Stewart, Yip help Avs upend Blues
Hockey Betting Lines
02/09/2010 -
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chris Stewart had a goal and two assists as the
Colorado Avalanche downed the St. Louis Blues, 5-2, at Pepsi Center.
Brandon Yip had two goals while Paul Stastny added a goal and an assist for
the Avalanche, who have won three of their last four. Craig Anderson stopped
32 shots in the loss.
Eric Brewer and Erik Johnson each lit the lamp for the Blues, who have dropped
four of five. Chris Mason started in net but was pulled in the second period
after giving up five goals on 15 shots. Ty Conklin finished the game between
the pipes and stopped all 18 shots he faced.
With the score tied in the second, the Avs exploded for three goals in the
frame to take the lead.
The first one came at the 2:25 mark of the period when Ryan Wilson threw a
shot on net from the high slot that hit off of Stewart and went into the net.
About 1 1/2 minutes later, Marek Svatos' forechecking caused a turnover in the
St. Louis end, and he threw the puck to the right circle where Stastny lifted
a backhander into the right corner.
Just over 2 1/2 minutes after Stastny's goal, Yip's simple wrister from the
left circle found its way past Mason, who was pulled in favor of Conklin after
the goal, for a 5-2 lead.
In the third period, Anderson was sharp as he stopped all 11 shots he faced to
keep St. Louis from gaining any momentum.
St. Louis got on the board just 3:34 into the game on Brewer's sixth goal of
the season.
Colorado, though, tied the game just 28 seconds later as T.J. Galiardi
received a pass at the right circle and skated into the low slot where he
fired a wrister into the top right corner.
Less than four minutes later, Johnson again gave the Blues a one-goal lead on
his fifth goal of the season, but Yip's tip-in on the power-play with 3:18
left in the first tied the game back up.
Game Notes
Colorado hosts Atlanta on Wednesday...St. Louis hosts Detroit on
Tuesday...Colorado took a 4-0 decision in St. Louis on December 7...Colorado
is 8-0-0 on Monday this season...Colorado went 1-for-6 on the power play
while St. Louis failed to score on any of its three chances.
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The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.
While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.
For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.
1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.
2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.
How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.
Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.
Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.
How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).
Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.
Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.
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