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[Can'tPickaWinner2]

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[superbeets]

Premier League TODAY 17:15

Liverpool

v

Stoke

	HOME	DRAW	AWAY
SS1					More markets

RECENT FORM	LAST HEAD-TO-HEADSAT LIVERPOOL	RECENT FORM
HWHWALHDAWAW​ Most recent​	4 - 1 0 - 1 1 - 0 1 - 0	HLAWHWALHDHD​ Most recent​

KEY STAT: Stoke have trailed at the break in only one of their last 13 matches

EXPERT VERDICT: Boosted by the dramatic late 1-0 victory over Merseyside rivals Everton last time out, Liverpool should add another three points to their title charge but Stoke could make life awkward for the Reds at Anfield. Five of Liverpool's last six home goals have come after the break and patience may once again be needed.

RECOMMENDATION: Draw-Liverpool double result
1


REFEREE: Michael Oliver STADIUM:

Premier League We 28Dec 19:45

Southampton

v

Tottenham

	HOME	DRAW	AWAY
SS1					More markets

RECENT FORM	LAST HEAD-TO-HEADSAT SOUTHAMPTON	RECENT FORM
AWALHDHWADAW​ Most recent​	0 - 2 2 - 2 2 - 3 1 - 2	ALHWHWALHWHW​ Most recent​

KEY STAT: Southampton have won only one of the last eight meetings against Tottenham

EXPERT VERDICT: Mauricio Pochettino makes his latest return to St Mary's and the Tottenham boss may have to settle for a point. Leaders Chelsea are the only side to have won at Southampton this term, while Spurs have already shared the spoils at Arsenal, West Brom, Everton and Bournemouth this season.

RECOMMENDATION: Draw
2


REFEREE: Mike Dean STADIUM:

Championship Th 29Dec 19:45

Aston Villa

v

Leeds

	HOME	DRAW	AWAY
SS1					More markets

RECENT FORM	LAST HEAD-TO-HEADSAT ASTON VILLA	RECENT FORM
HWALHWALAWHW​ Most recent​	2 - 0 0 - 0 0 - 1 1 - 2	ALHWALHWHWAW​ Most recent​

KEY STAT: Leeds have scored in nine of their last 11 league matches

EXPERT VERDICT: Leeds have won eight of their last ten matches in the Championship, suffering defeats to only Newcastle and Brighton during this hot spell, and the in-form Whites should give a decent account of themselves at Villa Park. However, Aston Villa are also looking decent under Steve Bruce and backing both teams to score looks the best bet.

RECOMMENDATION: Both teams to score
2

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

In the Crease - Week 12
By Joe Williams

Streaky Teams
Wins and Losses Streak Over/Under Streak
Boston 3-0-3 past six road Arizona Under 15-3-4 past 22 overall
Columbus 12-0 past 12 overall Columbus Under 4-1-2 past seven road
Minnesota 10-0 past 10 overall Dallas Under 4-0 past four overall
Ottawa 4-0 past four overall, 3-0-1 past four home Edmonton Under 5-0-2 past seven overall
Pittsburgh 8-0-1 past nine home N.Y. Islanders Over 6-1 past seven overall

Bedeviled
The New Jersey Devils have struggled mightily since the calendar turned to December, and they are in the midst of a 1-7-1 slide dating back to Dec. 8. Goaltending has been a major reason for the skid, as they have allowed three or more goals in 17 of the past 19 outings overall. Things do not figure to get any better, as Pittsburgh skates into town Tuesday following by a home-and-home with Washington and a visit from Boston. The Pens have outscored the Devils 8-4 in two earlier losses, while the Caps have yet to face New Jersey this season. Pittsburgh is 4-1 in the past five meetings, although the home team is 24-6 in the past 30 in the series and Pittsburgh has won just five of their past 21 trips to Newark.

