rallied back from a 6-1 deficit to win their 4th straight game. Game took just under six hours to play; the two starting pitchers combined to get only seven outs.

2) RIP Erin Popovich 67, wife of San Antonio Spurs? coach Gregg Popovich; the couple were married for 40 years and have two children, two grandchildren.

1) Baseball teams have 25-man rosters, for teams who make the playoffs, you need more than 25 guys to get thru a season.

In 2012, the A?s went 94-68, won the AL West on the last day of the season, but they were only 46-44 on July 18 when a sub infielder named Brandon Hicks hit a walk-off homer to beat Texas 4-3, a win that started Oakland on a 7-game winning streak.

A?s wound up beating the Rangers out by a game; Hicks hit only .174 for the A?s that season in 22 games (64 AB) but that hit was huge? without it, they probably don?t make the playoffs.

 

[Cnotes53]

Thursday's NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs Betting Preview and Odds

The Stanley Cup Playoffs continue Thursday with a pair of Game 4's - the Maple Leafs are hosting the Bruins while, in Columbus, the Blue Jackets will take on the Capitals.

Boston Bruins at Toronto Maple Leafs (-105, 6)

Bruins lead series 2-1.

Almost left for dead after the first two games of their Eastern Conference first-round series, the Toronto Maple Leafs have a chance to level the best-of-seven set when they host the Boston Bruins in Game 4 on Thursday night. The Maple Leafs absorbed a pair of beatings at Boston's TD Garden by a combined 12-4 score, but reversed the momentum with a 4-2 home win on Monday night.

ABOUT THE BRUINS (52-21-9-3, 38-42 O/U): Boston's top line of Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak was all the rage in the opening two games, combining for a collective 20 points, but the unit was blanked in Game 3. Pastrnak, who had six points in Game 2, has six goals and seven assists in seven meetings versus Toronto this season. Bruins rookie D Matt Grzelcyk is expected back in the lineup after sitting out Game 3.

ABOUT THE MAPLE LEAFS (50-28-5-2, 43-35 O/U): While Boston's top line dominated the first two games, Toronto's No. 1 unit was floundering by being held off the scoresheet, but star forward Auston Matthews provided the biggest moment for the Maple Leafs by netting the tiebreaking goal in Game 3. Frederik Andersen allowed eight goals in four periods in the first two contests, but his 40 saves Monday were his highest total since Feb. 20. Mitch Marner had two assists Monday to give him 13 points in seven games versus Boston this season.

SERIES PRICE (PER SPORTS INTERACTION):

LINE HISTORY: The Leafs opened the betting as slight -115 favorites however action on the Bruins pushed that moneyline over the fence to Boston -115 by Thursday morning. 52 percent of Covers Consensus users are siding with the Bruins in this contest. The total hit betting boards at 6 and has yet to move.

INJURY REPORT:

Bruins - D Matt Grzelcyk (Probable, Lower Body), D Adam McQuaid (Questionable, Upper Body), D Brandon Carlo (Out For Season, Ankle), LW Anders Bjork (Out For Season, Shoulder).

Maple Leafs - C Leo Komarov (Out, Lower Body), C Nazem Kadri (Elig Sat, Suspension), LW Joffrey Lupul (I-R, Conditioning).

MATCHUP CHART:

TRENDS:

* Bruins are 0-5 in their last 5 road games.
* Maple Leafs are 1-5 in their last 6 Conference Quarterfinals games.
* Over is 3-0-2 in Bruins last 5 overall.
* Over is 7-0-1 in Maple Leafs last 8 vs. a team with a winning % above .600.
* Bruins are 0-5 in the last 5 meetings in Toronto.




Washington Capitals at Columbus Blue Jackets (-115, 5.5)

Jackets lead series 2-1.

Fresh off their second straight overtime loss, Alex Ovechkin generated both headlines and raised eyebrows after declaring that the Washington Capitals would return to the District of Columbia tied with the Columbus Blue Jackets at two victories apiece in their Eastern Conference first-round series. Halfway there after a double-overtime win, the visiting Capitals look to make Ovechkin's words ring true in Game 4 on Thursday.

