Thursday 12/15/16 service plays chatter/comps/requests & other stuff...

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

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[superbeets]

Italian Serie A TODAY 19:00

Genoa

v

Fiorentina

	HOME	DRAW	AWAY
BT1					More markets

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RECENT FORM	LAST HEAD-TO-HEADSAT GENOA	RECENT FORM
H DA LH WH D*A DA L​ Most recent​	0 - 0 1 - 1 2 - 5 0 - 1	A WH LA LH WA WH W​ Most recent​

KEY STAT: Genoa have not lost any of their last nine home matches

EXPERT VERDICT: Genoa are unbeaten in seven home league games this season and are worth supporting against Fiorentina, in a match which must be played to a finish after September's original clash was abandoned after 22 minutes due to bad weather. Genoa have beaten Juventus and Milan at the Luigi Ferraris stadium this season and can end Fiorentina’s three-game winning run.

RECOMMENDATION: Genoa
1


REFEREE: STADIUM: Luigi Ferraris

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

NHL roundup: Flyers win 10th straight; Pens' streak at 7
By The Sports Xchange

DENVER -- Roman Lyubimov and Brayden Schenn scored goals 1:46 apart early in the third period, and the Philadelphia Flyers beat the Colorado Avalanche 4-3 on Wednesday for their 10th straight win.
Wayne Simmonds and Michael Del Zotto also scored and Steve Mason had 26 saves for Philadelphia.
The winning streak is the Flyers' longest since 1985 and ties for the fourth longest in franchise history.
Matt Duchene had two goals and Rene Bourque scored for the Avalanche, who have lost six in a row at home. Calvin Pickard stopped 21 shots for Colorado.
The game was tied after two when the Flyers took control on a miscue by Colorado.

Penguins 4, Bruins 3 (OT)
PITTSBURGH -- Bryan Rust scored in overtime to give Pittsburgh a win over Boston at PPG Paints Arena for their season-high seventh win in a row.
The teams played to a 2-2 tie through two periods, trading goals by the Bruins' Brad Marchand, the Penguins' Justin Schultz, Boston's David Krejci and Pittsburgh's Nick Bonino.
The Penguins broke the tie on Conor Sheary's first power-play goal of the season before Boston answered with David Pastrnak's goal.

Sharks 4, Senators 3 (SO)
OTTAWA -- Kevin Labanc was the only goal scorer in four rounds of a shootout as San Jose defeated Ottawa at Canadian Tire Centre.
Joe Pavelski, Brent Burns and Chris Tierney scored for the Sharks in regulation. Bobby Ryan, Kyle Turris and Dion Phaneuf replied for the Senators. Burns and Phaneuf each added an assist, and Ottawa's Mark Stone recorded two assists.
Playing his second game in 24 hours, Martin Jones stopped 29 shots in the San Jose net. Mike Condon made 26 saves for the Senators.

Lightning 6, Flames 3
CALGARY, Alberta -- Alex Killorn had two goals an assist to lead Tampa Bay over Calgary at the Scotiabank Saddledome.
Brian Boyle, who had gone 13 games without scoring, also had two goals for the Lightning, who ended a three-game losing streak. Braydon Coburn and Andrej Sustr also scored for Tampa Bay, while Victor Hedman and Valtteri Filppula chipped in with three assists each.
Troy Brouwer and TJ Brodie finished with a goal and an assist each for the Flames, whose winning streak ended at six straight games. Micheal Ferland also had a goal for Calgary.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

In the Crease - Week 10
By Joe Williams

Streaky Teams
Wins and Losses Streak Over/Under Streak
Colorado 0-4-1 past five at home Chicago Under 5-0 past five, 9-1-1 past 11 overall
Columbus 6-0 past six overall Minnesota Under 3-0-1 past four overall
Philadelphia 9-0 past nine overall New Jersey Over 6-0-4 past 10 overall
Pittsburgh 6-0 past six overall Pittsburgh Over 11-0 past 11 overall
Washington 4-0 past four overall San Jose Under 8-2-4 past 14 on road

Pittsburgh Maulers
The Pittsburgh Penguins continue to roll. They hung seven on the visiting Arizona Coyotes in a 7-0 whitewash, posting their 11th consecutive 'over' result while picking up their sixth consecutive victory. Pittsburgh has posted four or more goals in six straight games, three or more goals in eight straight while their defense/goaltenders have given up two or more goals in seven of the past nine. Keep pounding the 'over' in Pittsburgh games until further notice. They host Boston Wednesday, a team which is 3-1-1 on the 'over' in the past five outings. In Friday's game they host Los Angeles, and the Kings have a 5-2-3 'over' mark in the past 10 outings. After that they have a trip to Toronto, a team on a five-game 'under' run.

Dallas Road Woes
The Dallas Stars find themselves near the basement in the Central Division, and a main reason for their tumble down the standings is their inability to win on the road. The Stars have managed a dismal 1-5-1 mark in their past seven away from the Metroplex, while going 6-3-1 in their past 10 games at home. The good news for the Stars is that they have a five-game homestand starting Tuesday against Anaheim, wrapping up Dec. 23 against Los Angeles. They won't be back on the road again until Dec. 27 in Arizona.

Looking Ahead

Thursday, Nov. 17
The Wild and Predators face off in the Music City for the first meeting between the sides this season. Minnesota won three of the four meetings last season, with the 'under' going 3-0-1. However, the 'over' is 5-1 in the past six overall for Nashville, and 5-0 in the past five at home for the Predators. For Minnesota, they enter the new week winners of four in a row, and the 'under' is 3-0-1 in their past four. The 'under' is also 7-3-2 in Minnesota's past 12 games away from the Land of 10,000 Lakes.

The Kings roll into the Motor City for their final skate at Joe Louis Arena. The Kings won't be sad to see this building retired, as they haven't won in Detroit since March 9, 2011, losing seven straight trips to Michigan since. Detroit has been outscored 29-14 during the seven-game losing skid at 'The Joe'. The 'under' is 4-2-1 in the past seven meetings overall between these sides.

Friday, Nov. 18
The Sabres welcome the Islanders to town Friday night. Buffalo hasn't been an easy out at home, picking up points in five of their past seven at home. All three meetings last season were decided by one goal, with the road team winning each meeting. In fact, six of the past seven meetings in this series, and eight of the past 10, have been one-goal games, with four decided in a shootout. The 'under' is 4-1 in the past five meetings in this series.