Sour Notes in Music City
The Nashville Predators have been struggling on home ice lately. They were pounded 4-0 against Los Angeles in their most recent home game Thursday, and they are 2-3-2 in their past seven in Nashville. The next three home games feature the red-hot Minnesota Wild Tuesday night, as they skate in on a 10-game winning streak. One of those wins was a 5-2 Wild victory in Nashville Dec. 15. The Chicago Blackhawks follow that visit Thursday, and the Eastern Conference leading Montreal Canadiens come to town Jan. 3 for the first game of the New Year. It might be a good idea to continue to fade the Predators at home until they can solve their issues. Nashville has allowed 26 goals over their past seven games at home.

Looking Ahead

Tuesday, Dec. 27
The Rangers host the Senators in a battle between Eastern Conference contenders. The Senators have made themselves at home over the years in Madison Square Garden, winning 27 of their past 37 trips to Midtown Manhattan. The road team has won 22 of the past 31 meetings in this series, too. And if you're into totals, you might want to hammer the 'under' at MSG Tuesday. The 'under' is 19-5-2 in the past 26 meetings in New York, and 32-10-9 in the past 51 meetings overall in this series.

Two red-hot Golden State rivals do battle on the ice in Southern California. The Sharks have won six of their past seven games overall, and they're 4-1 in their past five against teams with a losing overall record. The Ducks have won each of their past four on home ice, and they're 6-2 in their past eight battles against teams with a .600 winning percentage or better. The Sharks have won just once in their past five skates in Anaheim, and San Jose is just 1-5 in their past six meetings overall. The home team has won 27 of the past 38 in the series.

Wednesday, Dec. 28
The Canadiens head to South Florida to try and add to the woes of the Lightning. Montreal hasn't been too good on the road recently, going just 3-7 in their past 10 away from Bell Centre and 7-18 in their past 25 road outings against a team with a winning home record. The Lightning have struggled since superstar Steven Stamkos went down, and they have won just four of their past 14 overall. They're also 0-4 in their past four against teams with a winning percentage over .600, while winning just two of their past eight against Eastern Conference foes. Montreal has won five straight in this series, and the over is 5-2-2 in the past nine meetings in Tampa.

The Hurricanes look to change their luck against the Penguins in the Steel City. Carolina has won just 25 of their past 80 games over the past couple of years against teams with a winning overall record, and they're just 1-6 in their past seven games within the ultra-competitive Metropolitan Division. Pittsburgh has won 40 of their past 52 home games, and they're 26-9 in their past 35 against teams with a losing record. The Canes have won just six of their past 19 meetings overall, and they're 3-9 in their past 12 trips to Pittsburgh.

Thursday, Dec. 29
The Bruins look to stay hot on the road, and they look to keep the Sabres down in the process. Boston has won each of the first two meetings this season, including a 2-1 win in Buffalo Dec. 3. The Bruins have won nine of the past 11 meetings in this series, including each of the past five trips to Western New York. The 'under' is a perfect 3-0 in the past three meetings, and 2-0-3 in the past five skates in Buffalo. Boston enters the week 3-0-3 in their past six games away from home, and they have been much better overall on the road.

The Blackhawks invade the Music City looking to add to the woes of the Predators at home. Chicago has won six of the past nine regular season games in this series, although they have won just twice in the past six trips to Nashville. When these teams hook up there are generally plenty of goals. The 'over' is 3-1-4 in the past eight meetings overall, and 2-1-3 in the past six skates in Tennessee.

Friday, Dec. 30
The Predators head to St. Louis looking to tame the Blues. Nashville hasn't had a lot of success in the Gateway City, however, losing three straight along the banks of the Mississippi River, and five of their past seven. The 'under' is 5-2-1 in the past eight meetings in this series, too. The Blues have piled up an impressive 7-1-2 mark in their past 10 home games, including a 3-1 win back on Nov. 19 against the Predators.

Vancouver hosts Anaheim in the late game Friday. The Ducks won their most recent trip to the Pacific Northwest by a 3-1 count back on Dec. 1, cashing as a -165 favorite. Anaheim has outscored Vancouver 7-3 in two meetings this season, and the Ducks have won eight of their past 10 trips to British Columbia. Anaheim has outscored Vancouver 36-15 during the 10-game span in Vancouver. The Canucks limp in with the third-fewest points in the Western Conference, and they haven't won back-to-back games at home since opening the season 4-0.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Senators (20-11) at Rangers (23-12)

Date: December 27, 2016 7:00 PM EDT

The Ottawa Senators were not expected to do much this season. After missing the playoffs for the second time in three seasons and barely changing the roster, the team put almost everything on new coach Guy Boucher.