ABOUT THE CAPITALS (50-26-8-1, 48-35 O/U): Ovechkin recorded his second straight two-point performance when he notched a pair of assists in his 100th career playoff game before Lars Eller ended Tuesday's marathon after the puck caromed off him and into the net for a 3-2 win. Braden Holtby earned his keep on Tuesday with 33 saves, prompting coach Barry Trotz to declare the 2016 Vezina Trophy winner the starter the following day. "I don't think there's any doubt about that," Trotz said of Holtby, who answered a 1-5-2 mark with a gaudy 4.82 goals-against average and .854 save percentage from Feb. 11-March 5 with a solid 5-1-0 record in his final six regular-season starts.

ABOUT THE BLUE JACKETS (47-30-4-4, 43-42 O/U): Former Calder Trophy winner Artemi Panarin scored and set up a goal in Game 3 to give him seven points (two goals, five assists) in the series and 20 (four goals, 16 assists) in the eight-game stretch. Cam Atkinson joined defenseman Seth Jones with an assist on Tuesday to extend their respective point streaks, with the former riding a 12-game stretch (10 goals, seven assists). Two-time Vezina Trophy winner G Sergei Bobrovsky owns a .925 save percentage after facing 133 shots in three contests of the series.

SERIES PRICE (PER SPORTS INTERACTION):

LINE HISTORY: The Blue Jackets opened as -120 favorites and as of Thursday morning that number is down slightly to -115. Covers Consensus betting action is split with 51 percent of the selections on the Capitals. The total hit betting boards at 5.5 and has not moved.

INJURY REPORT:

Capitals - LW Andre Burakovsky (Out, Upper Body).

Jackets - C Alexander Wennberg (Questionable, Upper Body), LW Lukas Sedlak (Out Indefinitely, Head).

MATCHUP CHART:

TRENDS:

* Capitals are 6-0 in their last 6 road games.
* Blue Jackets are 11-2 in their last 13 vs. Eastern Conference.
* Over is 5-1 in Capitals last 6 overall.
* Over is 8-1 in Blue Jackets last 9 overall.
* Capitals are 7-3 in the last 10 meetings.

 

[Cnotes53]

NHL
Dunkel

Thursday, April 19


Boston @ Toronto

Game 1-2
April 19, 2018 @ 7:05 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Boston
11.797
Toronto
10.645
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Boston
by 1
5
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Boston
-115
6
Dunkel Pick:
Boston
(-115); Under

Washington @ Columbus

Game 3-4
April 19, 2018 @ 7:35 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Washington
11.053
Columbus
12.492
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Columbus
by 1 1/2
5
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Columbus
-115
5 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Columbus
(-115); Under




NHL
Long Sheet

Thursday, April 19

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

BOSTON (52-21-0-12, 116 pts.) at TORONTO (50-28-0-7, 107 pts.) - 4/19/2018, 7:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
BOSTON is 35-41 ATS (-18.9 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent over the last 2 seasons.
TORONTO is 19-10 ATS (+30.3 Units) when trailing in a playoff series since 1996.
TORONTO is 11-1 ATS (+9.8 Units) in home games after a win by 2 goals or more this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
TORONTO is 9-7 (+3.7 Units) against the spread versus BOSTON over the last 3 seasons
TORONTO is 9-7-0 straight up against BOSTON over the last 3 seasons
7 of 14 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=-0.3 Units, Under=-0.5 Units)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

WASHINGTON (50-26-0-9, 109 pts.) at COLUMBUS (47-30-0-8, 102 pts.) - 4/19/2018, 7:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
WASHINGTON is 51-35 ATS (+6.2 Units) in all games this season.
WASHINGTON is 19-13 ATS (+5.7 Units) in a road game where where the total is 5.5 this season.
WASHINGTON is 8-1 ATS (+6.8 Units) in road games in April games over the last 2 seasons.
WASHINGTON is 16-9 ATS (+6.7 Units) in road games second half of the season this season.
WASHINGTON is 27-17 ATS (+7.9 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
WASHINGTON is 10-6 (+1.5 Units) against the spread versus COLUMBUS over the last 3 seasons
WASHINGTON is 10-6-0 straight up against COLUMBUS over the last 3 seasons
7 of 12 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+1.5 Units)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------