While the Hurricanes have been hot, they'll find out if they are for real or not when the Capitals come calling. They've already proven themselves once against Alex Ovechkin and company, winning 5-1 at PNC Arena in Raleigh back on Nov. 12. The Hurricanes have won three of their past four home games against the Caps. The 'under' is 3-0-2 in Carolina's past five home games overall, while the Caps have very unique 4-4-4 over/under mark on the road in 12 tries this season.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Ducks (15-10) at Bruins (16-12)

Date: December 15, 2016 7:00 PM EDT

BOSTON -- After securing three of a possible four points on a tough two-game road trip, the Boston Bruins return home Thursday night trying to overcome three trends.

The Bruins, who host the Anaheim Ducks to start a three-game homestand, are just 7-7-0 at home, where poor play caused them to miss the playoffs for the second straight year in 2015-16.

They are also just 1-4-0 on the back end of back-to-back games, and a hard-fought, 4-3 overtime loss in Pittsburgh on Wednesday could make the Thursday night turnaround that much tougher.

Boston also lost its past five meetings with the Ducks, getting only one of a possible 10 points in those games, over the past three seasons.

Before falling in Pittsburgh, the Bruins earned a 2-1 overtime win at Montreal on Monday.

"We played two really tough teams the past two games and we got three points, so we have to be happy with that," said Brad Marchand, who scored in Wednesday's loss, "but we have a big game (Thursday) again and we have to be prepared to have another good game."

The Ducks opened a six-game road trip by playing a solid two periods at Dallas on Tuesday before the struggling Stars came through with five straight goals, four in the third period, for a 6-2 victory.

"I thought we played a pretty good road game up until the third period," Anaheim coach Randy Carlyle said. "We did a lot of things right, but we weren't sharp in our execution because we had lots of chances to score in this hockey game. It takes 60 minutes to win a hockey game in the NHL, and we didn't play 60 minutes. We only played 40."

The Ducks came into that game 6-1-1 in their previous eight games and winners of three straight but fell to 5-6-4 (three straight losses) on the road in their attempt to stay at or near the top of the Pacific Division despite losing as many games as they have won (15-10-5).

The Bruins, who went into overtime in six of their past nine games, have lost four of their last five, going 1-3-1. Boston (16-12-3) scored two goals or less in 21 of its 31 games, including all five back ends of back-to-backs.

"We have a lot of moving pieces right now, guys are in and out of the lineup -- and when we have our whole team, we have a pretty good team and we can compete with anybody, and we know that," said Marchand, who had 10 shots on goal Wednesday but also was called for two penalties -- both leading to power-play goals.

Defenseman Kevan Miller, who missed the first 19 games of the season because of a broken hand, left Wednesday's game with an upper-body injury. His status for Thursday was unknown.

Julien doesn't announce his upcoming goaltender, but with Tuukka Rask playing both Monday and Wednesday, it is a good bet backup Anton Khudobin will get the start. Khudobin is 1-4 with a 3.02 goals-against average, and the team is just 1-7-0 when Rask doesn't start.

Anaheim goalie John Gibson, in goal for the late blitz Tuesday, has never faced the Bruins, while Jonathan Bernier is 3-5-0 with a 3.41 GAA and a .901 save percentage against Boston.

Khudobin is 0-0-1 against Anaheim, Rask an unimpressive 1-4-1 with a 3.48 GAA and a .873 save percentage.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Blackhawks (19-8) at Islanders (11-12)

Date: December 15, 2016 7:00 PM EDT

NEW YORK -- It is not even Christmas yet, and the New York Islanders season is already on the brink. Head coach Jack Capuano is definitely out of patience with his underachieving team.

The Islanders will look to begin their long-shot climb back into the Eastern Conference playoff race Thursday night, when they host the Western Conference-leading Chicago Blackhawks at Barclays Center.

The Blackhawks began a three-game road trip Tuesday with a 2-1 win over the New York Rangers. The Islanders continued skidding Tuesday, when they gave up a pair of third-period goals in a 4-2 loss to the Washington Capitals.

It was the second straight game in which the Islanders were tied after two periods only to lose by multiple goals. The Columbus Blue Jackets scored four unanswered goals in the third period of a 6-2 win on Saturday night.

Earlier this season, the Islanders suffered five losses in which they surrendered the tying or go-ahead goal in the final three minutes of regulation.

"It's frustrating, because you know the ability's there," Capuano said of the Islanders. who reached the Eastern Conference semifinals last spring for the first time since the 1992-93 season. "I don't know where it's gone. But I'm losing my patience a little bit with some of the guys."

Any personnel changes may be too late for the Islanders (11-11-5), who are in last place in the Eastern Conference.

New York's task is made even tougher by the fact it plays in the Metropolitan Division and thus has little chance of sneaking into the playoffs as a third-place team in a mediocre division. The first-place Pittsburgh Penguins and third-place Blue Jackets are each in the midst of seven-game winning streaks. The two wild card teams -- the fourth-place Philadelphia Flyers and fifth-place Capitals -- have 10 straight and five straight, respectively. The New York Rangers were also streaking before falling to the Blackhawks on Tuesday.

Things are much less dire for the Blackhawks (19-8-4), who appear primed to contend for their fourth Stanley Cup in the last eight seasons. Chicago is comfortably ahead of its nearest foe, the Minnesota Wild, in the West despite battling a litany of injuries to stars such as center Jonathan Toews, who missed nine games with a back injury before returning Tuesday, and goalie Corey Crawford, who underwent an appendectomy on Dec. 3. Crawford has yet to resume skating.

In the six games since Crawford was sidelined, backup Scott Darling has allowed just eight goals while leading the Blackhawks to a 3-2-1 record.

"He makes huge saves in the key time," Blackhawks center Artem Anisimov said Tuesday night. "Amazing right now."

Darling seems likely to draw the start again Thursday night against either Jaroslav Halak or Thomas Greiss. Halak has started five of the last six games for the Islanders but could travel ahead of his teammates to Buffalo, where New York is scheduled to face the Sabres on Friday night.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Coyotes (10-14) at Maple Leafs (11-11)

Date: December 15, 2016 7:30 PM EDT

TORONTO --Until a few days ago, Peter Holland played for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Hardly played might be a better description. The center was traded to the Arizona Coyotes on Friday for a conditional pick in the 2018 draft and returns to the Air Canada Centre to face his former team Thursday night.

While the Maple Leafs were blowing a two-goal third-period lead on the way to a 3-2 shootout loss to the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday, Holland had two assists in his debut for the Coyotes in their 4-1 victory over the Red Wings at Detroit.

