Saturday 10/29/16 service plays chatter/comps/requests & other stuff...

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

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[Ryan8631]

Any one have the sports information traders wrong team favored selection?

 

[superbeets]

Spanish La Liga TODAY 12:00

Sp. Gijon

v

Seville

	HOME	DRAW	AWAY
SSR		3	13/5	10/11	More markets

RECENT FORM	LAST HEAD-TO-HEADSAT SP. GIJON	RECENT FORM
A LA LH LA LH LA D​ Most recent​	2 - 1 1 - 0 2 - 0 0 - 1	A LH WH WA WA WH W​ Most recent​

KEY STAT: Seville have won five games in a row in all competitions

EXPERT VERDICT: Seville briefly topped the La Liga table on Sunday and should be backed to claim three points at Sporting Gijon. Los Rojiblancos are adjusting well to life under new boss Jorge Sampaoli and finally gained that elusive league away win against Leganes in their last road outing so should be able to build on that road triumph.

RECOMMENDATION: Seville
2

Premier League TODAY 12:30

Sunderland

v

Arsenal

	HOME	DRAW	AWAY
SS1		13/2	4	4/9	More markets

RECENT FORM	LAST HEAD-TO-HEADSAT SUNDERLAND	RECENT FORM
A WH LH DA LA LA L​ Most recent​	0 - 0 0 - 2 1 - 3 0 - 1	H WA WH WH WH DH W​ Most recent​

KEY STAT: Walcott has scored eight goals in 11 games this season

EXPERT VERDICT: The fixture list does not get any easier for shoddy Sunderland as they welcome Arsenal and in-form striker Theo Walcott. The England international is enjoying a fine start to the season and is the Gunners’ top scorer with eight goals. His pace could pose problems for a poor Black Cats rearguard.

RECOMMENDATION: T Walcott first goalscorer
1


REFEREE: Martin Atkinson STADIUM:

Premier League TODAY 15:00

Man Utd

v

Burnley

	HOME	DRAW	AWAY
		2/9	6	16	More markets

RECENT FORM	LAST HEAD-TO-HEADSAT MAN UTD	RECENT FORM
H WH DA DH WA LH W​ Most recent​	3 - 1 3 - 0 4 - 0 2 - 1	H DA LH WH LA LH W​ Most recent​

KEY STAT: Burnley have scored only one away goal this term

EXPERT VERDICT: Jose Mourinho will be desperate for three points in order to keep tabs on the top four and United should take advantage of a Burnley side reliant on their home form. The Clarets have lost all three away games this term and United will be keen to hit back after their crushing defeat by Chelsea.

RECOMMENDATION: Man Utd to win 3-0
1


REFEREE: Mark Clattenburg STADIUM:

Premier League TODAY 15:00

Middlesbro

v

Bournemouth

	HOME	DRAW	AWAY
		8/5	21/10	21/10	More markets

RECENT FORM	LAST HEAD-TO-HEADSAT MIDDLESBRO	RECENT FORM
H LA LH LA DH LA D​ Most recent​	0 - 0 3 - 3 1 - 1 2 - 1	A LH D*H WA DH WH D​ Most recent​

KEY STAT: Boro have drawn two of their last three league games

EXPERT VERDICT: Middlesbrough remain winless at home this season and Bournemouth have yet to win away, so it’s likely to be a close-run thing when the pair clash at the Riverside Stadium. Both sides are becoming harder to beat, with Boro drawing at Arsenal and the Cherries undefeated in four league outings.

RECOMMENDATION: Draw
2


REFEREE: Stuart Attwell STADIUM:

Premier League TODAY 15:00

Tottenham

v

Leicester

	HOME	DRAW	AWAY
		8/13	16/5	5	More markets

RECENT FORM	LAST HEAD-TO-HEADSAT TOTTENHAM	RECENT FORM
A WH WA DA DA DA L​ Most recent​	0 - 1 2 - 2 4 - 3 1 - 2	A LH WH DA LH WH W​ Most recent​

KEY STAT: Leicester have lost all four away league matches

EXPERT VERDICT: Champions Leicester are still searching for their first away point of the season and, with a Champions League clash in midweek, that wait could continue. The Foxes have lost three times in the league prior to a midweek European match, while Spurs are the only unbeaten side remaining in the Premier League.

RECOMMENDATION: Tottenham
2


REFEREE: Robert Madley STADIUM:

Premier League TODAY 15:00

West Brom

v

Man City

	HOME	DRAW	AWAY
		7	15/4	4/9	More markets

RECENT FORM	LAST HEAD-TO-HEADSAT WEST BROM	RECENT FORM
A LH WA DA DH DA L​ Most recent​	0 - 3 1 - 3 2 - 3 1 - 2	A DA LH DA LH DA L​ Most recent​

KEY STAT: Man City have won 12 of the last 13 meetings between the sides

EXPERT VERDICT: Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Southampton was the latest poor Premier League result for Manchester City. However, the Citizens had won ten in a row in all competitions before this rocky spell and could reignite their title charge at West Brom, who lack the quality in the final third to hurt Pep Guardiola's outfit.

RECOMMENDATION: Man City-Man City double result
2


REFEREE: Lee Mason STADIUM:

 

[BRUTUS]

The Rainman full card...thanks

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

NHL roundup: Skinner leads 'Canes to win in home opener
By The Sports Xchange

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Jeff Skinner scored twice, the Carolina Hurricanes didn't allow a third-period goal and they won their home opener by defeating the New York Rangers 3-2 on Friday night at PNC Arena.
Bryan Bickell scored the go-ahead goal with less than a second remaining in the second period. Skinner had an assist on the play and finished with three points.
The Hurricanes (2-3-2) hadn't won a home opener since 2008.
Mats Zuccarello scored both goals for the Rangers, who had their three-game winning streak snapped.

Jets 1, Avalanche 0
DENVER -- Michael Hutchinson had 37 saves for his first shutout of the season, Shawn Matthias scored the game's lone goal and Winnipeg beat Colorado.
Joel Armia and Josh Morrissey had assists for the Jets, who have won two straight.
Hutchinson was sharp recording 20 saves in recording his third career shutout.

