Stars Blackhawks Visit Highlight Of Game

Hockey Betting Lines

Brayden Schenn and Wayne Simmonds both scored for the Flyers, while Ilya Bryzgalov allowed four goals on 37 shots in the loss. Bryzgalov started Sunday after coming into the previous day's game in relief when Sergei Bobrovsky allowed all six goals against the Devils.

 

It's unclear if Bryzgalov or Bobrovsky will get the start tonight. Bobrovsky is 7-1 with a 2.01 goals-against average in nine career games against the Isles, while Bryzgalov is 0-1 with a 5.52 GAA in three tests versus New York.

 

The Flyers enter tonight having lost four of their last five as the host. Philly is 12-8-4 at home this year compared to an 18-8-2 mark on the road.

 

Isles forward John Tavares has gone without a point in two February games after being named the NHL's First Star of the Month in January. The 21-year- old has 12 points (5 goals, 7 assists) in 15 career tests against the Flyers.

 

New York has won its last two road games, but is still just 10-11-3 as the visiting team this season.

 

Chicago has been outscored 22-10 over its losing streak, marking the first time it has lost five in a row since March 13-20, 2009. Another setback tonight would give the Blackhawks their longest skid since an 0-6-1 drought from Dec. 30-Jan. 11 during the 2007-08 season.

 

"We don't want to put more pressure on ourselves than we already have. We're staying positive, but weren't not making any excuses for ourselves, looking for ways to bail ourselves out of this situation," Toews said following Monday's practice.

 

Chicago is just 5-7-3 since Jan. 2 and had lost the first three outings of a nine-game road trip. Friday's 3-1 loss in Calgary marked the fourth time over its skid that is failed to score more than two goals. The only exception was an 8-4 setback in Edmonton on Thursday.

 

"I think stretches like this get your attention and as a team you learn from this," Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville said after the loss. "We haven't really had a challenge like this all year and it's up to us to recapture how we felt earlier in the year and know what it takes to win."

Americansportstake Hockey Betting Blog


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Big 12 Conference betting odds

Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State

Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.

Work left to do:

Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.

Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.

Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.