Oilers among Canadian winners at NHL draft

Hockey Betting Lines

06/28/2010 - Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - This past Friday in Los Angeles, 30 general managers and their scouts got together for the NHL Entry Draft.

It was a head-scratching draft for those watching, and a hand-sitting affair for many involved.

The following is a Canadian roundup of the winners and losers of draft day.

EDMONTON OILERS

With the first overall pick, the Edmonton Oilers select ... a franchise player. And for those living under a rock this past year, his name is Taylor Hall.

While there was a lot of hype surrounding the battle between Taylor and Tyler [Seguin], the Oilers opted to go for the most accomplished and NHL-ready of the top two.

It was the first time the Oilers had the luxury of picking first overall, and they used the selection on a player with major offensive upside, plenty of grit and Alberta roots...how can you go wrong?

Barring any unforeseen catastrophes, Hall will be lacing up in Oil Country come the start of next season.

In total, the Oilers finished draft weekend in Los Angeles with 11 total picks, including highly-touted forwards Tyler Pitlick (2nd round) and Ryan Martindale (3rd round). NHL Central Scouting ranked them 18th and 27th respectively, among North American skaters.

Synopsis: Big-time winner; Oilers fans should be excited.

Draft list: Taylor Hall (1), Tyler Pitlick (31), Martin Marincin (46), Curtis Hamilton (48), Ryan Martindale (61), Jeremie Blain (91), Tyler Bunz (121), Brandon Davidson (162), Drew Czerwonka (166), Kristians Pelss (181), Kellen Jones (202).

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS

Phil Kessel is good, but it still must have hurt to see the Boston Bruins entourage slowly saunter to the stage to announce the second overall pick.

The pick, of course, ended up being Plymouth Whalers center and Ontario Hockey League MVP Tyler Seguin.

And to make matters worse, Brian Burke didn't put his scouts to work until Saturday, having reportedly turned down a first-round pick in an undisclosed deal on Friday.

After swinging a trade that sent prospect Jimmy Hayes to the Chicago Blackhawks for a second-round pick, the Leafs gobbled up Portland Winterhawks sparkplug Bradley Ross.

Ross is compared to former Leaf Darcy Tucker based on his chippy style of play and timely goal scoring, having put up 27 goals and 68 points playing on a line with first-round draft picks Nino Niederreiter and Ryan Johansen.

Synopsis: Good recovery; plenty of truculence.

Draft list: Bradley Ross (43), Greg McKegg (62), Sondre Olden (79), Petter Granberg (116), Sam Carrick (144), Daniel Brodin (146), Josh Nicholls (182).

VANCOUVER CANUCKS

After trading their first-round selection to the Florida Panthers in a deal centered around defenseman Keith Ballard, the Canucks had to sit tight until the fourth round to make their first pick.

With it they selected Patrick McNally, a 6'2" offensive defenseman out of Milton Academy high school in Massachusetts.

McNally was the 40th-ranked skater by Central Scouting and is said to possess great poise with the puck and the ability to use his skating ability to jump into the rush, a factor highlighted by his 14 goals and 35 points in only 28 games.

He has committed to Harvard next year so it should be a while before he becomes a household name in Vancouver.

Synopsis: Not bad, considering limited picks.

Draft list: Patrick McNally (115), Adam Polasek (145), Alex Friesen (172), Jonathan Ilahti (175), Sawyer Hannay (205).

MONTREAL CANADIENS

Although they only had five picks in total, the Canadiens made some shrewd decisions throughout the draft.

For starters, trading up to land American defenseman Jarred Tinordi with the 22nd pick was a great move by GM Pierre Gauthier.

Tinordi is a strapping shut-down blueliner with a cannon from the point. He also captained the U.S. National Development Program in 2009-10 and has hockey bloodlines (his father is longtime NHL defenseman Mark Tinordi).

While the younger Tinordi is committed to the University of Notre Dame for next season, there is speculation he could opt to hone his craft playing for the London Knights in the OHL.

Another interesting name to keep an eye on is Vancouver Giants forward Brendan Gallagher. Although he is on the small side (only 5'9", 163 lbs), he put up 41 goals and 111 PIM's as a 17 year-old.

Synopsis: Outside of Tinordi, not too much to get excited about.

Draft List: Jarred Tinordi (22), Mark MacMillan (113), Morgan Ellis (117), Brendan Gallagher (147), John Westin (207).

CALGARY FLAMES

The Flames came into Los Angeles with a dire need to replenish the prospect cupboard, despite not drafting until the third round.

With his first pick, GM Darryl Sutter took Maxwell Reinhart of the Kootenay Ice. Despite passing up some flashy names, Reinhart brings an all-around game and is the son of former Flame Paul Reinhart.

It should also be noted that Reinhart jumped from 157th to 79th between Central Scouting's midterm and final rankings for North American skaters.

Sutter stuck to the bloodlines in the next round as well, drafting physical defender John Ramage out of the University of Wisconsin. John is the son of former NHLer Rob Ramage.

Synopsis: Made the best of a bad situation.

Draft List: Maxwell Reinhart (64), Joey Leach (73), John Ramage (103), Bill Arnold (108), Michael Ferland (133), Patrick Holland (193).

OTTAWA SENATORS

Having found themselves in a favorable position in the first round (16th), the Senators opted instead to trade that pick to the St. Louis Blues for Swedish defenseman David Rundblad.

Rundblad was a first-rounder in 2009 (17th), with the potential to become a solid offensive puck mover. And despite the hype lost in trading a first round pick, the Sens must have felt he fit their needs better than any player left at 16.

The Sens didn't pick until the third round and ultimately settled with Czech winger Jakub Culek. Culek currently plays for Rimouski in the QMJHL and brings good size with great hands to complement his offensive vision.