Flames 5, Senators 2
CALGARY, Alberta -- Dougie Hamilton had two goals and an assist to lead Calgary over Ottawa at the Scotiabank Saddledome.
Sam Bennett, Sean Monahan and Michael Frolik also scored for the Flames, while goaltender Brian Elliott made 31 saves to win his third straight game after losing three in a row to start the season.
Erik Karlsson and Kyle Turris scored for the Senators.

Blackhawks 3, Devils 2 (OT)
NEWARK, N.J. -- Artem Anisimov scored 1:15 into overtime to give Chicago a victory against New Jersey at Prudential Center.
Artemi Panarin and Marian Hossa also scored for the Blackhawks.
P.A. Parenteau and John Moore scored for the Devils.

Blue Jackets 4, Ducks 0
ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Sam Gagner and Brandon Saad each scored two goals during a first-period blitz that gave Columbus a victory against Anaheim in front of 15,841 at the Honda Center.
Nick Folligno added three assists and goalie Sergei Bobrovsky matched his season high with 35 saves for his second shutout as the Blue Jackets earned their third victory in five games and finished their first road trip 2-1-1.
Anaheim goalie John Gibson tied his season best with 28 saves before Dustin Tokarski replaced him with 9:47 to play. Tokarski finished with five saves as the Ducks suffered their second loss in three games.

Oilers 2, Canucks 0
VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- Connor McDavid scored on a second-period breakaway and goaltender Cam Talbot stopped 26 shots for the shutout as Edmonton defeated Vancouver to extend its winning streak to five games.
Milan Lucic, who also had an assist, scored into an empty net with 1:20 left in the third period.
Edmonton has won seven of eight games this season. Last year, it took the Oilers 20 games to register their seventh victory.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Panthers (3-3) at Sabres (1-3)

Date: October 29, 2016 1:00 PM EDT

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Things have hardly gone according to plan for the Buffalo Sabres this season.

Just before the start of the season, budding superstar Jack Eichel was lost for up to two months with a high ankle sprain. In Buffalo's season opener, top forward Evander Kane suffered cracked ribs after a hard fall into the boards. Starting goaltender Robin Lehner has missed time due to illness.

That's all resulted in a dreadful start, with the Sabres earning one win in the first first six games (1-3-2).

The Sabres hope Saturday's matinee against the visiting Florida Panthers (3-3-1) can mark the start of a turnaround, or at least temporarily stop the bleeding.

"I feel like we're there, that's the frustrating part," said Lehner, according to the Sabres' team website. "I feel like we're in the game and then in five-minute segments we kind of lose the game. Small details. We just need to stay consistent to our game plan. It's not like we're not in games.

"We've got to buy in. We've got to buy into the game plan. It's not 55 minutes buying into the game plan or 50 minutes, it's 60 minutes or if it's overtime we do that too."

It'll help if Lehner returns between the pipes for Buffalo, but it's expected that the Sabres will wait until Sunday's game against Winnipeg to insert him back into the lineup. Anders Nilsson started two games in Lehner's place, both losses, and is expected to get the call once again against Florida.

The Sabres fell to the Minnesota Wild last time out on Thursday in a 4-0 home defeat. Buffalo mustered almost no offense throughout the game, minus a brief spell at the start of the second period after falling behind.

"I think that (the shots are) gonna go in and we've got to believe that, and we've just got to continue with the way that we need to play," forward Kyle Okposo told the team's website.

The Panthers end their four-game road trip with back-to-back games against Buffalo and Detroit before heading back to Florida for two home games. Florida is coming off back-to-back 3-2 losses to Toronto and Pittsburgh.

Forward Jonathan Marchessault came out of nowhere to become one of Florida's most surprising success stories. Through seven games, the unheralded offseason signing has 10 points (five goals, five assists).

Marchessault joined the Panthers from Tampa Bay, signing a two-year deal worth only $750,000 per season.

"Every year I was a surprise. I fuel off people that don't believe," Marchessault said to Sportsnet. "Every year, nobody thought I was going to do good. Every year, nobody thought I was going to make that team, make junior, make pro, make AHL, make NHL. It wasn't the easiest path I had, but it was a different one. I made it here."

Young standout Aleksander Barkov is next in points behind Marchessault with five (two goals, three assists). The ageless Jaromir Jagr is not far behind with a goal and three assists through seven games.

In net, Roberto Luongo is off to a strong start to the year with a 3-2 record and a save percentage of .916.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Lightning (5-2) at Devils (3-2)

Date: October 29, 2016 7:00 PM EDT

Less than 24 hours after allowing a late lead to slip away before losing in overtime, the New Jersey Devils on Saturday night will face a stiff test at Prudential Center from one of the NHL's top teams.

The Tampa Bay Lightning, who have won five of seven to start the season and enjoyed a day off Friday while the Devils were losing to the Chicago Blackhawks 3-2, erased a 2-0 deficit in their first meeting with the Devils on Oct. 15 and earned a 3-2 regulation win.

The Lightning have one thing working against them heading into this matchup -- right winger Nikita Kucherov is listed as day-to-day after suffering an injury in a 2-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday. It was feared the injury could be serious, so even if he misses Friday's game against New Jersey, it still feels like the Lightning dodged a bullet.

"It's never fun to see guys not finishing games," defenseman Victor Hedman said to the Tampa Bay Times. "We'll see what the status is. Guys have an opportunity to step up and play more minutes. We've been through this before. That's what we've been known for the last few years, guys step up when other guys do down."

The Lightning reached the Eastern Conference Finals last season without Stamkos for all but Game 7 of that series. They are one of the deepest teams in the league and can certainly survive a game or two without Kucherov, who has averaged nearly 30 goals per season over the past two seasons.

The Lightning also have a wealth of goaltenders with Ben Bishop and Andrei Vasilevskiy in net.

Bishop was a Vezina Trophy finalist last season and Vasilevskiy played well in his absence when he got hurt during the past two postseasons. Bishop played in Montreal on Thursday despite having his teeth knocked out in the previous game, so either goalie could get the nod against the Devils.

