Blues' playoff odds getting longer

Hockey Betting Lines

03/18/2010 -

ST. LOUIS (AP) -The St. Louis Blues are clinging to the hope of another miracle run to the playoffs. Time is running short, especially after the latest home-ice failure.

The Blues are seven points out of the final Western Conference playoff spot with only 13 games remaining. They've got three teams to leapfrog, having dropped to 11th place after Tuesday's 5-3 loss to the Colorado Avalanche.

And despite recent improvements under interim coach Davis Payne, they're still the NHL's worst team at home with a dismal 12-17-5 record.

Yet, St. Louis remains optimistic heading into Thursday's game at New York against the Rangers. The Blues finished with a 9-1-1 rush last spring, vaulting to sixth place and ending a three-year playoff drought with much the same cast, and the players believe there's no reason why they can't recapture that feeling.

``You never know,'' forward David Perron said. ``How many games we got left? If we win them all. ... We did that last year, and we're ready to do it again this year.''

It's an uphill task, given that five of the remaining seven games this month are against teams who are currently in playoff positions; the Rangers are only three points out of the final Eastern Conference spot. There are two games remaining against the Blackhawks, second in the West, and one against the Devils, fourth in the East.

Seven games are at home, which would be a positive for most teams. The Blues have 20 road wins, third-most in franchise history, but have blown too many leads at home.

They had shown signs of a home-ice turnaround before the Olympic break and an extended trip that followed, winning three in a row, before fizzling against the Avalanche.

Even with a sweep of the three remaining games against the Predators, seventh in the West and nine points ahead of the Blues, they'd need help. Goalie Chris Mason figured a 10-3 finish might be enough, but knew the best policy was not to look ahead.

``We're all aware of the points we have to make up,'' Mason said. ``We have to go in and focus and get points in our next game. Let's worry about New York.''

The Blues basically stood pat at the trade deadline, banking on a surge from underachievers like Brad Boyes and Paul Kariya to complement a young roster studded with recent first-round draft picks. Boyes has only 12 goals after totaling 76 the previous two seasons, and only two of Kariya's 15 goals have come at home.

Mason, the dominant factor in the Blues' finish last season, has been a lot more inconsistent.

Effort alone simply hasn't been enough lately, either. The Blues outshot Colorado 39-26 and dominated most of the third period without scoring, and had a hefty advantage in shots (38-20) in a loss at Minnesota on Sunday that wrapped up a 4-2 trip.

Plus, against Colorado they squandered a goal that matched the franchise record for fastest to start a game. Alex Steen put the Blues ahead at the eight-second mark, but it was their only lead.

``I don't know if you can script a better start than that,'' forward David Backes said.

Payne, elevated from Peoria of the AHL to replace Andy Murray in early January, refused to entertain doom and gloom talk. He's certain there'll be no trouble motivating players to chase a dream that appears to be slipping away.

``Not difficult in that regard,'' Payne said. ``Lots of fight and lots of time left for our hockey club.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

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SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting

NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.


That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.

A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."

It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.

The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.

So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."

Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.

Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.

Seriously.

The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.

The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.

Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."

The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.

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