So far, so good.

The Senators come to New York to face the Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night with a 20-11-3 mark and a four-game winning streak. They've done most of it without starting goaltender Craig Anderson, who has missed most of this month as he spends time with his cancer-stricken wife.

Although the Senators sit in a playoff spot as they reach the halfway point, Boucher wants more.

"We want to do better," he said. "We want to keep growing. We want to make those playoffs. We can't let down. The guys know that. Since Day 1 there hasn't really been a long letdown. We had a game and a half drift. The rest I think we've done really good. I've been really impressed with the dedication of the players."

Backup goaltender Mike Condon, who was acquired in a trade from the Pittsburgh Penguins in November, is 8-3-2 with a .922 save percentage with the Senators. He hasn't been as strong since taking over for Anderson at the beginning of the December, but Condon is 6-2-2 with a .916 save percentage in 11 appearances this month.

"What you're asking for (from Condon) is to be good enough to give us a chance to win and we're not asking for shutouts every game," Boucher said to the Ottawa Citizen earlier this month. "He has done that for us. It has been quite an addition to our team. It has made a big difference for us."

The Rangers are coming out of their holiday break with more questions in net than Ottawa.

Henrik Lundqvist is still the No. 1 for the Rangers, even after he was benched for four straight games in favor of Antti Raanta. He returned and played well in three consecutive starts, allowing three goals in three wins, but delivered one of his worst performances in a 7-4 home loss to the Minnesota Wild on Friday.

Lundqvist allowed four goals on 13 shots and was pulled early in the second period for Raanta. The leash could be getting shorter, as Lundqvist has an uncharacteristically low .915 save percentage this season.

"The first one (goal) -- bad goal," Lundqvist said. "The fourth one, I have to try more to be in good position on that; it's a hard shot. They just took advantage of some breakdowns. Personally, I have to play more on my toes. But I'm not going to blame anything; I just have to find a way to be more on my toes in a game like this."

The Rangers lost their last two games before the break by a combined 14-6 and are 10-8-1 in their past 19 games after starting the season 13-4-0. An offense that was once scoring more than four goals per game is averaging just 2.25 per game over their past 16 contests.

If anyone needed the long weekend to get away from the game, it was the Rangers. They'll be greeted on home ice by one of the hottest teams in the league.

"It stings right now the way that our last two games have gone," Rangers captain Ryan McDonagh said. "Obviously we enjoy family time and whatnot with Christmas, but at the end of the day we're professionals here. We want to take pride in our job and focus on what we can do individually to be better coming back here after this break. We've got a lot of games again right in a row and we have the opportunity after the break to start off on a good foot at home. We definitely need to respond here."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Bruins (18-14) at Blue Jackets (23-5)

Date: December 27, 2016 7:00 PM EDT

The Columbus Blue Jackets have handled some of the league's best teams with ease as they've climbed to the top of the NHL standings.

They just haven't found a way to solve the Boston Bruins.

Columbus comes out of the Christmas break looking to extend the longest winning streak in franchise history and claim its first victory in three tries over Boston on Tuesday night when the teams meet for the final time in the regular season.

Victories in 12 straight games placed Columbus (23-5-4) into first place overall, one point ahead of the Chicago Blackhawks, heading into the break. The Blue Jackets haven't lost since falling to the Florida Panthers in a shootout on Nov. 26 and have outscored the opposition 46-18 during their winning streak.

But the team hasn't had an answer for Boston (18-14-4), currently third in the Atlantic Division.

In the season opener on Oct. 13 at Nationwide Arena, Columbus squandered a pair of two-goal leads in a 6-3 loss. On Nov. 10 in Boston, the Blue Jackets' Sergei Bobrovsky surrendered four goals in a 4:01 span of the first period of a 5-2 setback.