"In the time I've been here, I don't think I've ever sat here and said, 'This goalie is playing this way' and I decide not to play him," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said to the Tampa Bay Times. "Over time the last couple years with Vasy, we've tried to slowly put him in. We're trying to get him minimum one game a week."

The Devils have a workhorse No. 1 goaltender in Cory Schneider who will be between the pipes after getting a night off for the first time this season against the Blackhawks. Schneider is off to another stellar start with a 2.00 goals-against average and .936 save percentage in six starts.

The problem for the Devils continues to be scoring; in seven games, they've only cracked the two-goal mark once.

Against the Blackhawks, two goals appeared to be enough before right winger Marian Hossa scored late to force overtime and center Artem Anisimov won it.

Devils coach John Hynes was upset with his team's decision making in the third period and overtime, something he wants fixed before the Lightning take the ice Saturday.

"We have to move past this one," Hynes said. "We have to extract (the lesson). That's really what I said tonight. The beauty of playing back to back is you have an opportunity to redeem yourself. We'll take the lessons from this game and make sure we come out with a competitive effort like we did tonight and we got to get that smart part of our game in key situations to match our level of compete."

"It's a long season, and I think we're going to get better at protecting leads and playing with leads," Devils left winger Taylor Hall said to NJ.com. "It's not something that I'm worried about. We can get a little more comfortable in those situations."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Penguins (5-2) at Flyers (3-4)

Date: October 29, 2016 7:00 PM EDT

PHILADELPHIA -- Pittsburgh won three of its four games without defenseman Kris Letang in the lineup and there is a chance the Norris Trophy candidate could be back in uniform when the Penguins renew their rivalry with the Flyers in Philadelphia on Saturday night.

Sidelined by an upper-body injury suffered on Oct. 18 in Montreal, Letang was examined by a doctor on Friday before boarding the team's flight to Philadelphia.

"He's getting closer for sure," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan told the team's website. "Obviously, he's a big part of our team and we're a better team when he's a part of our lineup."

The same can be said of captain Sidney Crosby, who has two goals and one assist in two games since returning from his third concussion in six years.

Pittsburgh is 2-0 with its captain in the lineup and if history is any indication, Crosby will get an earful when he steps on the ice at the Wells Fargo Center. Crosby has scored more goals against the Flyers (33 in 55 games) than he has against any other NHL team.

While the Penguins (5-2-1) are coming off Tuesday night's 4-2 home win over the New York Islanders, the Flyers (3-4-1) are coming off a 5-4 loss to the Arizona Coyotes, whose only two wins of the season have come against Philadelphia.

Slow starts have been an Achilles' heel for the Flyers, who surrendered the first goal in each of their four home games and have been outscored 8-1 in first periods this season, including 2-0 against Arizona on Tuesday.

"The first period was not pretty and we know that," Flyers captain Claude Giroux said. "We need to find a way to come out stronger."

"We did some good things sporadically," Flyers coach Dave Hakstol said. "But you don't win games by doing a few good things sporadically throughout the game. You have to be good from start to finish, individually, collectively and that's how you win games."

Giroux is still seeking his first goal of the season but leads the NHL with nine assists. He is on a seven-game point streak, which ties the second-longest of his career. He also recorded a seven-game streak from Jan.14-25, 2011 and posted a nine-game streak from Dec. 11-30, 2013.

Flyers right wing Jake Voracek leads the team and ranks third in the NHL with 33 shots this season. He has three goals.

Philadelphia defenseman Andrew MacDonald (1 goal, 1 assist, minus-3) could be a healthy scratch for the first time this season in favor of Nick Schultz on Saturday.

Sullivan said Marc-Andre Fleury (5-2-1, 2.97 GAA) will be between the pipes for the Penguins on Saturday.

Flyers coach Dave Hakstol has a tougher decision. Both Steve Mason (2-4-1, 3.15 GAA) and 1-0-0, 4.47) have struggled. Neuvirth was pulled from each of his first two starts.

Penguins forward Carl Hagelin, who is struggling with one goal in eight games, was checked into the boards from behind against the Islanders but practiced on Friday and is expected to play, despite sporting stitches and a black left eye.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Bruins (3-4) at Red Wings (6-2)

Date: October 29, 2016 7:00 PM EDT

DETROIT -- The Detroit Red Wings and Boston Bruins are a study in contrasts.

The teams play Saturday night at Joe Louis Arena at 7 p.m.

Detroit is 6-2-0 and on a six-game winning streak after a 2-1 shootout road win against the St. Louis Blues on Thursday night.

Boston is 3-4-0 and on a three-game losing skid after a 5-2 setback to the New York Rangers Wednesday night at Joe Louis Arena.

The Red Wings last won six in a row from Jan. 13-27, 2015.

Captain and forward Henrik Zetterberg's goal in the eighth round of the shootout on Thursday gave Detroit the win over the Blues. Right winger Gustav Nyquist also scored in the shootout.

Goalie Petr Mrazek made 31 saves in regulation before only allowing a goal to the first shooter in the shootout.

"He was awesome. Like I said for 30 (minutes) we didn't play well and he kept us in," said Red Wings center Frans Nielsen, who scored a shorthanded goal in regulation. "He gave us a chance to win it. He was the best player on the ice again."

Left winger Justin Abdelkader returned Thursday after missing two games with a lower-body injury, but left winger Thomas Vanek did not play because of a lower-body injury and is day-to-day, Detroit general manager Ken Holland told www.mlive.com.

Injuries are a big part of Boston's issues.

Star center Patrice Bergeron (lower-body injury), goalies Tuukka Rask (lower-body injury) and Anton Khudobin (hand/wrist/arm) and right winger David Backes (elbow) are all on the injured list. Rask did practice on Friday.

"(Rask) practiced today, and he's coming on the trip. So we'll see," Bruins coach Claude Julien said on www.chowderandchampions.com. "He's feeling good, so we'll go day-by-day. He practiced well today and if he's good tomorrow then there are no issues there. He looked good to me today, so we'll make that decision.

"We've gone this far with him, so we're going to make sure we make the right decision, and not the reckless one."

Malcolm Subban and Zane McIntyre have been handling the goaltending chores. One is likely to be sent down to the Bruins' American Hockey League affiliate in Providence before Saturday night's game.

