Sens try to regain swagger against Leafs

Hockey Betting Lines

03/16/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Ottawa Senators have found it hard to recapture their earlier success upon returning from the Olympic break. The playoff hopefuls hope a visit from the Eastern Conference's last-place team will help end those struggles.

The slumping Senators head back to Scotiabank Place tonight to take on the Toronto Maple Leafs in a showdown between Northeast Division foes.

Ottawa had been on fire prior to the NHL's stoppage for the Vancouver Games, ripping off 14 wins in its final 16 contests before the shutdown. The Senators haven't been the same since play resumed, however, going 1-4-1 in their first six outings of March.

The Sens did open a three-game tour of Western Canada with a 4-1 triumph over doormat Edmonton on March 9, but followed with disappointing results in both Calgary and Vancouver. After being shut out by the Flames on Thursday, Ottawa was dominated on both ends of the ice in a 5-1 defeat to the Canucks in Saturday's finale of the trip.

Vancouver outshot the Senators 17-2 in the first period and by a 35-14 margin for the game, and converted 2-of-6 power-play opportunities in addition to recording a short-handed goal.

"Not a whole lot to say about that effort," a frustrated Ottawa head coach Cory Clouston said afterward. "We weren't ready to go. [The Canucks] played like it was a playoff game and we weren't ready to step our game up."

Jason Spezza netted the lone Senators' goal, while goaltender Pascal Leclaire made 30 saves in a losing cause.

Ottawa now trails Buffalo by three points for first place in the Northeast, but still stands fifth in the Eastern Conference standings despite its current slide.

The Senators will try to bounce back in this evening's bout with the lowly Leafs, whose 58 total points trail only Edmonton for the lowest amount in the league. Toronto has taken the last three meetings between the divisional rivals, however, including a 2-1 shootout decision at Scotiabank Place on March 6.

That victory started off a 4-1-0 stretch for the Maple Leafs, although they couldn't sustain that momentum in Sunday's 4-1 road loss to the New York Islanders.

Nikolai Kulemin did have a goal for Toronto to extend his personal scoring streak to five games, with the Russian wing having compiled seven points (4 goals, 3 assists) over that span.

The defeat was the ninth in the past 10 road games for the Leafs, with the March 6 verdict over the Senators their only win during that period. Toronto has been one of the NHL's worst teams away from home this season, bringing a poor 9-20-7 mark as the visitor into tonight's tilt.

Ottawa is a strong 23-13-4 on home ice thus far in 2009-10, but has lost three of its five previous matchups with the Maple Leafs this season as well as six of the past nine overall meetings in this series.

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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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