Bobrovsky was replaced less than 13 minutes into that game and dropped to 6-4-1 despite having a pretty solid 2.16 goals-against average with three shutouts. In 17 games after his last appearance against Boston, Bobrovsky has gone 15-1-1 with a 1.70 GAA, allowing two goals or less 14 times.

He made 36 saves as Columbus improved to 13-3-1 at home with a 2-1 win over the Montreal Canadiens on Friday night. Sam Gagner and Brandon Saad each had a goal and Nick Foligno drew two assists.

"The fans got us going a little bit," Foligno told the league's official website. "When you have a jam-packed arena behind you like that, it's such a good relationship we're building with our fans again. It's been a long time coming."

Cam Atkinson, the Blue Jackets' top scorer with 35 points, has seven of his team-high 15 goals and eight assists during the winning streak. He needs one assist for 100 in his NHL career.

During the streak, Gagner has also seven goals, four on the power play, along with seven assists. Saad also scored seven times with four assists.

But those three players have been absent when playing Boston. In the two games, Atkinson and Gagner have each scored one goal, and Saad drew a single assist.

Foligno and Alexander Wennberg have carried Columbus' offense, each posting three points (goal, two assists).

The Bruins have split the first two games of a four-game road trip and has alternated losses and wins in their last five outings.

" ... They've got to be ready to get back to work, and our next game's not going to get any easier," Boston coach Claude Julien told the league's official website after Thursday's 3-2 overtime loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. "So we have to be ready for that and a good challenge in the second part of the season."

Against the Blue Jackets, the Bruins have been powered by David Backes, who has three goals and two assists in two games. However, the longtime right winger has largely been invisible in his first season with Boston. Against all other opponents, the 11th-year pro and former St. Louis Blues captain has five goals and seven assists in 29 games.

Brad Marchand has five points (two goals, three assists) against the Blue Jackets, and David Pastrnak has chipped in with four points (two goals, two assists).

Marchand leads the team with 19 assists and 29 points, and Pastrnak is the top goal-scorer with 19. He also has 26 points, leaving him one shy of tying his career high set in 46 games as a rookie in 2014-15.

Goaltender Tuukka Rask has gotten both wins against Columbus this season, improving his record against the Blue Jackets to 7-2-0 with a 1.99 GAA and a shutout. Rask has also won all four career starts in Columbus, stopping 116 of 123 shots.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Capitals (20-8) at Islanders (13-14)

Date: December 27, 2016 7:00 PM EDT

NEW YORK -- Like thousands of workers in offices around the country, the New York Islanders have a big task ahead of them upon returning to work from the holiday break.

The Islanders will look to resume their long climb back into the Eastern Conference playoff picture Tuesday night, when they host the Washington Capitals at Barclays Center. It will be one of 10 games as the NHL resumes play following a three-day break for the holidays.

Both the Islanders and Capitals won their final game before the break on Friday, when New York cruised past the Buffalo Sabres 5-1, while Washington blanked the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0.

The Islanders (13-14-6) is riding a two-game winning streak, having beaten the Bruins 4-2 in Boston on Dec. 20.

"Two in a row, we feel pretty good," Islanders right winger Ryan Strome said. "Refresh over the break. We've got to get on our horses here (and) get going."

Strome was one of five players to score a goal apiece on Friday for the Islanders, whose nine goals over the past two games were scored by eight different players.

"I think the biggest thing is when we get contributions from different guys, we're successful," Strome said. "We've kind of had a steady flow in our lineups now the last couple games. We're starting to get a little chemistry, so it's nice to get rolling and get a couple guys on the scoreboard, myself included. It feels good."

Islanders left winger Andrew Ladd, who also scored on Friday, added, "Any break, you want to go into (it) with a good feeling. Break or no break, we need to start stringing some wins together. These are important games that we feel like we need to win. We can't be giving away points."

The Capitals (20-8-4) snapped a brief two-game skid (0-1-1) with the win over Tampa Bay, but they own seven wins in their past nine games.