Also, Boston forward David Pastrnak on Friday was suspended for two games for an illegal check to the head of New York Rangers defenseman Dan Girardi on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden.

Pastrnak, who has five goals and eight points and is plus-7 in seven games, will also miss Tuesday's game against the Florida Panthers. He is second on the team in points to left winger Brad Marchand, who has three goals and 10 points in seven games.

Vanek and Nyquist are tied for Detroit's point lead with eight each. Vanek has four goals in seven games and Nyquist three goals in eight games.

Center Darren Helm has four goals and seven points and is a team-leading plus-10 in eight games while defenseman Mike Green has three goals and four assists in eight games.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Stars (3-3) at Wild (5-2)

Date: October 29, 2016 8:00 PM EDT

SAINT PAUL, Minn. -- A lower body injury suffered Thursday in a 4-0 win at Buffalo may leave the Minnesota Wild without defenseman Marco Scandella, who was termed "day to day" by coach Bruce Boudreau after Friday's practice.

If Boudreau looking for sympathy, he's not going to get it from Dallas Stars coach Lindy Ruff. The Wild and Stars meet on Saturday night in Minnesota in what could be termed as a rematch of last season's playoffs, though much is different about both teams since the Stars dispatched the Wild in six games during the opening round last spring.

To start, with less than one-tenth of the season gone, Boudreau has the Wild doing what his Washington and Anaheim teams did routinely -- leading the division.

Minnesota comes home after getting five of a possible eight points on its first extended road trip of the season and sits atop the Central. Keying that run is goaltender Devan Dubnyk, who has not allowed a goal in the past two games, and balanced scoring, with every Wild skater recording at least a point so far.

Minnesota leads the Western Conference with 28 goals after eight games.

"It's a confidence-builder," Boudreau said after the Buffalo game. "Now when they go out, everybody thinks they're the guy that can get the job done."

The Stars are a different team than last year mostly due to the injury bug, which has taken up residence in north Texas for the time being. After a 4-1 loss in Winnipeg on Thursday, it was noted to Ruff that the team is currently missing six forwards from the lineup that won the Central last season.

"We're missing two power play units when you look at the personnel," Ruff said, pointing to youth as a sign of optimism. "I think our young kids hung in there tough. They generated some good opportunities. I thought they put Winnipeg's defense under duress."

Just in the past week, notable names like Ales Hemsky, Jason Spezza, Cody Eakin, Mattias Janmark, Patrick Sharp, Patrick Eaves and Jiri Hudler have all missed time or are out of the Stars lineup due to a variety of ailments.

The players still on the ice know that sympathy will not be forthcoming.

"We're going to have to move on from this one and get ready for Minnesota," Tyler Seguin said after the loss in Winnipeg. "It's early in the season, but we've got some work to do. A lot of guys out of the lineup right now, but we're going to re-group and be ready for Saturday."

Despite losing Scandella, Minnesota did get a bit of good news on the blue line Friday, as Jared Spurgeon was a full participant in the team's skate and looks to return to the lineup on Saturday after missing the Wild's previous four games with an upper body injury.

Saturday's game will be the 600th regular season contest at Xcel Energy Center since the building opened for the expansion Wild in 2000.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Kings (4-3) at Blues (4-2)

Date: October 29, 2016 8:00 PM EDT

ST. LOUIS -- Some changes might be coming to the forward lines of the St. Louis Blues for Saturday night's game against the visiting Los Angeles Kings.

The Blues scored one goal in four of their last five games, including a 2-1 shootout loss Thursday night to the Detroit Red Wings. In both of their home losses this week, their only goal was scored by defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk.

"I think we've got to look at everything right now," said coach Ken Hitchcock. "We've got to look at combinations, what's working, what's not working, what we need to get more from. You can't keep living on scoring chances. You've got to finish at the end of the day."

St. Louis recorded 32 shots on goal against the Red Wings, but that total did not impress Hitchcock.

"We're scoring one goal and getting points, that's incredible," Hitchcock said. "That's a hell of a feather in these guys' cap, to score one goal and get points. You're going to have to score more goals and have to finish your chances. I don't think we're creating the second and third chances that we normally do. The scoring chances seem to be one and done right now."

Center Paul Stastny believes the Blues are just going through a slump, which could end at any time.

"Sometimes you just need that bounce," Stastny said. "It happens throughout the season; we just have to dig deep and create chances to get out way out of it. You've got to try to create your own bounces sometimes when it's tough to score. We know what we're capable of and what we can do."

The Kings, meanwhile, will bring a different kind of streak into the game. They defeated the Nashville Predators 3-2 in overtime at home on Thursday night to mark their fourth consecutive win in overtime or a shootout.

Having that kind of success in so many overtime games is unusual, Los Angeles knows. The winning streak came after the team lost its first three games this season.

"Big saves and scoring on your opportunities," said center Jeff Carter, who scored the overtime winner Thursday night. "That's really all it is. ... You start with possession, you've got a good chance. ... Really, what it comes down to is getting a save from your goalie and burying your opportunities. There's not much to it."

All the wins came behind Peter Budaj, who replaced injured Jonathan Quick in goal. Two of the wins came by scores of 4-3 and the other two by 3-2 scores.

"He's played really well for us," said coach Darryl Sutter of Budaj. "We don't give up much and expect that he make -- you've got to make some big saves, obviously, in the National Hockey League, but we don't give up a lot of shots."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Maple Leafs (2-2) at Canadiens (7-0)

Date: October 29, 2016 7:00 PM EDT

MONTREAL -- The Toronto Maple Leafs boast a collection of talented youth learning the ropes. The Montreal Canadiens are an experienced group with high aspirations.

The two different paths will cross Saturday night at the Bell Centre when the longtime rivals square off for the first time this season.

Both sides are coming off big wins, but the roads to get there have been remarkably different.

The Maple Leafs overcame two one-goal deficits in Thursday's victory over the Florida Panthers, snapping a four-game losing streak during which blown third-period leads became a habit.

The Canadiens, meanwhile, rallied from a one-goal deficit of their own in their last outing against the Tampa Bay Lightning for their sixth straight win. Alex Galchenyuk tied the score and Max Pacioretty delivered the winning goal.