Holland had one assist in eight games for the Maple Leafs this season. He played in only two games last month, Nov. 26 and Nov. 12.

"I haven't been in a match in about a month and been practicing with just a few guys on the ice during my time in Toronto," Holland told the Arizona Republic before Tuesday's game. "So it's going to take me a little bit to get my timing back and feet under me. But, hopefully, it comes back quicker than I think."

"Peter gives us that steady center that we've needed since (Brad) Richardson got hurt," Coyotes coach Dave Tippett said after the game Tuesday. "He didn't look like a guy playing his first game for a team."

"Well, it's good for him," Maple Leafs coach Mike Babcock told reporters Wednesday. "We're playing them next so I watched (Tuesday's game). We went through it today.

"Holly was a good player for us, did lots of good things, it just didn't work here for him. There's lots of players in the league, when you look at it, who are in a situation, and they go somewhere else and they get a new opportunity. You want everyone to do well, period. If it's not working here, and they're not finding a way to help themselves, or grow as a player, or to help you, it's important that they move on. When they move on, you're not cheering against them at all, you're cheering that they do well, except when they play you."

The Coyotes (10-14-5) play the third game of four in a row on the road Thursday. They began the trip with a 7-0 loss against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday, which followed a home win over the Nashville Predators on Saturday.

"We did a lot of the things that it takes to win hockey games," said goaltender Mike Smith, who made 37 saves Tuesday. "The offense took its chances and everyone made plays. We knew what happened (Monday) night and no one wanted to see that again. We're a better team than that."

The Coyotes will be without Max Domi indefinitely after the left winger had hand surgery Monday. He suffered a broken bone in his hand during a fight against the Calgary Flames last Thursday.

Arizona defenseman Connor Murphy suffered an upper body injury Saturday and was schedule for tests Tuesday in Arizona before rejoining the team. His status for Thursday's game was not known.

The Maple Leafs (11-11-6) have only one win in their past six games and once again Tuesday showed that they have problems closing games out. They were in command before the Sharks struck with goals of 12:43 and 14:50 of the third and then lost in the shootout.

Babcock talked about the necessity of keeping the pressure on the other team when on the lead. He talked about "activities" around each goal as an example.

"I've got it written down right here," he said. "In the third, we had six (activities) around their net. They had 12 around ours. Any way you look at it that means you're being a little more careful. Tight and tentative never got you anywhere in life.

"When you get in your car, normally what you do is you don't put one foot on the brake and one foot on the gas. The long skinny one on the right -- you just push it down and the car goes better."

Maple Leafs rookie Auston Matthews, who had a goal and an assist against the Sharks, is from Scottsdale. Ariz. The first pick in the NHL draft this year grew up going to Coyotes' games, dreaming of playing for them. This will be the first time that he has played against them.

"I'm really looking forward to it," Matthews said Wednesday. "It's fun to play your hometown team. It will be cool after watching guys like (Shane) Doan growing up. He's still playing (at 40). That will be pretty special."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Kings (14-12) at Red Wings (13-13)

Date: December 15, 2016 7:30 PM EDT

DETROIT -- The Los Angeles Kings and the Detroit Red Wings are both experiencing rugged stretches.

Los Angeles (14-12-2) visits Detroit (13-13-4) at Joe Louis Arena Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

The Kings have lost three of their last four after a 6-3 loss at Buffalo Tuesday night, while the Red Wings are 0-2-1 in the first three games of a season-long five-game homestand after losing 4-1 to the Arizona Coyotes at JLA on Tuesday night.

Los Angeles led 2-0, 7:34 into the second period.

"We're fragile. We're a fragile team," said the Kings' Jeff Carter after the game on Tuesday. "You get one bad bounce against you ... they've got good players over there. They're going to have shifts in our end. We get running around, we lose coverage ... we've been doing it all year. Home, away, everywhere. It's time we take a big look in the mirror here because these next six games are pretty crucial."

Los Angeles' next eight games are on the road.

"We've got to get to work tomorrow. I'm sure there will be some video. There's lots to clean up, top to bottom all the way through," Carter said. "There's nothing else you can do but go to work. Good practice tomorrow, go to Detroit and get on the board here on this road trip. That's all there is to it."

Tuesday against Arizona, Detroit failed to take advantage of a team that was tied for the lowest point total in the league and that had been dominated in a 7-0 loss at Pittsburgh the night before.

"Our start, the effort we had in the first period, it's embarrassing. That's on the leaders. That starts with me," Red Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg said after the game Tuesday. "We've got to be better prepared in here to come out. We all know they played last night. They lost pretty bad so we knew they were going to come out and play fast hockey from the start and win a lot of battles. We had to match that and didn't do that. Even though I don't think they played great hockey in the first but that just shows how bad we were."

The Red Wings are 2-8-3 in their last 13 at home and have only managed 21 goals in those games.

Detroit is trying not to put too much pressure on itself to score more goals.

"We got to relax, remember we're playing a game," coach Jeff Blashill told www.mlive.com. "We understand how important it is to everybody -- ownership, fans, us -- but in the end, we got to make sure we bear down, have urgency. But we can't squeeze the sticks so much that we can't play."

The Red Wings are 27th in the NHL in goals per game (2.23).

"If you look around, look at the names in here, it's so much talent," said Frans Nielsen, who signed as a free agent from the New York Islanders on July 1. "I think we've been pretty good defensively and we haven't scored. I thought it was going to be a little bit the opposite when I got here. The good thing is we're playing good defensively, we're getting a foundation without the puck. Now we've got to figure it out with the puck and start putting the puck in the net."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Wild (16-8) at Predators (13-11)

Date: December 15, 2016 8:00 PM EDT

Nashville Predators coach Peter Laviolette isn't one to sit on a pat hand if his team's struggling. His latest batch of line changes prior to Tuesday night's game may have unearthed a new No. 1 line.

The combination of Filip Forsberg, center Ryan Johansen and James Neal single-handedly erased a 3-0 second period deficit to the St. Louis Blues with goals that sparked a 6-3 comeback win at Bridgestone Arena.

They combined to try 22 shots, 12 of which made it to net, and consistently drove play for most of the last two periods. Laviolette is hoping for more of the same Thursday night when Nashville hosts the Minnesota Wild.

"They got going, and they were generating a lot," Laviolette said of Tuesday night. "They spent a lot of time in the offensive zone. We got zone starts that started in our favor. If you're in the offensive zone already, you can start generating. If you're in the defensive zone, you have to figure out how to get through two zones just to get to the O-zone."

