10/11/2008 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After beginning the regular season in Europe, the Ottawa Senators will have their official home opener tonight as they welcome the defending Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings to Scotiabank Place.
The Senators met the Pittsburgh Penguins for a pair of contests last weekend in Sweden, with each team being designated with a home game at the Globe Arena in Stockholm. The clubs split the series, with Pittsburgh taking Saturday's contest in overtime and Ottawa following up with a 3-1 decision the following day.
Ottawa will have to open its home schedule this evening without its captain, Daniel Alfredsson, who underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee Friday.
The surgery removed a bone chip in the forward's knee that was dislodged during Sunday's game against Pittsburgh. The ailment could sideline Alfredsson for up to two weeks.
The 35-year-old Alfredsson is Ottawa's all-time leader in goals (331), assists (518) and games played (855).
Danny Heatley continued his dominance against the Penguins as he scored twice to help Ottawa split the season-opening series with Sunday's 3-1 triumph.
Alex Auld made 30 saves and was less than one second away from a shutout while Antoine Vermette scored the other goal for the Senators.
The Red Wings raised their Stanley Cup banner to the rafters at Joe Louis Arena prior to Thursday's season opener against Toronto, but wound up losing the contest by a 3-2 count. Nikolai Kulemin's first NHL goal was the game- winner, as Toronto held on for the decision.
Tomas Holmstrom picked up both goals for the Red Wings. Marian Hossa assisted on Holmstrom's second tally, his first point in a Detroit uniform after signing as a free agent from Pittsburgh in the offseason.
Chris Osgood was solid in defeat, making 26 saves.
Ottawa has won the last two encounters with Detroit, but the Red Wings have still taken six of nine meetings.
The Senators were 22-15-4 as the host team last season, while Detroit had an excellent 25-12-4 mark as the visiting team.
<< Nalbandian to take on Soderling in Stockholm final
Stockholm, Sweden (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - David Nalbandian of Argentina advanced to
the final of the Stockholm Open on Saturday and will have to face crowd
favorite Robin Soderling for the title.
The top-seeded Nalbandian blitzed through
<< Rays aim to rebound in Game 2 of ALCS versus Red Sox
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Red Sox try to go two games up on the Tampa Bay
Rays in the American League Championship Series this evening when the AL East
rivals play Game 2 of the best-of-seven set at Tropicana Field.
Boston snatched home-
<< Jankovic, Zvonareva reach Kremlin Cup final
Moscow, Russia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jelena Jankovic of Serbia and Russia's Vera
Zvonareva were semifinal winners Saturday at the Kremlin Cup and will meet for
the title on Sunday.
The top-seeded Jankovic bounced back from a disastrous fir
<< Sweden cruises to big win at Women's World Amateur
Adelaide, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Anna Nordqvist and Caroline Hedwall
both broke par on Saturday to help Sweden cruise to a 12-stroke victory at the
Women's World Amateur Team Championship.
Nordqvist posted a three-under 69 in the
Flyers begin season with home test against well-traveled Rangers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - While the Rangers season is almost a week old, the Flyers
are just getting started. Philadelphia begins its 2008-09 campaign tonight
against well-traveled New York at the Wachovia Center.
New York has already played three
Capitals, Blackhawks clash in Washington >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two clubs that feature some of the best young talent in the
game square off tonight, as the Washington Capitals host the Chicago
Blackhawks at the Verizon Center.
Both clubs made their season debuts on Friday night, and bo
Panthers make home debut against Thrashers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Thrashers will try to spoil Florida's home
debut, as they take on the Panthers tonight at BankAtlantic Center.
The Thrashers began their season at home with a 7-4 win over Washington,
getting two goals and an a
Penguins take on Devils in Steel City >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After opening their season in Sweden, the Pittsburgh
Penguins finally return to the Steel City to play the New Jersey Devils
tonight at Mellon Arena.
Pittsburgh, the defending Eastern Conference champions, split their two-
BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers SPORTS TRASH TALK
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting.
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