"We wanted to feel good about ourselves before the Christmas break," said Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom, who had two assists against the Lightning and is three away from 500 for his career.

The Capitals, who won the Presidents' Trophy last season as the top regular-season team before falling to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the conference semifinals, might not be ending the calendar year where they anticipated. Still, the recent run of form has Washington in far better shape than the Islanders as the playoff races begin to heat up.

"It's good so we can try to build off that momentum on the other side of (the holiday break)," Capitals defenseman John Carlson told the team's website. "It's going to be crazy (the) next month or month and a half with all the games that we play."

This will be the fourth of five meetings this season between the Islanders and Capitals. Washington has a 2-1 lead in the series thanks to a 2-1 win at Verizon Center on Oct. 15 and a 4-2 victory at Barclays Center on Dec. 13. New York earned a 3-0 victory at Verizon Center on Dec. 1.

The Islanders host the Capitals again on Jan. 31.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Penguins (22-8) at Devils (13-14)

Date: December 27, 2016 7:00 PM EDT

The three-day Christmas holiday break in the past, the Pittsburgh Penguins and New Jersey Devils return to action Tuesday night at the Prudential Center to finish a home-and-home set that began with a 4-1 Penguins win in Pittsburgh last Friday.

That victory helped the Penguins (22-8-5) continue their impressive month of December. Pittsburgh has recorded at least one point in all but one of the 12 games it has played this month. The Penguins are 9-1-2 in December, a record that includes a season-high seven-game winning streak from Dec. 1-Dec. 14.

On the other side, Friday's result saw the Devils (13-14-7) continue their struggles this month. New Jersey, which had snapped a seven-game losing skid with a 4-0 home-ice win over the Philadelphia Flyers last Thursday, is just 3-7-2 in December.

"Sometimes it's good to get a mental break," Devils goaltender Cory Schneider said of the break in the schedule. "You can't forget about how it's been going or how we can do better; but I think it's also a good opportunity to take a step back, take a breath and assess where you are at, re-evaluate yourself individually, and hopefully come back with renewed energy and optimism."

This will be the third of five meetings this season between the Penguins and Devils, with Pittsburgh having won each of the first two. Last Friday, the Penguins never trailed after Sidney Crosby scored a power play goal eleven minutes into the contest. Four Penguins scored and eight notched at least one point, led by Evgeni Malkin who had a pair of assists.

Those two points recorded by Malkin give him 39 on the season, second most in the NHL. He also enters play Tuesday sitting one shy of 800 career points.

Since Crosby's return from a concussion at the start of the season, he and Malkin have energized Pittsburgh's attack. Crosby leads the NHL with 24 goals, and is third in scoring with 38 points, all in just 29 games played.

"He's the best player in the game," The Great One, Wayne Gretzky, said about Crosby on NHL Network Radio. "He is such a great passer that teams are playing him to make the pass first. However, he is so smart, and such a great goal scorer, too, that now he is finding lanes and opportunities to shoot first, and is scoring more as a result."

The day after Christmas, the Penguins announced a three-year contract extension for head coach Mike Sullivan, who has guided Pittsburgh to a 54-24-11 regular season record, and the 2016 Stanley Cup championship, since being named coach Dec. 12, 2015.

"Mike did the best coaching job in the NHL last season," Pittsburgh general manager Jim Rutherford said in a statement. "He continues to be a terrific coach and we are happy to give him a well-deserved extension."

Meanwhile, Devils head coach John Hynes is desperately trying to build on some recent positives, all in the name of his club turning things around. Certainly, the passionate effort, and shutout result, last Thursday against the Flyers is a good place to start; and the Devils gave a strong effort the next night, despite the loss in Pittsburgh.

With so many of New Jersey's top offensive players struggling to produce, it's also been a good sign to see Kyle Palmieri awaken from his goal-scoring drought. After scoring a career-high 30 goals last season, Palmieri has just six this year, though he has scored in back-to-back games following a stretch in which he tallied just one goal in 16 games.