Getting to the O-zone against Minnesota is one thing. Beating Devan Dubnyk has been another. The big goalie has been on some kind of run this season, continuing it Tuesday night in a 5-1 home victory over Florida by stopping 29 shots.

Dubnyk (14-6-3) lowered his goals-against average to a miniscule 1.60 and stopped nearly 95 percent of the shots thrown at him this season. Thanks in large part to his brilliance, the Wild (16-8-4) have won five straight.

"We need to keep climbing," Dubnyk said. "It's exciting to be in this spot with games in hand as well, and again those games don't matter unless we win them. But it's still a good situation to be in and winning is fun, so you've got to keep doing it."

Another encouraging sign for Minnesota on Tuesday night was the play of Zach Parise. The left winger broke a seven-game goal drought while also pouring six shots on goal, taking the puck away five times and blocking two shots.

First-year Wild coach Bruce Boudreau called Parise's performance exceptional.

"It was good to see him get one early," Boudreau said. "He had opportunities. I thought he played a really good game. He was really blocking shots, especially in the first period when we really needed it."

A struggling Predator also took strides in the right direction Tuesday night. Forsberg tallied only his third goal in 28 games and was all over the ice, trying 11 shots in 19:02 of ice time and looking as dangerous as he has all season.

It was his first marker since a Nov. 23 victory over Dallas and left Laviolette with hope that this might be the game which sparks Forsberg, who last season tied a franchise high with 33 goals.

"I really liked his game tonight," Laviolette said of Forsberg. "I really liked that he was finding his opportunities. He had 11 shots at the net. That kind of aggressive play will lead to the results."

This is the season's first meeting of the Central Division rivals, who play five times this season, three in Nashville. That could be an edge for the Predators (13-11-4), who are 10-2-2 at home and averaging nearly four goals per game.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Devils (12-10) at Blues (16-10)

Date: December 15, 2016 8:00 PM EDT

ST. LOUIS -- Coach Ken Hitchcock and the St. Louis Blues are happy to be back home after a tough road trip.

The Blues saw their four-game trip end with a thud on Tuesday night as they gave up four goals in the third period, part of a string of six unanswered goals, in a 6-3 loss at Nashville in a game they once led 3-0.

The loss capped a 1-3 trip for the Blues which dropped their road record this season to 4-9-1. Only three teams in the NHL have fewer wins away from home.

Hitchcock was upset not only about the latest loss but about defeats earlier in the trip against the Islanders and Wild. The Blues were tied 2-2 after the second period against the Islanders before losing 3-2; they trailed the Wild by a goal, 2-1, going to the third period but lost 3-1.

"We had a 3-2 lead going to the third period, and we had the game taken from us," Hitchcock said following Tuesday night's loss. "That's three games where the game's been taken from us in the third period. Same thing in New York, same thing in Minnesota."

Said defenseman Alex Pietrangelo, "It's always tough being at the end of a road trip. But we can't use that as an excuse. It's a night where we needed everyone to chip in. We can't use that as an excuse."

The Blues' only win on the trip was a 3-1 victory at New Jersey, their opponent on Thursday night when they play the first of three consecutive games at home, where they are 12-1-3 so far this season.

The Devils have lost their last three games by a combined score of 14-3 against the Canadiens, Blues and Rangers. They have not played since they were shut out 5-0 by the Rangers on Sunday.

Center Travis Zajac told the Newark Star-Ledger that the biggest reason for the team's recent struggles is easy to identify.

"It's not a talent thing or anything like that. It's work ethic," Zajac told the newspaper. "We can bring that consistently through the lineup, four lines and six (defenseman). When you don't have it, we're pretty easy to play against.

"It's still going to be on the leaders. We have to do a better job of pushing everyone in the same direction and showing up and giving our best game. It's about consistency, and the good teams that have it are winning games."

Zajac hopes to see that in the game against the Blues, knowing the team needs to find some way to turn around a stretch which has seen them win only two of their last nine games. They have won only once in regulation since Nov. 12.

"There's no easy way to win games," he said. "There's no magic formula or structure or anything like that. It always comes down to compete and work ethic. If you don't have that, you don't give yourself a chance."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Panthers (13-13) at Jets (13-16)

Date: December 15, 2016 8:00 PM EDT

WINNIPEG, Manitoba -- It's safe to say Patrik Laine will not be suffering any bouts of long-term depression from his highlight-reel blooper Sunday night in Edmonton.

The NHL's rookie scoring leader with 17 goals mistakenly cleared a puck in his own zone into his own net and behind his own goalie, Connor Hellebuyck, just past the midway mark of the third period.

It ended up being the winning goal in a 3-2 victory for the Oilers.

Laine, who is also third in league goal scoring behind Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby, who has 21, and Boston's David Pastrnak, who has 18, was asked about the misplay after practice at the MTS Centre on Wednesday.

"What happened Sunday?" he inquired of the Winnipeg Sun with a smile.

"I haven't thought about that. It's gone. S-- happens sometimes. Now it was my turn."

There has been some criticism of the 18-year-old on social media but his teammates and coach were quick to come to his defense in the immediate aftermath of the own-goal. Captain Blake Wheeler, in fact, got up from his spot on the bench to sit beside Laine, put his arm around him and give him some words of encouragement. Coach Paul Maurice said everybody in the NHL has made at least one highlight-reel bonehead play in their career and Sunday night was Laine's time in the spotlight.

"Now he has his story," Maurice said.

Laine is hoping to bulge the twine at the other end of the rink on Thursday night as two ice-cold teams do battle. The Florida Panthers come to town riding a four-game losing streak -- although they earned two single points in a pair of overtime losses -- while the Jets are in the midst of their own four-game skid, albeit with one overtime loss point.

The Floridians are 2-3-3 since firing Gerard Gallant as head coach, including a 5-1 debacle to the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday. With interim coach Tom Rowe behind the bench, the Panthers have been outscored 24-14, despite outshooting their opponents most nights.

They sit with the worst power play in the league -- an anemic 12.6 percent -- trailing the league average of 18.4 percent. The Columbus Blue Jackets, who score on one-quarter of their man-advantage situations, have the NHL's best power play.

Rowe was overheard on a number of occasions during the Wild game berating his team with obscenity-filled rants.

"Guys have got to understand, if you're going to play in the National Hockey League, you got to show up every day," he said to the Miami Herald afterwards. "You can't show up when you feel like it."

