Flyers, Bruins look to continue good play of late

Hockey Betting Lines

02/19/2007 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A pair of teams that have shown improved play in recent weeks will get together this evening at the Wachovia Center, where the Boston Bruins resume a long road trip with a showdown against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Although both clubs are on the outside looking in of the Eastern Conference playoff picture, with the Flyers well out of the postseason chase, each enters tonight's game with victories in three of its last four contests.

Philadelphia finally got its first win without Peter Forsberg in the lineup on Saturday, a 5-3 decision over the rival New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. Simon Gagne and Geoff Sanderson each had a goal and an assist to lead the way.

The Flyers traded star center Forsberg to the Nashville Predators on Thursday in exchange for right wing Scottie Upshall, 19-year-old defense prospect Ryan Parent and a pair of 2007 draft choices. Upshall made a good impression with his new team, scoring a power-play goal in the third period during his Philly debut.

Philadelphia had gone 0-13-3 in the games the oft-injured Forsberg had missed this season, then was dealt a 4-2 loss to Toronto on the night of the big trade.

Antero Niittymaki made 40 saves for the Flyers, who still have a league-low 40 points on the season.

Philadelphia did suffer a significant injury on Saturday, as right wing Mike Knuble fractured his right cheekbone and orbital bone in a scary collision with New York's Brendan Shanahan during the third period. Knuble, who ranks second on the team in goals (22) and points (43), will be sidelined indefinitely.

Gagne has scored a goal in five consecutive games and has amassed 11 points (7 goals, 4 assists) during that stretch.

Boston outlasted the Eastern Conference-leading Buffalo Sabres in a thrilling shootout in its most recent outing. Petr Tenkrat's goal in the eighth round proved to be the difference as the Bruins came away with a 4-3 victory Saturday at HSBC Arena.

Tim Thomas stopped all eight Buffalo skaters he faced during the deciding phase and finished with 22 saves in regulation for Boston, which won for the fifth time in its last seven games. Shean Donovan and Marc Savard each registered a goal and an assist on the evening.

The Bruins are currently eight points behind Montreal and Toronto for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Boston will be playing the third installment of a six-game road trip, which began with a loss to the New York Islanders on Thursday, and owns an 11-14-2 record away from home.

The Flyers are a dismal 5-16-7 at the Wachovia Center this season but have won two of their last three home games.

Boston earned a 4-3 triumph over Philadelphia in Beantown back in January and has taken the last two meetings in this series.

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Big Ten Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Michigan State, Indiana
Work left to do: Illinois, Purdue, Michigan, Iowa

Behind the big two, the pecking order might be in a bit of flux. Has Michigan State passed Indiana after handling the Hoosiers in East Lansing? Where is Illinois in that mix? What looked like a four-big league last week could be morphing into five -- and even six is not unthinkable at this point if everything breaks right.

Should be in:

Michigan State [21-8 (8-6), RPI: 20, SOS: 15] The Spartans made it four-for-four on the homestand, a gigantic accomplishment that leaves them in extremely good shape. MSU is only 1-6 on the road and is at Michigan and at Wisconsin to close things out, meaning the date with the Wolverines on Tuesday looms very, very large. Beating Texas early will hold up well, as will the rout of Bradley and the win over BYU, but will 8-8 be enough? It very well could be, as the computer numbers are good, but why chance it?

Indiana [18-9 (8-6), RPI: 24, SOS: 32] Hmm ... good thing the last two are at Northwestern and home to Penn State, because IU might want to get both to feel completely safe after dropping its third in the last four, fading after halftime at Michigan State. Who knew the best nonconference win would be over Southern Illinois, which is a gift that keeps on giving for the Hoosiers. The win over Wisconsin also looks good on the mantel.

Work left to do:

Illinois [21-9 (9-6), RPI: 31, SOS: 25] A good performance at Penn State leaves the Illini in pretty good shape. Can they go to Iowa and take care of business to really look on their way? That's a huge game, as there is a possible cluster of teams that will end at 9-7. Illinois beat Bradley, but has lost to Xavier. A 9-7 mark and a semifinals trip in Chicago could be enough with the computer profile hanging in there, but it would be better not to mess around, clinching at least a tie for third.

Purdue [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 47, SOS: 28] Couldn't get it done at Iowa, but did win at Northwestern to put 9-7 squarely in sight. Where does that leave the Boilermakers, though? Even if they beat Minnesota and Northwestern at home, that won't help the computer numbers. Nonconference wins over Virginia, DePaul and Oklahoma are solid, but not spectacular. The Boilers very well might need an upset in the B10 quarters to have a legit claim.

Michigan [19-10 (7-7), RPI: 55, SOS: 53] Well, Michigan did what it needed to do, winning at Minnesota to take control of its fate. The Wolverines have Michigan State and an already-wrapped-up-the-league Ohio State at home to close, so the chances are there. Win both and we can talk. There is no marquee win yet in the profile, and the Wolverines were splattered in several games against name opponents. A mediocre computer profile fueled by a lack of road wins isn't helping, either.

Iowa [16-12 (8-6), RPI: 80, SOS: 64] For the sake of being complete, we'll add Iowa, this season's Stanford. It's plausible that the Hawkeyes could get to 10-6 (at Penn State, vs. Illinois left), but where does that leave them after a gruesome nonconference performance where the best win was over ... Toledo? Iowa State? Cornell?? If they get to 10-6, we can start to look at what they need to do in the B10 tourney, although my gut sense is that they would need to make the final and have knocked off Ohio State or Wisconsin on the way to have any real claim.

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