Synopsis: Not a lot of action, not a lot of hype.

Draft List: Jakub Culek (76), Markus Sorensen (106), Mark Stone (178), Bryce Aneloski (196).

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Elite 8 NCAA Tournament Betting at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com

In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.

Ohio State is coming off their second game in a row where in all reality they should have lost. Of course that doesn’t matter now since the name of the game is “survive and advance” but as the tournament continues, they can’t afford to keep getting down to their opponents early. Kansas also avoided a scare by holding off a scrappy Southern Illinois squad. In the third thrilling game of the evening Memphis pulled off the minor upset (+3.5) despite being the higher seed to Texas A&M.

Although the spreads are fairly small for Saturday’s games, MySportsbook.com continue to bet against the underdogs. Despite OSU’s two scares, 86% of the “betting public” feels the Buckeyes (-1.5) have what it takes to make the Final Four. In fact, so much of the early money is on OSU that the line has already moved from -1 to -1.5. In the second game of the doubleheader, Kansas and their high-powered offense are 2 point favorites as they take on UCLA and their effective defense. About 63% of the early money thus far is once again backing the favorites. If those percentages stay that high, don’t be surprised if this line moves as well. If you like Kansas (-2) you might want to jump on it early.

Memphis vs. Ohio State

Both squads were involved in thrillers on Thursday evening and should come out fired up. OSU can ill afford to get behind early like they did versus their previous two opponents (Xavier, Tennessee). Greg Oden needs to stay out of foul trouble; the Buckeyes are a completely different team when he is on the court. Memphis definitely has the athleticism and length to match-up with OSU. Of Memphis’ five leading minute earners, the shortest of the bunch is 6’5”. Each team has a very effective defense; Memphis surrenders 62.3 PPG whereas the Buckeyes give up only 61 PPG. With those type of numbers, it isn’t surprising that Memphis covered the UNDER almost 69% of the time this season. As a favorite, OSU has covered the UNDER almost 66% of the time over the last three seasons. The major concern for Memphis which is magnifies this time of the year is their brutal foul shooting (62%). This season, OSU is 17-11 ATS versus teams with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in all tournament games. Memphis has been an extremely reliable cover in tournament play in recent years with a 23-8 ATS record over the last three seasons.

UCLA vs. Kansas

In the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, UCLA will play in a role which they are very unfamiliar with that of the underdog. Only twice this season have they been getting points from the handicappers and both times they covered. Over the last three seasons UCLA is a reliable 23-7 ATS in this unfamiliar role. UCLA has not fared well against Big 12 opponents recently going 1-7 ATS since 1997. Giving up only 59.6 PPG, UCLA will definitely look to do what they do best: keep this game as low scoring as possible. Their defense has been especially tough during the tournament. UCLA opponents have been able to muster up only 48.7 PPG while shooting a combined 34.5% from the field. UCLA definitely has a challenge at hand with a Kansas team that is capable of putting points on the board in bunches. As a team, they average 79 PPG and shoot an impressive 49.6% from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc. During the tournament Kansas has been “lights out” from the field having shot 56.2%.

With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action.  Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”.  By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.

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FOOTBALL TRASH TALK

NFL Football Trash Talk

Trash talk has a place in every competitive endeavor (except baseball; those stirrup-wearers are too busy chewing on their sunflower seeds and their supplements to worry about what their opponents are doing).

Fantasy sports is no exception. Any intelligent discussion of the subject would probably start with a thesis statement or a definition of terms. Thankfully, this wont be an intelligent discussion.

Let me just say that I am happy to take a place in this space alongside my talented colleagues, even our commissioner. (You should see how she bleats like a demented paper boy about league fees on our fantasy site).

Trash talking, I would argue, is primarily about amusing your friends, their sheeplike demeanors and sloping foreheads notwithstanding. The best place I have found for football trash talking is at www.SportsAlarm.com.

Beyond the entertainment factor, though, I would recognize that the sophomoric ritual has one advantage, when properly applied. It magnifies your fantasy triumphs and mitigates your fantasy failures by transforming the eventual point total into an afterthought. Winning makes it seem like your opponent really is a truss-owning, lapel-pin-wearing nitwit. And in defeat, trash talk can be the air bag to break the fall from your hyperbolic heights. The plug-necked yahoos on your team, you can say, will be sacking groceries by the end of the season.

The best trash talk, in my view, is layered and nuanced. And it doesnt focus only on your opponents team. It picks apart your opponent. The idea is to create a shock-and-awe-scale blizzard of nonsense, and the goal is to make your opponent drop his hands from his keyboard in exasperation.

What team does your opponent root for? Accuse a Giants fan of having a Joe Namath pillowcase. Wheres your opponent from? Give a look of concern no matter his reply, then say, I'll try to type slower for you next time. Is your opponent into politics? Label everyone a tax-and-spend corporate shill.

Cap all that with a liberal application of irrelevance. For instance, dont just conclude by saying your opponent is a twerp who drafts like my grandmother. Say that your opponent is a sweater-wearing, eyebrow-plucking twerp who drafts his team about as well as Zsa Zsa Gabor gave acceptance speeches at the Oscars. By the time your foe makes sense of that, his starting running back will have had puppies.

But what about you? Hmm? Recall a memorable slam? Have a tried-and-true technique? Know someone who seems impervious to insult? Take a moment and tells us about it. Put together some (fit-for-publication) thoughts. You wont be too busy returning phone messages from your friends, Im sure, to reply.

In addition to the trash talking, the Sports Alarm has a huge gallery of high resolution pictures of beautiful women and models in bikinis. The most popular models are: Lindsay Lohan, Carrie Underwood, Alessandra Ambrosio, and Paris Hilton.