But while offense is expected from Galchenyuk and Pacioretty, Montreal has been able to count on contributions from throughout its lineup.

"We've played a lot of hockey, but we haven't really relied on too many individuals to take over," Pacioretty said of his team, which closed out a stretch of four games in six nights, including a back-to-back. "When we have everyone rolling like this and we have everyone in the game and making a difference, it makes it easier to play back-to-back and a lot of games at once. It's been great."

Among those Canadiens on a roll is defenseman Shea Weber, who leads the team with nine points in eight games. He has been held off the scoresheet just twice so far this season, including Thursday night, which snapped a four-game point streak for the 31-year-old.

Youth has been leading the way in Toronto, as has been expected. Auston Matthews, the first overall pick in the 2016 NHL Draft, leads the Maple Leafs in goals (six) and points (10). Fellow youngsters William Nylander and Mitch Marner sit second and third in team scoring and own a share of the team lead in assists (five) with 24-year-old rookie defenseman Nikita Zaitsev.

Marner picked up three of those helpers in the 3-2 win over Florida, and on all three showed off the high-end skill that made him the fourth overall pick in the 2015 NHL Draft. It was a bounce-back effort for the 19-year-old after struggling in Tuesday's blowout loss to Tampa Bay.

"Just putting the puck in good areas," Leafs winger James van Riemsdyk said of Marner. "He already has that ability to know where guys are without necessarily seeing them."

Production from the kids was what the team was hoping for as it continued its rebuild. What wasn't expected were the struggles goaltender Frederik Andersen has been facing when Toronto traded for and signed him to a five-year, $5 million deal in June.

"This would be as many good chances as we've given up all year probably, and we turned the puck over as much as we have, period, but the goalie was good," Leafs coach Mike Babcock said after Thursday's win. "It just goes to show you how important goaltending is. I'm real happy for Freddy."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Avalanche (3-3) at Coyotes (2-5)

Date: October 29, 2016 9:00 PM EDT

The NHL schedule makers were rough on both the Colorado Avalanche and Arizona Coyotes, sending the two Western Conference teams on lengthy East Coast road trips after regular-season openers at home.

The Avalanche emerged with two wins from their four-game trip and got a much quicker trip south to the Valley of the Sun with a 3-3 record after losing 1-0 to Winnipeg Friday night in Denver. The Coyotes, after winning their opener, dropped the first five games of their trip back east before salvaging a win at Philadelphia on Thursday night.

"Between the goals going in, and fights, and things breaking and challenges, it was crazy," Coyotes coach Dave Tippett said after Thursday's win "But we needed a win to end the road trip and we'll take it and go home.

"I think we learned a lot on this trip about how we have to play. If the old saying that adversity makes you stronger is true, we gained some strength this trip."

Still, the 1-5 start, with two points in six games, was the worst start to a season in Coyotes history. Arizona hopes to take advantage of having the next three games at home inside Gila River Arena, and the homestand starts Saturday night against Colorado.

The Avalanche has only scored 16 goals in six games, near the bottom of the league at present, but has only allowed 17, which is in the top five. Goalie Semyon Varlamov has a shutout and a 2.88 goals against average.

Colorado's leading goal-scorers are Joe Colborne and Matt Duchene with three each.

Veteran winger Jarome Iginla is 16th on the NHL's all-time goal-scoring list, but has only one this season. He missed a golden chance Friday night.

The Avs will be playing their second set of back-to-back games this season. In 121 games against Arizona in franchise history, they have scored 399 goals to the Coyotes' 401.

The Avalanche set new season highs for shots in a game with 37 in Friday's loss, to go with shots in a period (20). The 21 shots allowed was the fewest Colorado has surrendered in a game this season, which made for a frustrating loss to the Jets.

"The best way to do it is just to turn the page and get right back at it tomorrow," Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog told the team website. "We really have to make sure we get back playing the way

we want to on the road and get a big road win tomorrow."

The Coyotes have been without top goaltender Mike Smith since the second game of the season. Smith went down with a lower-body injury at Ottawa on Oct. 18 and might only resume skating again next week.

In Smith's place, Louis Domingue has a 4.74 goals against average in five games, four of those starts. He got his first win of the season on Thursday with 28 saves.

Defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson leads the Coyotes with five goals, three of those in his last two games. His 81 career goals are fourth-most for a defenseman in franchise history.

Forward Brad Richardson is the team leader in points with six and forward Max Domi has five assists to pace the Coyotes in that department.

Five different Coyotes, including Ekman-Larsson, scored in the 5-4 win over the Flyers that featured a wild third period. Arizona took a 3-2 lead with Martin Hanzal's goal that happened at the same time as a fight breaking out, and the Coyotes made that stand with a pair of two-goal leads in the final period.

The second period has not been kind to Arizona, which has been outscored 10-4 in those 20 minutes this season.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Capitals (3-2) at Canucks (4-3)

Date: October 29, 2016 10:00 PM EDT

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- Contrary to some pundits' early expectations, the Vancouver Canucks and Washington Capitals have something in common.

They are both having trouble scoring.

The clubs will try to solve their problem against each other Saturday night as the Canucks (4-3-1) host the Capitals (3-2-1) at Rogers Arena.

The Canucks have been shut out in their past two games, the latest being Friday's 2-0 setback to the Edmonton Oilers, and have lost four straight after opening with four wins.

The Capitals, despite the presence of captain Alex Ovechkin and other snipers, have suffered two consecutive losses for the first time since March 2015. During the two losses, Washington has only scored three goals.

"It's definitely a little frustrating," Vancouver second-year defenseman Ben Hutton said about his team's lack of offense. "All of us know in here our structure works. We've seen it in a couple of our wins. We have to do our best to stay within our structure. Hopefully, some of our chances will start going in."

The Canucks also hope to maintain their strong defensive play. They held Connor McDavid in check for most of Friday's game. Although McDavid did score, on a breakaway no less, Edmonton's only other goal came on an empty-netter by winger Milan Lucic.

The Canucks have also fared well defensively against most of their other opponents. They have not allowed more than four goals in a game.