NHL

Thursday, April 19

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Boston Bruins
Boston is 9-4 ATS in its last 13 games
Boston is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Boston's last 10 games on the road
Boston is 3-8 SU in its last 11 games when playing Toronto
Boston is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Toronto
Boston is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Toronto
Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games
The total has gone OVER in 16 of Toronto's last 23 games
Toronto is 17-2 SU in its last 19 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 11 of Toronto's last 16 games at home
Toronto is 8-3 SU in its last 11 games when playing Boston
Toronto is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Boston
Toronto is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Boston


Washington Capitals
Washington is 13-5 SU in its last 18 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Washington's last 6 games
Washington is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
Washington is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games on the road
Washington is 3-6 ATS in its last 9 games when playing Columbus
Washington is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games when playing Columbus
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Washington's last 5 games when playing Columbus
Washington is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Columbus
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Washington's last 13 games when playing on the road against Columbus
Columbus Blue Jackets
Columbus is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games
Columbus is 15-5 SU in its last 20 games
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Columbus's last 9 games
Columbus is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games at home
Columbus is 9-3 SU in its last 12 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Columbus's last 6 games at home
Columbus is 6-3 ATS in its last 9 games when playing Washington
Columbus is 3-7 SU in its last 10 games when playing Washington
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Columbus's last 5 games when playing Washington
Columbus is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Washington
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Columbus's last 13 games when playing at home against Washington

 

[Cnotes53]

THURSDAY, APRIL 19
GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS

BOS at TOR 07:00 PM
TOR +105
O 6.0

WAS at CLB 07:30 PM
CLB -120
O 5.5

 

[Cnotes53]

Bruins take 3-1 lead; Caps-Blue Jackets series tied 2-2
April 19, 2018

TORONTO (AP) Brad Marchand scored the go-ahead goal in the second period and Tuukka Rask made 31 saves as the Boston Bruins defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 on Thursday night to take a 3-1 lead in their first-round playoff series.

Torey Krug and Jake DeBrusk also had goals for the Bruins, who can win the Eastern Conference quarterfinal when they host Game 5 on Saturday at Boston's TD Garden. David Pastrnak added two assists.

Tomas Plekanec scored the lone goal for the Leafs, who got 18 saves from Frederik Andersen.

Patrice Bergeron, part of a top line that combined for 20 points in the Bruins' two home victories to open the series, was a surprise late scratch with an upper-body injury. Riley Nash took his spot between Marchand and Pastrnak.

CAPITALS 4, BLUE JACKETS 1

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Evgeny Kuznetsov had a goal and two assists, and Braden Holtby stopped 23 shots as the Washington Capitals beat the Columbus Blue Jackets to even their playoff series at two games apiece.

Tom Wilson and Alexander Ovechkin each had a goal and an assist, and T.J. Oshie also scored for the workmanlike Capitals, who won this time in regulation after the first three games of the best-of-7 series were decided in overtime. Game 5 is Saturday afternoon in Washington.

Boone Jenner scored for Columbus, and Sergei Bobrovsky had 29 saves.


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


NHL PLAYOFF RECORD:

DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD

04/19/2018 0-4-0 0.00% -22.00
04/18/2018 4-4-0 50.00% -1.00
04/17/2018 4-2-0 66.67% +9.75
04/16/2018 5-3-0 62.50% +4.25
04/15/2018 5-1-2 83.33% +21.25
04/14/2018 1-6-1 14.29% -27.75
04/13/2018 2-3-1 40.00% -11.50
04/12/2018 4-5-1 44.44% -4.00
04/11/2018 4-2-0 66.67% +9.50

TOTALS..........33-30-5.......52.38%.....-21.50

 

[Cnotes53]

Penguins, Predators look to lock up second round spots
April 19, 2018

PITTSBURGH (AP) Mario Lemieux had one question for Sidney Crosby after the Pittsburgh star slipped past his boss as the Penguins' career playoff scoring leader during a Game 4 romp over Philadelphia.

''He asked what took so long,'' Crosby said with a laugh.

Lemieux's joke carried with it a pair of messages.

The first is a not so subtle reminder to his protege that it took Crosby 152 games to reach 173 playoff points while Lemieux only needed 107 to get to 172. The second is a nod to Crosby's playoff excellence. He slipped by his boss because the Penguins - thanks in no small part to their captain - keep finding a way to win in the postseason.