Is there a savior on the horizon? Perhaps. The Panthers didn't have to look too far if reports that started circulating Wednesday night are correct. Word on the street is that Dale Tallon, who served as the team's general manager until being replaced by Rowe last season, is back in charge of hockey operations.

The Panthers denied late Wednesday that any changes had been made to their management structure.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Rangers (20-10) at Stars (12-13)

Date: December 15, 2016 8:30 PM EDT

DALLAS -- The Dallas Stars are looking for consistency when they host the New York Rangers on Thursday at American Airlines Center.

The Stars (12-13-6) play the second contest of a five-game homestand, one which coach Lindy Ruff said could define the struggling team's season. The Stars opened the homestand with a 6-2 victory against the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday.

"It's important. We all realize where we're at in the standings and how we've been playing to start the year," Stars captain Jamie Benn said. "We see this homestand as a big one for us. Like you said, it could be make or break and we want to be making something of this. We got one tonight and we'll regroup and get ready for the next one."

The Stars scored five goals in a span of six minutes, 43 seconds against the Ducks, and goalie Antti Niemi made 34 saves to improve to 6-1-1 at home. The Finnish goalie was playing for the first time in five games, and said getting a quick start was important for his confidence.

Against Anaheim, Niemi made several key saves in the first period, including a stop on a 3-on-1 and a stop on a breakaway on the same shift.

The Rangers (20-10-1) have been riding Antti Raanta's hot hand and the back-up goalie made four consecutive starts. He won three straight games and posted back-to-back shutouts before the Rangers lost to the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday 2-1.

While Raanta played well in the loss, Henrik Lundqvist will likely start against the Stars and Raanta said he's well aware the Swede is the Rangers starter.

"It's special when you can steal starts from Hank," Raanta said on Tuesday.

No matter who starts in goal, the Rangers rely on one of the NHL's best offenses this season. New York scored a league-best 106 goals through 31 games, and 14 players have at least 12 points, including leading-scorer J.T. Miller with 22.

Miller has been one of the NHL's breakout stars this season. He had 43 points in 82 games last season and is on pace to set a career high in his third professional season.

The Stars led the NHL in goals last season, but have yet to find the offensive spark on a consistent basis. They've scored 11 goals in their last two home games, but scored only three goals during back-to-back road losses sandwiched in between the victories.

Ruff is hopeful his lineup will build off the win against Anaheim, and the Stars should be better as injured players return to form. Jiri Hudler had his first point of the season against the Ducks, while defenseman Johnny Oduya played his second game after returning from injury and had an assist.

The Stars will also have Jamie Oleksiak back as a lineup option against the Rangers. The 6-foot-7 defenseman was suspended two games for a hit to the head on Philadelphia's Chris VandeVelde on Saturday.

Oleksiak had been playing some of his best hockey this season before the suspension. While Oleksiak has only played in 13 of the Stars' first 31 games, Ruff said his play recently dictated he should be in the lineup.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Grand Salami - December

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
12/1 12 64.5 70 OVER
12/2 2 10 8 UNDER
12/3 12 63 58 UNDER
12/4 7 36 40 OVER
12/5 4 21 30 OVER
12/6 9 49.5 49 UNDER
12/7 4 20.5 29 OVER
12/8 10 54.5 58 OVER
12/9 6 30.5 26 UNDER
12/10 10 53 68 OVER
12/11 8 42 32 UNDER
12/12 2 10.5 10 UNDER
12/13 10 54.5 69 OVER
12/14 4 21.5 30 OVER
12/15 8 - - -
12/16 7 - - -
12/17 10 - - -
12/18 6 - - -
12/19 5 - - -
12/20 12 - - -
12/21 2 - - -
12/22 10 - - -
12/23 12 - - -
12/24 No games scheduled - - -
12/25 No games scheduled - - -
12/26 No games scheduled - - -
12/27 10 - - -
12/28 5 - - -
12/29 12 - - -
12/30 4 - - -
12/31 11 - - -

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

NHL

Thursday’s games

Ducks won their last five games with Boston, winning four of last five games in this building. Over is 2-1-2 in last five series games. Anaheim won three of last four games but lost last three on the road; over is 4-0-1 in their last five games overall. Boston lost in OT in Pittsburgh last night- they lost four of last five games, are 1-4 if they played night before. Six of their last nine games went OT. Under is 3-2-1 in their last six home games.

Islanders lost last three games with Chicago; Blackhawks lost three of last five visits to Long Island, in series where home side won eight of last ten series games. Last seven series games stayed under the total. Chicago won three of last four games, allowing three goals; eight of their last nine games stayed under total. Islanders lost last two games but won four of last six home tilts. Over is 4-1 in their last five games.

Arizona won its last four games with Toronto; Coyotes won four of last five games in this building. Under is 5-2 in last seven series games. Arizona lost seven of its last nine games, four of last five on road. eight of their last ten games stayed under total. Toronto lost five of its last six games, three in a row at home. Maple Leafs’ last six games stayed under the total.

Home side won nine of last ten LA-Detroit games; Kings lost last five visits to Motor City, outscored 17-9. Under is 4-2-2 in last eight series games. Los Angeles lost three of its last four games; over is 3-1-1 in their last five. Red Wings were outscored 9-2 in losing last three games, all at home; under is 2-0-1 in those three games.

Blues won nine of last ten games with New Jersey; Devils were outscored 15-7 in losing last four games in this building. Over is 2-1-1 in last four series games. New Jersey was outscored 14-3 in losing its last three games; Devils lost five of last six road games. Over is 6-0-4 in their last ten games. St Louis lost three of last four games but won four of last five at home. Over is 5-2-3 in their last ten games.

Nashville won three of last four games with Minnesota; home side won last three meetings after losing previous seven. Wild lost 3-2/3-0 in last two visits to Music City. Under is 3-0-1 in last four series games. Minnesota won its last five games, allowing total of seven goals; under is 3-1-1 in their last five games. Predators lost four of last six games; over is 8-2 in their last ten games.

Florida won its last three games with Winnipeg, allowing five goals; home side won six of last seven series games. Panthers lost three of last four games in this building. Over is 5-1-1 in last seven series games. Florida lost seven of last nine games; over is 4-0-1 in their last five. Winnipeg was outscored 15-8 in losing its last four games; under is 3-2 in their last five games.