Captain Henrik Sedin wants to ensure that the Canucks prevent the Capitals from bucking that trend.

"They are an extremely deep team," he said. "They roll lines and anyone can score on the team. It's going to be tough."

The Canucks, who rely too much on Henrik Sedin and his twin brother Daniel for goals, can only wish they had as much offensive depth as the Capitals. In addition to Ovechkin, who scored 50 goals last season and is on a four-game scoring streak, the Capitals also boast proven scorers in Evgeny Kuznetsov, who produced more points (77) than Russian compatriot Nicklas Backstrom (71), Justin Williams and T.J. Oshie.

But Capitals coach Barry Trotz is not impressed with his team's offensive chemistry these days. In practice on Friday in Vancouver, he juggled his lines again after revamping them during Wednesday's 4-1 loss to the Oilers in Edmonton.

"Just spread them out a little bit and see what we can come up with," Trotz explained to The Washington Post. "This is not a revelation. All coaches move (lines) around. We're spreading (offensive players) out a little bit, and hopefully it'll give some teams something to think about."

The juggling also appears designed to help Kuznetsov get going. He has just one goal and two assists to date.

"It's a message for us," Ovechkin told The Washington Post. "We have to wake up and play better offense, obviously."

Meanwhile, defenseman Erik Gudbranson wants to make sure that the Canucks are not napping if the Capitals do wake up.

"I have played them a lot in my career," said Gudbranson, 24, who joined the Canucks in an offseason trade after playing his first five NHL seasons with Florida. "They are a very difficult team. They move the puck extremely well. They are an older squad. They are experienced. They have a really good power play.

"We are going to have to get some rest (after Friday's game), come in in the morning, have our meetings and be focused. If we play like we did (against the Oilers), we give ourselves a chance to win every night."

Gudbranson will likely be tasked with defending Ovechkin as Vancouver coach Willie Desjardins takes advantage of having the last line change. Hutton will likely partner with Gubranson.

Like his blue-line partner, Hutton is not putting much stock is Washington's recent offensive troubles.

"They are a strong team and they have some star players," Hutton said. "We have to be ready."

Vancouver is expected to play without injured wingers Alex Burrows (undisclosed lower body problem) and Derek Dorsett (shoulder) as well as ailing Chris Tanev (ankle).

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Predators (2-4) at Sharks (5-3)

Date: October 29, 2016 10:30 PM EDT

The San Jose Sharks are starting to resemble the team that played for the Stanley Cup last season.

And while some may have expected Nashville to come out of the West this season to play for the NHL's ultimate prize, the Predators have hardly looked like a team capable of making the playoffs so far.

The Sharks and Predators square off Saturday night in their first meeting since San Jose defeated Nashville in a playoff series that went the full seven games in 2015-16.

San Jose (5-3-0) dropped three of five on an early season Eastern road trip, but has rebounded quite well once at home again. The Sharks' 3-1 win over Columbus on Thursday improved their home record to 3-0-0, pushing them closer to the top of the Pacific Division.

"The margin is so small between winning and losing," said Sharks goaltender Martin Jones after stopping 24 shots against the Blue Jackets. "We've played better, we've played in the offensive zone a little more, penalty kill has been really good. A lot of little things, I think."

Jones has been in goal for all three of the Sharks' wins at the SAP Center at San Jose, denying 64 of 67 shots.

Last season, Jones lost in his only home start during the regular season when facing the Predators. However, he was in goal throughout the playoff series against Nashville, winning all four games at home while posting a 1.25 goals-against average and .957 save percentage.

His 20-save shutout in a 5-0 Game 7 win on May 12 helped San Jose advance. After beating St. Louis in six games to reach the Stanley Cup finals for the first time, the Sharks fell in six games to Pittsburgh in the finals.

San Jose's special teams play has been sparkling recently, killing off all 12 short-handed situations over the last three games, and surrendering one power-play goal in 19 opportunities over the previous five games.

"We worked hard at it," San Jose coach Peter DeBoer said Thursday. "(Assistant coach) Bob Boughner's done a real good job, spent a lot of time on it. ... Like our team game, the guys didn't get down, they kept battling and it's been very good for us the last few games."

Neither Brent Burns nor Joe Pavelski recorded a point Thursday and remain tied for the team lead with nine points -- each player has three goals and six assists.

Logan Couture has struggled recently with no points in his last three games and only one assist over the last five for San Jose. In last season's playoffs, Couture had multi-point games in four of the seven contests, recording six goals and five assists in the series.

Nashville (2-4-1), currently at the bottom of the Central Division, concludes the California portion of a five-game road trip after a five-goal loss to Anaheim on Wednesday and a 3-2 overtime defeat against Los Angeles on Thursday.

The Predators are 0-3-1 on the road this season, having given up eight power-play goals in 17 chances.

"You want to win, and there's always frustration when you don't win," defenseman Roman Josi told the team's website. "We know there's a lot of things we can do better, but we can't get too frustrated. There's a lot of season left, but we have to work on some things and hopefully get better as the season goes on."

Viktor Arvidsson assisted on Craig Smith's first-period goal before scoring short-handed early in the third against the Kings. Arvidsson leads the team with four goals this season after posting just eight in 56 games during 2015-16.

Arvidsson's output has been surprising, but the continued lack of goal-scoring by

Filip Forsberg (33 goals in 2015-16) and James Neal (31 goals) has to be a concern for coach Peter Laviolette.

"It's not coming easy right now as far as offense and the goals," Laviolette told the team's official website. "It's just hard to come by now for a lot of our guys ... but in the end, we have to find points, we have to find wins and have to continue to push for that."

Arvidsson, Forsberg and Neal combined for four goals and three assists as Nashville went 2-0-1 against San Jose during the regular season in 2015-16.

After this game, Nashville will face Colorado on Tuesday and Arizona on Thursday to conclude the road trip.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Grand Salami - October

The Grand Salami in pro hockey is decided by adding up all the goals scored in every game scheduled for that particular day. You can wager on 'over' or 'under' the Grand Salami total. The total is set by adding up all listed 'over/under' odds for each game on that particular day.