"It's good to see him get going again," Adam Henrique said of his teammate Palmieri. "He's an important part of this team, and we need him to score goals for us, though he's not the only one. We all need to pick it up on offense."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Sabres (12-13) at Red Wings (15-15)

Date: December 27, 2016 7:30 PM EDT

The Detroit Red Wings and the Buffalo Sabres are the bottom two teams in the Atlantic Division, and the Red Wings (15-5-4) host the Sabres (12-13-8) Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. at Joe Louis Arena.

Detroit, seventh in the Atlantic Division, has made the playoffs 25 consecutive seasons, but it is seven points and four teams out of the final Atlantic Division playoff spot this season.

At the moment, it appears that both Eastern Conference wild-card teams will come out of the Metropolitan Division.

"I'm hoping going into the Christmas break, it's a time to get flushed, get away from the game a little bit," general manager Ken Holland told mlive.com. "I understand that starting tomorrow ... you don't have 48 games. In the next 20-25 games, we need to play our way back into it because as the year goes along every organization has got to make decisions.

"Obviously, the trade deadline dictates decisions -- buy, sell or stand pat. So, it's not like you can wait until the last 10 or 15 games and all the sudden you're going to put something together. We all understand the next 20-25 games are going to be really critical in determining how this season plays out for us."

Injuries are a major factor for the Red Wings.

Goalie Jimmy Howard is out four to six weeks with a mild MCL sprain suffered last Tuesday in a 4-1 loss at Tampa Bay. This is Howard's second stint on injured reserve. He missed two weeks when he injured his groin Nov. 25 in New Jersey.

The Red Wings may get defenseman Brendan Smith (out since Nov. 26, with a sprained right MCL) back Tuesday but will still be without center Darren Helm (sidelined with a dislocated left shoulder since Nov. 15), left winger Justin Abdelkader (a sprained right MCL suffered Dec. 1) and defenseman Mike Green (an upper-body injury sustained Dec. 17).

Also defenseman Alexey Marchenko (shoulder) and forward Tyler Bertuzzi (high ankle sprain on Nov. 26) remain out.

Meanwhile, the Sabres are last in the Atlantic Division

Buffalo went 0-2-2 in the last four games and scored just one goal in three of them.

"It's really disappointing," captain Brian Gionta told the Buffalo News. "We continue to try to be a different team than we need to be to be successful. We need to be direct. We need to be north with the puck. We need to support it with speed.

"We generate a lot from our forecheck. We generate a lot from working teams down low in the offensive zone. That's how we get a lot of our opportunities. We're not a neutral-zone team that creates chances out there. When we get fancy, we turn pucks over and it's odd-man rushes."

The Sabres are tied for the fewest points in the Eastern Conference with the New York Islanders, a team that beat Buffalo 5-1 on Friday.

According to the stats, there were six giveaways by the Sabres and 17 takeaways by the Islanders.

"I don't know how many odd-man rushes they had," Sabres forward Zemgus Girgensons said. "If we figure out puck management, we'll be better."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Wild (21-8) at Predators (15-13)

Date: December 27, 2016 8:00 PM EDT

Most of the Nashville Predators' season has been spent searching unsuccessfully for the consistency every good team requires.

If they need to see what it looks like, a peek at the other bench Tuesday night should provide the answer.

The Minnesota Wild will bring a franchise-record 10-game winning streak to Bridgestone Arena for their second meeting with Nashville in 12 days. The first matchup was Minnesota's sixth win in that stretch, a 5-2 verdict on Dec. 15, which saw Devan Dubnyk record 34 saves and protect a one-goal lead for most of the third period until the Wild bagged a pair of empty-netters in the final minute.

At 21-8-4, Minnesota owns the Western Conference's second-best record, just three points back of Central Division rival Chicago. But players and coach Bruce Boudreau aren't taking a big-picture look at things just yet.

"You don't think about it," said center Charlie Coyle, whose four-point game keyed Friday night's 7-4 triumph at the New York Rangers. "You just keep playing until the next one. No one is thinking about the record or whatever. We just play with hopes of coming ready to play and everyone's doing their part right now."