Rangers won six of last nine games with Dallas; New York won three of last four games in this building. Under is 6-1-1 in last eight series games. Rangers won three of last four games; they’re 3-2 in last five road games. Under is 3-0-1 in New York’s last four games. Dallas Stars won three of their last four home games; three of their last four games went over the total.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

NBA roundup: Harden's record triple-double lifts Rockets
By The Sports Xchange

HOUSTON -- James Harden matched the franchise record for career triple-doubles as the Houston Rockets blitzed the shorthanded Sacramento Kings 132-98 on Wednesday night at Toyota Center.
The Rockets (19-7) won their eighth consecutive game and flirted with the NBA record for 3-pointers, hitting 22 of 42 from behind the arc while coasting to victory. Houston was scorching from deep at the opening tip, burying seven treys in the first quarter and extending their league record for consecutive games with at least 10 3-pointers at the 7:13 mark of the second quarter on a 3 from reserve Sam Dekker.
Harden finished with 15 points, 14 assists and 11 rebounds to post his 14th career triple-double and match the mark set by Hall of Fame center Hakeem Olajuwon. Harden needed only 30 minutes to produce his fifth triple-double on the season.
Forward Ryan Anderson led all five Houston starters in double figures with 22 points and was 4 for 7 from 3-point range. Forward Trevor Ariza added 17 points on 5-for-7 shooting from beyond the arc while Dekker, a second-year forward, had a career-high 19 points.

Spurs 108, Celtics 101
SAN ANTONIO -- Kawhi Leonard scored 26 points and Pau Gasol added 17 points and pulled down 13 rebounds as San Antonio defeated Boston at the AT&T Center.
The Spurs' Tony Parker had eight points in a two-and-a-half-minute stretch of the fourth quarter to help San Antonio withstand a Celtics' comeback attempt. The Spurs led by 100-85 with 4:31 to play but had to hold on as Boston forged a 10-2 run that cut the San Antonio advantage to 102-95.
But Leonard hit two free throws and a jumper to cement the win for the Spurs.

Clippers 113, Magic 108
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Austin Rivers scored a season-high 25 points and hit seven 3-pointers while leading Los Angeles to a victory over Orlando at the Amway Center.
Rivers, who sat out Monday night after sustaining a concussion on Saturday, started just his second game of the season.
Center DeAndre Jordan scored 22 points -- also a season high -- and grabbed a team-best 12 rebounds. He made 12 of 18 free throws.
Blake Griffin had 23 points and seven rebounds for the Clippers. Chris Paul finished with 14 points and a game-high 10 assists. J.J. Redick added 10 points.

Nets 107, Lakers 97
NEW YORK -- Brook Lopez scored eight of his 20 points in the final seven minutes as Brooklyn did enough down the stretch to defeat Los Angeles.
Bojan Bogdanovic led the Nets (7-17) with 23 points and Sean Kilpatrick added 22, but it was Lopez who did a bulk of the heavy lifting to give the Nets the win.
Lopez hit 5 of 16 shots through three quarters, but in a span of 89 seconds, he converted three layups to push a slim 93-92 lead to 99-94 with 5:17 remaining. About three minutes later, Lopez hit two free throws for a 104-96 lead, and the Nets gradually sealed the game.

Jazz 109, Thunder 89
SALT LAKE CITY -- Rodney Hood scored 25 points and Gordon Hayward added 17 to lead Utah to a victory over Oklahoma City.
Shelvin Mack added 15 points and five assists off the bench while Rudy Gobert notched his 16th double-double of the season with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Utah led from start to finish while shooting 58.3 percent from the field and 13-of-23 from 3-point range.
Russell Westbrook tallied 27 points, six rebounds and five assists for Oklahoma City. Enes Kanter added 19 points off the bench for the Thunder. Oklahoma City lost for the third time in four games. The Thunder shot 36.6 percent from the field.

Pistons 95, Mavericks 85
DALLAS -- Jon Leuer scored a season-high 19 points off the bench and Detroit finished strong to top Dallas at American Airlines Center.
The Pistons bounced back from a lethargic effort Sunday to beat Dallas for the third straight time on the road.
Detroit was down 12 points in the third quarter before outscoring the Mavs 43-21 to the finish line. A 27-5 run gave the visitors a 10-point edge (79-69) with 5 minutes left.
Leuer was especially effective, knocking down 8 of 9 shots and grabbing six rebounds. The Pistons were plus-26 with Leuer on the floor.

Grizzlies 93, Cavaliers 85
MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Marc Gasol posted a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds as Memphis defeated Cleveland at FedExForum.
The Cavaliers played without LeBron James, Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving -- all of whom were rested and did not make the trip. Cleveland never led in the game and trailed by 25 points in the fourth quarter.
Memphis got a game-high 20 points from guard Troy Daniels off the bench and he hit 4 of 8 3-pointers. Swingman Tony Allen finished with 16 points, eight rebounds, three steals an assist and a block. Guard Toney Douglas chipped in 14 points with six rebounds, five assists and two steals.

Heat 95, Pacers 89
MIAMI -- Hassan Whiteside scored 26 points and grabbed 22 rebounds to lead Miami past Indiana at AmericanAirlines Arena.
It was the fourth 20-20 game in Whiteside's career.
Reserves Tyler Johnson and James Johnson were both big for the Heat. Tyler had 15 points, five rebounds, four blocks and three assists. James had 14 points and six assists.
Miami got a boost from small forward Justise Winslow, who returned after missing 16 games because of a sprained left wrist. Winslow entered the game with 48 seconds left in the first quarter.

Wizards 109, Hornets 106
WASHINGTON -- John Wall had 25 points, 10 assists and seven steals as Washington used its highest scoring quarter of the season to help defeat Charlotte.
Bradley Beal scored 18 of his 20 points in the second half and set a career high with nine assists for the Wizards. Washington outscored Charlotte 38-23 in the third quarter for an 87-77 lead and fended off the Hornets late. The Wizards shot 51.7 percent from the field, outrebounded the Hornets 41-33 and dominated points in the paint 56-28.
The Hornets lost their third straight despite shooting 51.4 percent from the field and sinking 14 of 33 (42.4 percent) 3-pointers. Nicolas Batum had 20 points and eight assists, Cody Zeller scored 18 points and Kemba Walker 17.