Note: The Grand Salami will have no action if any game is suspended or cancelled before the regulation time of three twenty minute periods. Also, regardless of the number of goals scored during the shoot out portion of the overtime, the final scored recorded for the game will give the winning team on more goal than its opponent based on the score at the end of regulation time.

*The majority of sportsbooks do not put out a total on the Grand Salami when there is only one game on the card. For tracking purposes, we will continue to show the 'over/under' for goals and combined goals scored on days with just one game.

NHL GRAND SALAMI
Date No. of Games Total Goals Combined Goals Scored Result
10/12 4 21.5 30 OVER
10/13 9 48.5 60 OVER
10/14 3 16 19 OVER
10/15 13 69 76 OVER
10/16 3 16 20 OVER
10/17 4 22 29 OVER
10/18 12 67.5 71 OVER
10/19 2 11.5 12 OVER
10/20 11 60.5 55 UNDER
10/21 3 16.5 18 OVER
10/22 12 64 74 OVER
10/23 4 21 23 OVER
10/24 2 10.5 9 UNDER
10/25 11 60.5 62 OVER
10/26 4 21.5 24 OVER
10/27 9 49.5 45 UNDER
10/28 6 - - -
10/29 10 - - -
10/30 8 - - -
10/31 No games scheduled - - -

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

NHL

Saturday’s games

Florida won five of last six games with Buffalo (over 3-1-1 in last five); Panthers won last three visits to Buffalo (over 3-1 in last four). Florida lost four of its last five games (over 3-1-1); they’re 0-3 on road. Sabres lost last four games, outscored 14-7 (over 3-3); they’re 0-2 at home, outscored 8-1.

Penguins won three of last four games with Philly; under is 4-2-1 in last seven. Pittsburgh lost three of its last four visits here (under 3-0-1). Penguins won three of last four games (over 2-0-1) but were outscored 9-1 in losing first two road games. Flyers lost five of their last seven games (over 6-1-1).

Tampa Bay won its last five games with the Devils; under is 7-2-1 in last ten series games. *Lightning won 4-2/4-0 in last two visits to the Garden State. Tampa Bay won five of its first seven games; three of its last four stayed under. New Jersey won three of its last five games; under is 4-1-2 in their last seven.

Montreal won its last ten games with Toronto; under is 4-2-1 in last seven. Maple Leafs lost last five visits here, outscored 19-8 (under 3-1 in last four). Toronto lost four of its last five games (over 4-3). Montreal won its last six games, outscoring foes 21-8. Canadiens are 4-0 at home (under 3-1).

Bruins won seven of last eight games with Detroit; over is 4-1-2 in last seven. Boston won three of its last four visits to Motor City. Bruins lost last three games, outscored 14-4; four of their last six games stayed under. Red Wings won last six games, outscoring opponents 21-8- they’re 4-0 at home.

Dallas Stars won five of last seven games with Minnesota; over is 3-0-1 in last four. Stars won five of last six visits to state they used to call home (over 5-0-1). Dallas lost three of its last four games; four of their last five stayed under. Minnesota won five of its last seven games; four of its last five games stayed under.

Kings are 6-4 in last ten games with St Louis, 2-3 in last five visits here; last three series games stayed under the total. LA won its last four games, all in OT/SO; four of their last six games stayed under total. Blues lost four of their last five games (under 4-1)- they’re 2-2 at home.

Colorado won five of last seven games with Arizona (over 5-2); Avalanche won four of its last five visits to the desert (over 5-0). Colorado is off to a 3-3 start (over 3-3). Coyotes lost five of their last six games; over is 5-2 in their last seven games.

Canucks won six of last nine games with Washington (over 3-1-1 in last five); Caps lost 4-2/4-1 in their last two games (under 3-2-1). Vancouver lost its last four games, outscored 13-5; they are 4-2 at home (under 5-1).

San Jose ousted Nashville in seven games from playoffs LY, in series where home team won every game; over is 3-0-1 in last four series games. Predators were outscored 18-5 in losing last four visits here. Nashville lost five of its last six games; three of last four went over. San Jose won its last three home games, 2-1/2-1/3-1 (under 3-0).

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Hawks (1-0) at 76ers (0-1)

Date: October 29, 2016 12:30 PM EDT

Joel Embiid and Dwight Howard will be the centers of attention Saturday afternoon, when the Philadelphia 76ers host the Atlanta Hawks.

Embiid started his career impressively in Wednesday night's season opener against the Oklahoma City Thunder while Howard re-started his in the same fashion one night later, when the Hawks defeated the Washington Wizards.

"It was special," Embiid said after collecting 20 points and seven rebounds in a 103-97 loss to the Thunder. "I thought this moment was going to be special, and it was great."

The 7-0 Embiid, the third overall pick in the 2014 draft, sat out two seasons while recovering from a pair of foot surgeries. He is on a minutes restriction and played only 22:25 against Oklahoma City but thrilled a sellout crowd in the Wells Fargo Center with his every move.

The fans chanted "MVP" or "Trust the Process" when he went to the foul line, the latter a reference to the rebuilding approach of former general manager Sam Hinkie. Embiid also labelled himself "the Process" in an SI.com profile earlier this week.

"That's my motto -- 'Trust the process' -- so that was great (to hear the fans chant it)," he said.

Overall, Embiid felt he did "OK."

"At the beginning I was nervous," he said. "Once you make that first shot, it just goes away."

The 30-year-old Howard made eight All-Star teams in his first 10 seasons but struggled the last two years with the Houston Rockets. He signed a free-agent contract in July with Atlanta, his hometown team, and in Thursday's season-opening 114-99 victory over the Wizards contributed 11 points and 19 rebounds.

Paul Millsap led the Hawks with 28 points Tim Hardaway Jr. added 21 off the bench, but Howard's performance had people buzzing.

"Dwight has established himself as an elite defensive player and elite rebounder and elite shot blocker," coach Mike Budenholzer told reporters afterward. "He's proven. His work and his commitment to everything we're doing, I'm very pleased with. It really makes a difference and I think it can fuel us in our pace.

"We're going to want that from Dwight on Saturday and whenever we play again after that. I think he's looking forward to being a force."

