Cleary's hat trick paces Red Wings past Blue Jackets

Hockey Betting Lines

12/29/2006 - Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Daniel Cleary had a hat trick, tallying the game-winning goal with 5:19 remaining in regulation as the Detroit Red Wings needed a late rally to defeat the Columbus Blue Jackets, 7-4, in a Central Division matchup at Nationwide Arena.

Pavel Datsyuk also had a pair of goals, while Robert Lang added three assists for Detroit, which has won four of its last five games. The Red Wings were bolstered by the return of Lang, who was back in the lineup after exiting Wednesday's game against Minnesota with the flu.

Henrik Zetterberg and Danny Markov also scored and Chris Osgood made 21 saves between the pipes.

Ron Hainsey, David Vyborny, Dan Fritsche and Adam Foote scored for Columbus, which has lost two of three. Fredrik Norrena surrendered six goals on 35 shots.

With his team trailing 4-3, Datsyuk's eighth goal of the season was the start of four straight third-period goals by Detroit. The center made the play by himself, as he eluded a diving defenseman just inside the blue line, weaved between a couple players and found a seam, beating Norrena through the five- hole to make it a 4-4 game with 8:36 remaining in the contest.

A few minutes later, an initial wrist shot by Lang over the glove of the Columbus netminder looked to be the deciding goal in the contest. After the game, the official scoring was changed to reflect that Cleary tipped the disc, giving him three goals on the night and 17 on the season.

Datsyuk's quick deflection through the netminder's skates gave the Red Wings a two-goal cushion with 1:45 to play, and Markov added an empty net goal just 12 seconds later.

Detroit blew a three-goal lead early on.

Markov ripped a shot from above the left faceoff circle that Norrena deflected, and Lang got a piece of the disc before Cleary, battling against Anders Eriksson in front, converted on the rebound to put Detroit up by a 1-0 margin at 4:21 in the opening period.

Cleary scored his second of the night with four minutes left in the stanza. On nearly the same play that netted the first score, Brett Lebda rifled a slapshot at the net that Lang managed to collect before sending a backhand pass to Cleary. The right winger was all alone in the slot and wristed a shot past Norrena to give Detroit a 2-0 lead with four minutes left before intermission.

Zetterberg wristed a shot into the top right corner of the net, over the glove of the sprawling Norrena, to make it a 3-0 game at 8:45 in the second.

Hainsey finally put the Blue Jackets on the board with 7:28 remaining to cut the deficit to two goals. Eriksson started the play by faking a shot from just off the blue line and then dished to Hainsey. With traffic in front of the crease, the puck skipped between several players and beat Osgood for the 3-1 score.

Columbus struck again just 1:28 later, as Vyborny stole the puck during a scrum in the corner of the offensive zone, skated past Osgood and then lifted a backhand shot underneath the crossbar for his 100th career NHL goal and 100th as a Columbus Blue Jacket.

A power play goal by Fritsche tied the game at 3-3 at 3:15 in the final stanza. With Lang off for holding, Detroit won the draw in the neutral zone before the Jackets put the puck in deep. Seconds later, Fritsche flicked a wrist shot toward the net that eluded Osgood, finding room between the netminder's glove and the near post.

"Detroit is an East-West team, and they move the puck unbelievably, laterally across the ice" said Fritsche. "Their puck movement is the best in the league, by far. You just have to be patient and make sure you are sound defensively."

Foote's blazing slapshot from the point gave Columbus its first lead of the contest just over two minutes later. The goal once again came on the man- advantage, as Foote bested Osgood on a 51-foot slapshot to make it 4-3.

"Obviously things were going wrong (at that point)," Detroit head coach Mike Babcock said. "Things were going bad and it would have been easy for us to fold, but we didn't. We scored and got it started, and we went from there. In the third period we decided that we weren't going to lose."

Game Notes

The Red Wings have won 26 of the 33 all-time meetings with the Blue Jackets, losing only five in regulation and another in a shootout. One other contest ended in a tie...Blue Jackets netminder Pascal Leclaire had arthroscopic knee surgery Thursday and is expected to miss at least six weeks. Ty Conklin was recalled from Syracuse to serve as Norrena's backup...Vyborny has 16 points in his last 11games (6G, 10A)...Columbus went 2-for-4 on the power play, while Detroit converted on 1-of-3 chances.

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American Idol Betting Season 6 Strategies  

It's that time of year folks.  Betting on American Idol Season 9.  And we have plenty of American Idol Season 6 strategies appearing below.  With the Top 24 finalists revealed, online gambling sites will be offering betting odds on each of them, including MySportsbook.com.

No other “event” has been growing as fast as wagering on American Idol. It has turned into a huge betting event with reasonably high limits and all sorts of profit-making potential for sharp bettors. Last year, MySportsbook.com experienced unprecedented traffic as a result of the American Idol betting craze.

Every week there will be odds to win American Idol, various elimination props and contestant versus contestant match-ups at the MySportsbook.com website.

Whether a fan of America’s top-rated show or watching only because of a wife or girlfriend, here are some of basic strategies to use when betting American Idol.

Odds to Win

There are a few things to consider when looking for the right win bet. First off, remember that this bet is for the long haul. Many people make the mistake of picking the performer who sang the best the previous week. This strategy leads to an underlay situation – betting a price, which is less than what it should be.

All Idol contestants struggle at some point in the competition, so you should always look for value. In last year’s competition alone, two performers who had some of the best performances early in the series were subsequently bet down to low prices - Lisa Tucker and Ace Young. After just a few weeks, Tucker had already been eliminated, while Young quickly became a huge long shot to win America’s largest talent search.

A better strategy is to look for performers who don’t necessarily get the praise from the judges, but show flashes of the talent necessary to go the distance.

Another important thing to remember when betting any contestant to win is the demographic breakdown of the voters, the viewing public and potential future CD purchasers. Unlike sporting events, American Idol is not decided on the field of play – it’s decided by the American public under the guiding influence of the shows producers.

Understand that the great state of Alabama has a mighty edge when it comes to American Idol. 

Therefore, to be successful betting on American Idol, put any personal opinions or prejudices aside and think like the majority of the voting public. Remember that the typical voter is young, female and quite often, Southern.

If a contestant cannot appeal to this demographic, no matter how much talent he or she possesses, they’ll struggle for votes. Looks, demeanor and charisma are extremely important. And it’s no coincidence that every Idol winner so far has hailed from a Southern state.

Elimination Props

Every week MySportsbook.com anticipates offering a prop on who’ll be eliminated from the show each Wednesday night. A suggestion to handicap this is to gauge an overall feel for who’s the least popular contestant left in the competition. Generally the least popular performers have recently appeared in the bottom three and will have been the target of repeated criticism from the judges.

Last year, resources included dialidol.com and votefortheworst.com. Dialidol.com measures the volume of each contestant’s voting line. While by no means a perfect science, it does give a good indication of who is generating votes and who isn’t. Meanwhile, votefortheworst.com is a site that attempts to build support for the worst competitor to keep them in the competition for ‘entertainment’ value. The site has a proven track record of keeping performers around who most feel should have been voted off a long time ago.

Contestant vs. Contestant Match-ups

The best strategy for doing well on match-ups is to assess how close either of the contestants is to being eliminated. If neither is expected to be voted off of the show in the coming weeks, the value is almost always on the underdog. If both are expecting an imminent exit in the near future, the favorite in the match-up might offer value.

Watch for American Idol betting odds on each of the contestants shortly and good luck with these American Idol betting strategies.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.