Raptors 123, 76ers 114
PHILADELPHIA -- DeMar DeRozan scored 31 points, 23 over a blistering 15-minute stretch in the middle of the game, as Toronto beat Philadelphia.
DeRozan, the NBA's fifth-leading scorer, was 11 of 18 from the floor and 9 of 11 from the foul line. He did not play in the fourth quarter.
Kyle Lowry added 20 points, and Jonas Valanciunas finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Atlantic Division-leading Raptors, who won for the 10th time in 11 games. Cory Joseph added 13 points off the bench, and he matched Lowry's team-high total of seven assists.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

NBA betting road map: Revenge is a key angle early this season
By BIG AL MCMORDIE

Al McMordie is back with the latest edition of his weekly betting roadmap series, to take a look at the betting landscape in the upcoming week in the NBA.

We're through seven weeks of the NBA season, and home and road teams are virtually dead-even against the spread (home teams are 175-176-8 ATS), as are favorites and underdogs (favorites are 176-175-8 ATS). A big money-maker, though, has been revengers, as teams playing with revenge from a loss earlier in the season have gone 56-29-1 ATS, including 33-12-1 ATS off a loss.

Let's take a look around the league to see if we can find some other wagering situations to line our pockets.

Spread Watch

The San Antonio Spurs own the league's second best record at 19-5. But when San Antonio lost their first road game last week at Chicago (following 13 road wins to start the season), coach Gregg Popovich called out his team's lack of effort. Indeed, San Antonio's been winning in spite of lackluster play. They've trailed by double-digits in seven of their last nine games, but have done just enough to go 7-2 in those games. So, Popovich criticized his team, and said, "It's your job. If you're a plumber and don't do your job, you don't get any work....If you're a basketball player, you come ready. It's called maturity."

Not surprisingly, the Spurs responded to their coach's words, and blew out Brooklyn, 130-101 on Saturday. It was the highest-scoring game for San Antonio this season, and was its biggest margin of victory since opening night, when it also won by 29 points.

That win improved the Spurs to a not-so-gaudy 6-4 at home (the Spurs were 40-1 at home last season). Patty Mills explained the team's mindset after the Brooklyn game, "We came into this game knowing we had to lace 'em up and do what we do. No more messing around."

This week, San Antonio will host Boston on Wednesday and New Orleans on Sunday, with a road game in between, at Phoenix. The Spurs have owned all three teams of late, with 10 straight wins vs. Boston, seven vs. Phoenix, and four vs. New Orleans. I look for the Spurs to string together a bunch of good games, as they're a veteran-laden team, and the "no more messing around" attitude should prevail, at least, for the short term.

Totals Watch

After going 44-38 last season, and earning a No. 5 Playoff seed, the Portland Trail Blazers have struggled out of the gate this year, and are just 12-13 SU and 9-16 ATS through 25 games. The Blazers have also gone 'over' the total in 17 of 24 games this season, including 9-2 'over' at home. The main reason has been a defense which has an NBA-worst Defensive Efficiency Rating of 1.13. Last year, the Blazers ranked 19th in Defensive Efficiency, and had a 1.08 Rating.

To kick-start this week, the Blazers will travel to Los Angeles to play the Clippers on Monday. The over/under line has been installed at 217.5, and that's key, as Portland has gone 'over' the total in all eight games this season when the line has been north of 217 points. Los Angeles has sailed 'over' in 15 of its 24 games, as well, so I look for a relatively high-scoring game on Monday.

Injury Watch

The Los Angeles Lakers dropped their 6th game in a row on Sunday, when they fell to the New York Knicks, 118-112. And Los Angeles has surrendered over 115 ppg during this 6-game skein. But the good news for Purple-and-Gold fans is that their two leading scorers, Nick Young and D'Angelo Russell, returned to action - though in a limited capacity.

Russell had missed all but one of the Lakers' last 13 games due to a sore left knee, while Young had missed seven of nine games to heal his strained calf muscle. Against New York, Russell played just 17 minutes, and was ineffective (1-for-8 shooting; 5 assists; 4 turnovers). Young fared better in his 20 minutes, as he scored 15 points on 6-for-11 shooting. Going forward, the Lakers definitely need their starting backcourt duo on the court, if they're to be competitive.

This week, LA will play four road games vs. the Kings, Nets, 76ers and Cavaliers, so things might get worse before they get better. But there's reason for optimism in Los Angeles this season, if they can stay healthy, as LA was 7-5 before Russell succumbed to his knee injury.

Schedule Watch

The Houston Rockets are 17-7, and have outscored their opponents by 5.9 ppg - both of those stats place Houston among the top 5 in the league. Even better for our purposes, Houston is 17-7 ATS this year, and has covered the spread by an average of 4.29 ppg (both of which rank second behind the Raptors' 16-6-1 ATS mark and avg. pointspread differential of +5.28). And this success has come even though Mike D'Antoni's men have played the hardest schedule in the league thus far. Only nine of the Rockets' 24 games have come at home, so they're likely even better than their stats currently indicate.

This week, Houston will finish a 4-game home stand which started with Saturday's 22-point win over Dallas, as the Nets, Kings and Pelicans will visit the Toyota Center. Then, on Saturday, Houston will travel to Minnesota to face the T-Wolves. The Rockets will certainly be heavy favorites this week at home, so they'll likely own a 9-game win streak going into that game vs. the T-Wolves. And even though Houston's won seven in a row vs. Minnesota, don't be surprised if the Wolves upset James Harden & Co.

First, Houston will be unrested off a home game, and playing its third game in four nights vs. a very well-rested Minnesota club which will have had the three previous days off (it's worth noting that such teams have only covered 32% over the past 27 years, if they're also off back to back wins). And second, the Rockets will play that game with a revenge match vs. their rival, the Spurs, on deck. Assuming the Rockets go into that game on a nine-game win streak, I'll definitely fade Houston on Saturday.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

'NBA- Off one point exact loss'

After coming up one point short in an NBA regular season contest one would assume teams should have a chip on their shoulder and come out looking to make a statement next time they hit the court.

In testing the theory, surprisingly teams do not always have the ability to bounce back after the aggravating event. In fact, since 2012 teams are just 85-110 straight-up, 87-104-4 against the betting line after being nipped by one point exact on the scoreboard.

Breaking those numbers down further, a consistent long term patterns tells us to 'Play-On' any favorite running the hardwood against a team off a one point exact loss. That's because it will result in a money-making 62.0% hit rate as chalks are 67-39-2 against the betting line split between 46-25-2 ATS on home court, 21-14 ATS wearing road jersey's.

Although, a winning percentage of 62.0% is considered major success, we can improve the hit rate to a whopping 79.2% by 'Playing-On' any home chalk of -4.0 to -6.5 points facing a road team off a one point demoralizing effort (19-4-1 ATS).

