Hossa leads Rangers past Blackhawks

Hockey Betting Lines

02/18/2007 - New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marcel Hossa's late first-period goal was the difference, as the New York Rangers edged the Chicago Blackhawks, 2-1, at Madison Square Garden.

Martin Straka also tallied for the Rangers, who have won four of their last five games. Jaromir Jagr, Petr Prucha, and Matt Cullen added assists, and Henrik Lundqvist made 21 saves.

Martin Havlat scored for the Blackhawks, who have dropped four of five. Patrick Lalime stopped 27 shots in the loss.

The Rangers played without forward Brendan Shanahan, who is out indefinitely following a scary collision on Saturday with Flyers forward Mike Knuble. Shanahan was removed from the ice on a stretcher early in the third period of New York's 5-3 loss to Philly, and spent Saturday night in a local hospital for observation.

New York put the ugliness of that game behind them early, as Straka gave the Rangers a 1-0 lead at 1:42 while on the power play, slamming home Jagr's feed from the slot for his 27th goal of the year.

Hossa doubled the lead with 8:20 to play, taking Cullen's left circle dish and scoring on a low shot from the slot which found its way through Lalime. The eventual game-winning score was his seventh of the season, as well as his second in consecutive games.

Havlat finally got the Hawks on the board with 75 seconds remaining in the second, but they could not net an equalizer in the third period as Lundqvist stopped all eight shots that came his way.

Game Notes

Despite the loss, Chicago is 3-1-1 in the last five meetings, and 9-5-2 against New York since the 1995-96 season...New York's last win over Chicago at the Garden came on February 19, 2001, by a 4-2 score...The Rangers improved to 4-2-0 in afternoon games this season...New York travels across the Hudson River to face New Jersey on Tuesday, while Chicago is in Detroit on Wednesday.

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SPORTS BETTING

NFL Football Betting Online

In terms of sports wagering, the NFL is "the most popular game in town." The explanation behind that is easy.

It is called the "pointspread."

Many years ago, NFL games, as well as the more popular college games, used straight odds as a vehicle for betting. For example, if the Bears were playing the Giants, and it shaped up as a competitive contest, the Bears might be, say, a 7/5 favorite. If they were playing an also-ran, it might be 10/1. Well, there is a point where a line becomes prohibitive, as far as betting the favorite. And who would waste money betting an underdog that has virtually no chance? Such a setup did not contribute to promoting betting action.

But in modern sports betting, a "pointspread" is used.

A NFL pointspreads are exactly that, a pre-established point difference between the two sides that will, for all intents and purposes, create a handicap that evens things out, and in doing so, produces comparable wagering activity on both sides of that proposition. So in lieu of a odds figure in which to bet the team to win outright, the Bears might be a three-point favorite over the New York Giants, and a 17-point favorite over the also-ran. Now that the team that is the underdog can "get" points, there can be equal action on both sides.

In sportsbooks, this is usually done with efficiency by charging the losing bettors 10% extra - in effect, bettors are laying 11/10 on those games. So they are actually betting $110 to win $100. If they lose, they pay the "vig." If they win, they simply collect.

The establishment of the pointspread as the corner stone around which team sports like football can be wagered upon was truly what brought gridiron betting into the stratosphere for online football betting .

Don't believe it? Just take a look at what happens around the Super Bowl.

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