A victory over Philadelphia in Game 5 on Friday night would push the Penguins into the second round for the fifth time in six years and move them a step closer to becoming the first team in 35 years to win three straight Stanley Cups. Pittsburgh has gotten there by developing a killer instinct under head coach Mike Sullivan that it lacked at times before his arrival in December, 2015.

The Penguins are 8-5 when given a chance to clinch a playoff series since Sullivan took over. They were 4-9 in potential clinching games from 2010-15, including letting 3-1 series leads get away in the first round against Tampa Bay in 2011 (when Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were both out) and to the New York Rangers in the second round in 2014, a collapse that cost head coach Dan Bylsma and general manager Ray Shero their jobs.

Sullivan downplays his role in it, preferring to put the emphasis on his star-laden roster.

''This group of players has a real strong competitive spirit and I think it's hard to win in this game if you don't,'' Sullivan said. ''I think it starts with our core players. They lead the way for us in so many different ways but certainly our compete level is one of them.''

The proof came over the course of six periods in Philadelphia in Games 3 and 4, when the Penguins outscored the Flyers 10-1 with Crosby, Malkin, Phil Kessel and goalie Matt Murray doing their part to reclaim momentum after Philadelphia pulled off a 5-1 stunner in Game 2 to briefly - emphasis on briefly - tie the series.

Now? Not so much. The cross-state rivals have engaged in what amounts to an outlier of sorts in the typically taut playoffs. All four games have been decided by at least four goals. The other seven playoff series have had seven games decided by four-or-more goals combined.

''It's been weird,'' Pittsburgh center Derick Brassard said.

And lopsided. Flyer fans exited Game 4 chanting for the firing of coach Dave Hakstol, and his grasp on the gig become precarious if his team can't force the Penguins to head back east for Game 6.

There's a chance the Flyers could have Sean Couturier in the lineup. He missed Game 4 after colliding with teammate Radko Gudas in practice on Tuesday. Either way, Philadelphia knows it needs to find a way to recapture the resiliency it showed during the regular season when it overcame a litany of setbacks to return to the playoffs after a one-year absence.

''They've played extremely well, and we need to play better,'' Philadelphia general manager Ron Hextall said. ''Our focus has to get back to one game. We're down 3-1 obviously, but our focus has to get back to winning one game, and that's tomorrow. There's no question we have to play better individually, and certainly as a group.''

Or, play a little more like the Penguins, who have shrugged off a sometimes uneven regular season to look very much like the team that celebrated with raucous championship parades through downtown Pittsburgh each of the last two Junes.

There's much work to be done before another one can be planned, but Pittsburgh is three periods away from getting at least as far as the last three teams trying for a threepeat - the 1998-99 Detroit Red Wings, the 1992-93 Penguins and the 1988-89 Edmonton Oilers.

''We know it's going to be a tough one,'' Crosby said. ''We want to try and carry that momentum and the way we played into our own building.''

PREDATORS ON THE PROW

The team the Penguins edged in six taut games during the 2017 Cup finals have their own shot to move on Friday. The Nashville Predators clinched all three of their playoff series a year ago at home a year ago in reaching their first Stanley Cup Final and have a chance to close out Colorado in Game 5 (9:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN).

The Predators are 11-2 in Smashville since the start of the 2017 playoffs, a run that started by finishing off a sweep of Chicago in the first round a year ago. They can assure themselves of a weekend of rest if they avoid a return trip to Colorado.

''It's huge that we have a chance to finish the series at home,'' Predators goalie Pekka Rinne said. ''Obviously, that's something that is in the back of your head. We want to take it so bad and have this opportunity. But it's a good team so we have to play again like this and I think that will be.''

The Predators tried to make sure they're well-rested by flying back to Tennessee on Thursday, and they will have a chance to advance against Colorado's backup to the backup goalie. Avs coach Jared Bednar announced that Andrew Hammond will start Game 5 with Jonathan Bernier is out with a lower-body injury. Hammond stepped in and stopped all eight shots he faced in relief of Bernier in Nashville's 3-2 win on Wednesday night.

''He didn't have a whole bunch of work, but he was good,'' Bednar said. ''He made the saves he needed to make. It was good to see. Hopefully it gives him a little confidence.''