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

'Spurs aim for 8-0 vs Suns'

San Antonio Spurs at Phoenix Suns December 15, 9:00 EST

Sometimes a team just has another teams number. That certainly applies to the San Antonio Spurs when it comes to the Phoenix Suns. In the past seven meetings Spurs have a perfect 7-0 record with a 4-2-1 mark against the betting line. Sportsbooks have the Spurs 7.5 point road favorites when they visit Suns Thursday night.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Pacers (13-13) at Pelicans (8-18)

Date: December 15, 2016 8:00 PM EDT

NEW ORLEANS -- The New Orleans Pelicans are trying to find more offensive support for the NBA's second-leading scorer, Anthony Davis.

The Indiana Pacers are trying to pick up the slack while starting guard Monta Ellis rests a groin injury.

Balanced contributions will be a key for both teams when they meet for the first time this season Thursday night in the Smoothie King Center.

New Orleans guard Tim Frazier had his first triple-double in a 120-119 overtime victory at Phoenix on Sunday, and reserve guard Langston Galloway continued his hot 3-point shooting during a 113-109 home loss to Golden State on Tuesday.

Galloway made 19 3-pointers over the past five games, a career best for that length of games, and he shot 44.2 percent on 3-pointers in that stretch.

"I think in college was probably the last time I had (such a green light to shoot)," Galloway told the Pelicans' team website. "Last year in New York I had it somewhat, but the coaches, teammates, they all believe in me (here). I just go out there and play with a lot of confidence."

Against the Suns, Davis tied for the third-most points among five New Orleans players who scored double figures.

Against the Warriors, the Pelicans again had five double-figure scorers as Davis led the way. But down the stretch, the New Orleans offense -- Davis included -- broke down, producing a total of two points in its final 11 possessions as the Pelicans squandered a five-point, fourth-quarter lead and dropped to 8-18.

"It comes down to making plays at the end," New Orleans coach Alvin Gentry said. "I thought the last five, six minutes of the game, we became a little stagnant, and if you become stagnant with this (Golden State) team, they do a great job of loading up their defense. You can't hold the basketball."

The Pacers (13-13) lost at Miami 95-89 on Wednesday as Ellis missed his second straight game. He will sit out at least one more game after Thursday.

Glenn Robinson III replaced Ellis in the starting lineup, though his contributions are more varied than just scoring, which is Ellis' forte. Robinson is not among the five Indiana players with a double-figure scoring average.

"It's sad to see Monta out, you never want to see anyone injured, but I want to take advantage of this opportunity," Robinson told the Pacers' website. "I definitely want to be a starter in this league, and I think I can help this team out, bringing energy and being ready to play every night. Energy is the biggest thing we need in the starting lineup."

Robinson left the game against Miami in the third quarter after his head collided with the Heat's Hassan Whiteside's knee, but he returned in the fourth quarter.

"He's going to get better by the game," forward Paul George said of Robinson. "We know how much he can do and how much offensively he has in his package. We want him to play his game, but he's the fifth option for us. He's growing. He's good now, but when his time comes, he's going to be really good."

The Pacers made just nine 3-pointers against the Heat after posting season-high totals in their previous two games. They made 15 3-pointers against the Portland Trail Blazers on Saturday, then made 17 two nights later against the Charlotte Hornets.

"I'm going to stay ready no matter what happens when Monta comes back," Robinson told the Pacers' website. "But the biggest thing is I've learned a lot and I've proven not only to myself and my teammates, but to the coaches and the rest of the league that I belong and I'm here to stay."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Bulls (13-11) at Bucks (11-12)

Date: December 15, 2016 8:00 PM EDT

MILWAUKEE -- The Milwaukee Bucks kick off a stretch of three straight home-and-home sets Wednesday when they host the Chicago Bulls at the Bradley Center.

The Bucks face Chicago on back-to-back nights and do the same next Tuesday and Wednesday against the Cleveland Cavaliers. They wrap up that stretch with games against Washington to bookend the Christmas holiday.

It's a daunting challenge for the Bucks, who lost three in a row after winning six of eight contests to move to two games above .500.

"It's hard to beat an NBA team back-to-back," Bucks coach Jason Kidd said Wednesday. "It's tough to beat a team twice in 48 hours, no matter who you're playing. LeBron (James), Chicago, Brooklyn but we're professionals. Everybody has pride, and everybody wants to win."

Chicago comes into the game looking to bounce back after blowing a 21-point lead and falling 99-94 to Minnesota on Tuesday night at the United Center.

Jimmy Butler finished with 27 points and nine rebounds in the contest while Dwyane Wade dished out eight assists but was ejected down the stretch for arguing with the officials.

Butler, who like Wade played collegiately in Milwaukee for Marquette, has been red-hot of late, averaging 25.9 points, 7.9 rebounds and 4.5 assists over his last eight games.

In 17 career games against the Bucks, Butler averages 13.4 points per game on 47.5 percent shooting.

"Jimmy Butler is playing at a very high level," Kidd said.

Point guard Rajon Rondo sat out the Minnesota game with an ankle injury and will be a game-time decision Thursday at Milwaukee.

Jerian Grant started in Rondo's place and played 19 minutes while Isaiah Canaan covered another 27 minutes off the bench.

"Rondo was having one of his best practices of the year (Monday)," Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg told the Chicago Tribue. "He was all over the place. He was talking, he was cutting, he was moving. And it was kind of a freak play right at the end of practice. He didn't really land on anybody. Just kind of landed on it wrong and tweaked it.

"It's point tender right now. He's limping pretty good. Hopefully with a couple more treatments the next few days we'll get him back for the Milwaukee games (Thursday and Friday)."

Chicago will be without point guard Michael-Carter Williams, who was dealt to the Bulls by Milwaukee during training camp but missed the last month with a sore left wrist.

In exchange for Carter-Williams, Milwaukee acquired Tony Snell, who started 22 games and averaged 8.3 points with 4.2 rebounds. Snell is struggling of late especially from 3-point range, going 5 for 23 in his last five games.

Three-pointers are a problem of late for the Bucks' defense. Milwaukee was leading the league in defensive 3-point percentage but dropped to second after the Raptors made 14 of 25 attempts Tuesday in Toronto.

The Bulls, meanwhile, are 30th in the league shooting the 3 (30.7 percent) but make up for that shortcoming inside.

"This is a team that puts a lot of pressure on you in the paint and mid-range," Kidd said. "We can't give them threes.

"And we've got to protect the paint."

The Bulls won three straight against Milwaukee.