A look at the stats from Friday night bears that out. Seven different players scored goals, six of them delivered multiple points and backup goalie Darcy Kuemper stopped 31 of 35 shots as the durable Dubnyk got a rare night off.

"I could tell in the third period they had nothing left," Boudreau said after the game, "but I'm proud of the guys for sticking to doing what they can do to preserve and get the 10th win."

Meanwhile, the Predators (15-13-5) were writing another unwanted chapter in their season-long book on consistent inconsistency. After notching road wins over Philadelphia and New Jersey, they came back home Thursday night and ate a 4-0 loss to Los Angeles.

After giving up a fluky goal in the first 6 1/2 minutes, Nashville went into chase mode for the night's remainder against Peter Budaj and the Kings, who played a patient road game and broke it open with three third period goals.

It was the fifth loss in seven December home games for the Predators, who were 8-1-1 at home in October and November.

"Win two, lose two, win two, lose one, win one, lose three -- you're going nowhere in mud really quick," Nashville coach Peter Laviolette said. "We've got to string something together."

This would be a really good week for the Predators to string together some wins. All three games are against division opponents, as they host Chicago Thursday night and take a trip to St. Louis Friday night.

Nashville is hopeful of getting P.K. Subban (upper-body injury) back into the lineup after a four-game absence. Subban leads the team's defense corps in goals with seven and is second among the D-men with 17 points, two behind Roman Josi.

The Wild might be without a pair of forwards, as Erik Haula is battling a lower-body injury and Zach Parise is dealing with an illness. Haula will fly with the team to Nashville Tuesday morning, but it isn't known if Parise will.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Jets (16-17) at Blackhawks (22-9)

Date: December 27, 2016 8:30 PM EDT

The Chicago Blackhawks lead the Central Division and the Western Conference and are close to first place overall in the NHL.

Excuse the Winnipeg Jets if they're not overly impressed.

The Blackhawks will try to avoid losing three straight for the first time in nearly 10 months when they meet the Jets on Tuesday night.

Chicago has not dropped three in a row since a four-game slide from March 9 to March 16. And trying to reverse course could be a difficult task for the Blackhawks, who have been outscored 6-1 in two losses to the Jets in 2016-17, including a 2-1 defeat on Dec. 4 at the United Center.

The Blackhawks are also is looking for a split of a four-game homestand. After a win over the San Jose Sharks on Dec. 18 and a one-goal loss to the Ottawa Senators two nights later, the Blackhawks dropped a 2-1 overtime decision to Colorado Avalanche, currently last in the NHL with 25 points.

Jonathan Toews scored with the man advantage -- his first goal since Nov. 6 -- and Corey Crawford, making his first appearance after missing 10 games after an appendectomy, stopped 32 shots.

"You can't win in this league without goaltending, and he's always been a part of our team having success," Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said after Thursday's game.

Crawford has not lost at home in regulation since Oct. 12 against the St. Louis Blues, posting a 7-0-3 record with a 1.77 goals-against average and two shutouts. He was lifted midway through the third period of Chicago's 4-0 loss to the Jets on Nov. 15 in Winnipeg.

Crawford also has a 1.77 GAA in seven career outings at home against the Jets, but his record is 3-4-0. In the most recent such outing on Dec. 11, 2015, Crawford turned away all 25 shots faced in a 2-0 victory, his lone career shutout of the Jets.

Though Crawford missed most of December, Chicago is 7-3-2 this month thanks mostly to Artemi Panarin and Patrick Kane.

Panarin, the reigning Calder Trophy winner, has 15 points (seven goals, eight assists) in 12 games. That puts him in a five-way for third in the NHL in scoring for the month, one point behind Sidney Crosby and two in back of Evgeni Malkin, both of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Panarin has a seven-game points streak that includes four multi-point games. He has had five goals and eight assists during his run and leads the team with 36 points (15 goals, 21 assists).

Kane has also played in 12 December games and has two goals and nine assists. Last season's Hart Trophy winner has a team-high 24 assists and is second with 34 points. He also needs three points for 700 in his career.

