Montreal rallies late, downs Ducks in SO

Hockey Betting Lines

03/07/2010 - Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tomas Plekanec fired the game-winning wrister in the shootout, and the Montreal Canadiens used a late surge in regulation and a controversial goal in the shootout to edge the Anaheim Ducks, 4-3, at Honda Center.

The Habs trailed, 1-0, in the shootout heading into the final shooter, and Brian Gionta fired a wrist shot in between the blocker pad and stick of Anaheim netminder Jonas Hiller. Hiller drifted backward toward the net and looked to find the puck, inadvertently knocking it into the net for a goal.

The officials reviewed the tally, as the whistle had not been blown, and confirmed the call on the ice. After James Wisniewski could not score for the Ducks in the fourth round, Plekanec fired a wrister past Hiller's glove for the game-winner.

Plekanec added a breakaway goal in the second period for the Habs, who responded from a 3-0 deficit and scored twice in the final 1:50 of regulation. Gionta and Andrei Markov also scored in the team's third win in four games.

Jaroslav Halak stopped all 21 shots he faced after replacing Carey Price, who gave up three goals on 11 shots in the first period.

Corey Perry, Lubomir Visnovsky and Scott Niedermayer tallied for the Ducks, who have lost all three of their games since the Olympic break. Hiller stopped 40 shots in a hard-luck defeat.

Montreal trailed, 3-1, in the final two minutes but managed to tie the score. First was Gionta, who grabbed an errant Anaheim pass in the offensive zone, skated to the slot and ripped a snap shot past Hiller with 1:50 to play.

The Canadiens then pulled Halak for an extra attacker, and the strategy paid off. Benoit Pouliot grabbed the puck near the right side board and gave it to Scott Gomez, who sent it back to Pouliot. Pouliot quickly dished it to Markov out in front, and Markov snuck it underneath the crossbar with 10.7 ticks left to tie it.

Perry staked the Ducks to a 1-0 lead 8:54 into the game, and Visnovsky made it 2-0 when he took a puck at center ice, skated all the way deep into the slot and fired the puck between Price's legs exactly four minutes later.

With 53 seconds remaining in the opening frame, Niedermayer gave Anaheim what seemed to be a comfortable lead at 3-0.

Plekanec notched the only goal of the middle stanza on a breakaway 7:48 in, firing a forehand shot into the top left corner.

Game Notes

Montreal, earning two points with the win, moved ahead of Boston into sole possession of seventh place in the East...Anaheim sits six points out of the final playoff spot in the West...Habs forward Maxim Lapierre sat out the second of his four-game suspension...The Ducks have lost two straight at home after winning 11 consecutive games at Honda Center...Ryan Getzlaf scored for the Ducks in the shootout.

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MySportsbook.com: NFL draft - The NFC South


In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South.  Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC.  The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game.  For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft.  Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.

1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign?  New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1.  Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT.  Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.

Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami

2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season.  With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round.  LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems.  If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.

Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU

3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season.  The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach.  The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub.  High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career.  With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson. 

Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season.  The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age.  It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot.  This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.

Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas

It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season.  On the clock: the NFC North

Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2    

Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1

Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1

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