Especially on the glass.

"It's my job," Howard said Thursday night, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "That's the first thing Coach said in our first meeting as a team: He said, 'Dwight, we want you to rebound. You have to defensively and offensively rebound. You have to set the tone for our team on the glass every single night.' "

"If we can hold teams to one shot, we're going to be able to get out in transition with guys like Kyle (Korver) and Dennis (Schroder) and Baze (Kent Bazemore), where they tend to do great. If I can get the ball and kick it out to them early and get those easy shots, our defense is always set.

"It's my job and I take pride in it. For us to win, especially win a championship, we got to rebound."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Celtics (1-1) at Hornets (2-0)

Date: October 29, 2016 7:00 PM EDT

After opening the season with two wins on the road, the second a dramatic come-from-behind victory at Miami on Friday night, the Charlotte Hornets can make franchise history when they open their home season against the Boston Celtics on Saturday night.

The franchise -- the Bobcats/Hornets -- has never started a season with three straight wins.

It didn't look like they'd get a chance to do that this season, either, when they trailed the Heat 65-46 in the third quarter on Friday night in Miami. But Kemba Walker and Jeremy Lamb -- the UConn connection, if you will -- led the charge and the Hornets, who won at Milwaukee on Wednesday, made it 2-0.

"We could have given up, but we didn't," Walker said. "We kept wanting it."

The Hornets went on a 51-26 run to leave Miami's home crowd stunned in silence.

"Right now, early in the year, frankly, these first few games you're just trying to find out what your team's about, and I do like the way we fight back -- that's the good sign," Hornets coach Steve Clifford told reporters after Friday night's win.

Miami coach Erik Spoelstra aid, "They're a well-coached, veteran team. They weren't punch-drunk or anything when we went up. ... We knew going in we would have to play a complete game against them and we weren't able to do that."

The Hornets won both games without Frank Kaminsky, still out with an ankle sprain, and Roy Hibbert played only the first half because of a sore knee, reducing his role to one of a cheerleader.

Clifford said Hibbert, who had the knee drained before the opener, told him he has this problem early in seasons. "We don't want to mess around with it," Clifford said.

As far as Hibbert playing Saturday night, the coach said he wouldn't "know until tomorrow afternoon, I would think."

Walker, who had 17 points in the opener, was limited to one field goal in the first half but came on and finished with 24 points to lead six players in double figures. Lamb scored 16 points, including a dazzling reverse layup late in the charge.

The win was only the second in Charlotte's last 14 games in Miami -- and it was the Heat who eliminated the Hornets from last year's playoffs, in seven games.

The Celtics, playing without injured Marcus Smart (ankle) and Kelly Olynyk (shoulder), blew most of a 23-point third-quarter lead and hung on to beat the Brooklyn Nets in their opener on Wednesday night in Boston. They then went to Chicago and charged from behind before losing to the Bulls.

Boston was outrebounded 55-36 by the Bulls in a chippy game.

"They got 24 more shots than us. We only turned it over (12) times," Celtics coach Brad Stevens said after the 105-99 loss. "So that's the obvious place they're getting their possessions, on the glass. That's going to be the No. 1 thing, that has been the No. 1 thing. It's something we've talked about. We have to get better at it."

Saturday night's game features a matchup of the Zellers -- Tyler starting the second half and playing well Thursday night, and Cody scored 15 points in 14 minutes in the Charlotte opener and then 10 points in 23 minutes on Friday night -- after missing the preseason with a knee injury.

Cody Zeller had to start the second half on Friday because of Hibbert's injury.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Magic (0-2) at Cavaliers (2-0)

Date: October 29, 2016 7:30 PM EDT

The Cleveland Cavaliers debuted a new lineup on Friday night that might come in handy later in the season.

With Channing Frye excused from the team after the death of his mother, coach Tyronn Lue used LeBron James at center in the Cavs' 94-91 win at the Toronto Raptors.

James has played in the post more and more later in his career, but usually it's at power forward. It's unusual to see him at center, but Lue wanted to see what it looked like -- and he did it without practicing.

"We had to try something different and I wanted to take a look at it," Lue said. "We could've played Bird (Chris Andersen) or James Jones, but it's something I wanted to look at.

"I give the team credit. We hadn't worked on it. It kind of had us in disarray a little bit, but we've just got to figure it out. I thought our guys did a good job of figuring out what we wanted to run and did a pretty good job with it."

The Cavs might have plenty more chances to experiment Saturday when they host the Orlando Magic, a team they have beaten in each of the last 14 meetings. Orlando hasn't beaten the Cavs since 2012 -- Dwight Howard's last season there. The Cavs beat the Magic by an average of 21 points in sweeping the series. Orlando is 12-30 on the road since the start of the 2014-15 season.

The Magic are off to an atrocious start defensively, allowing opponents to shoot 50 percent from the field through the first two games. The Detroit Pistons hammered Orlando 108-82 on Friday night, thanks in part to outscoring the Magic 30-9 in the second quarter.

"The guys talked at halftime and we tried to band together rather than separate and crack ... but it wasn't much better in the second half," Magic coach Frank Vogel said. "It's early; it's game two. We'll get better."

Bismack Biyombo is expected to be a big piece to that improvement. Biyombo made his season debut Friday and is expected to fill the middle of the defense after signing a four-year deal during the summer that could be worth $72 million. Biyombo gave the Cavs fits defensively last season during their Eastern Conference finals victory over Biyombo's former team, the Toronto Raptors.

"He's a middle linebacker defensively," Vogel told the Orlando Sentinel. "He's a guy that's not just doing his job. He's making sure everybody is doing their job.

"He's a great communicator, forceful with his voice. He's a vet. He's been around. He's seen all the coverages and how to guard certain stuff. He's going to really, really enhance our defense."

The Cavs haven't shot the ball as well as expected thus far and they struggled with turnovers in Friday's win, but Richard Jefferson believes this version is better than the team that won the championship last season.

"Shump and Ky (Iman Shumpert and Kyrie Irving) missed the first 30 games (last) season," Jefferson said. "Overall, with the health to start the season, and the additions that we have ... we won 57 games last year with two key guys missing 60 games (combined)."