The statuses of Artem Anisimov and Marian Hossa, both dealing with upper-body injuries, are not immediately known. Anisimov, third on the team with 14 goals -- and a career-best six game-winners - is on injured reserve. Hossa, the team leader with 16 goals, missed the game against Colorado and is day to day.

Winnipeg (16-17-3) entered the NHL's three-day Christmas break after a 4-1 win over the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday. Nikolaj Ehlers had two goals for the second time in three games and finished with three points.

Ehlers is not experiencing a sophomore slump. He has 29 points (nine goals, 20 assists) in 36 games after putting up 38 points (15 goals, 23 assists) in 72 games as a rookie.

"A confident Nik Ehlers can go a long way," Jets coach Paul Maurice told the team's official website.

Bryan Little and Patrik Laine also scored in the win.

After just 36 NHL games, Laine needs one goal to become the third rookie in franchise history to reach 20, joining Ilya Kovalchuk (29 in 65 games) and Dany Heatley (26 in 82 games) with the Atlanta Thrashers in 2001-02.

Laine scored during the shutout win over the Blackhawks in November.

No Jets player has scored more than one goal and four have multiple points against Chicago this season. Ehlers and former Blackhawks player Dustin Byfuglien each have two assists.

It wouldn't be surprising for Maurice to go with Connor Hellebuyck in goal. Hellebuyck has turned away 52 of 53 shots en route to two wins over Chicago and needs one more win to match the 13 he had in 26 games last season.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Flames (18-16) at Avalanche (12-20)

Date: December 27, 2016 9:00 PM EDT

A disappointing month for the Colorado Avalanche ended with a surprising win over one of the best teams in the NHL.

Colorado went into Chicago before the Christmas break and stunned the Blackhawks with a 2-1 overtime win Friday night. It was stunning because the Avalanche had lost five straight and suffered a 6-0 loss at home to Toronto 24 hours earlier.

Instead of folding -- again -- they played one of their best games of the season to earn some good cheer before the NHL's three-day break.

"Gutsy effort by us," center Matt Duchene told The Denver Post after Friday's win. "We're going to enjoy this one over Christmas break, but we're nowhere near where we want to be."

For the good feelings to continue, Colorado (12-20-1) has to end its eight-game winless streak at home against the Calgary Flames on Tuesday night in Denver. The Flames (18-16-2) are coming off a 4-1 win against Vancouver on Friday. Mark Giordano had two goals in the win to give Calgary a reason to enjoy the three-day break.

"It makes life a little easier when you win your last game," Flames coach Glen Gulutzan told NHL.com after Friday's win. "Whether it's when you get a day off or a nice Christmas break and you get three (points). It's always good to get those points and enjoy some time with your family with a little bit of pressure off."

The Flames are feeling good for more than just Friday's win. Johnny Gaudreau missed three weeks with a broken finger before returning Dec. 4, much earlier than expected. He hit the ice running, registering four straight multi-point games when he got back and points in seven straight games.

The Avalanche haven't received that kind of production from anyone of late. Their last home win came Nov. 14 against the Los Angeles Kings and since then they've gone 0-7-1 at Pepsi Center. The loss to the Maple Leafs had Nathan MacKinnon wondering if the team even belonged in the NHL, but the win in Chicago gave Colorado a little relief from its misery that included a scoring drought of 167 minutes, 43 seconds -- a franchise record.

The players know that one win doesn't cure all the ills, but it's a start.

"Obviously, we can't do anything about what's happened up to this point and what we've not produced," captain Gabriel Landeskog told The Denver Post. "But from this point on we have to set (Friday) as a new standard. We have to play up to this."

That might be without goaltender Semyon Varlamov, who is nursing another groin injury. It kept him out of three games earlier this month and he didn't travel with the team to Chicago.

Calvin Pickard played well against the Blackhawks, stopping 38 shots. He'll be asked to slow down a Calgary team hoping to find the groove it had in early December. The Flames put together a six-game winning streak at the beginning of the month but are just 2-3 since.

They hope Friday's win was the start to another one.

"We had the streak and then we had a little bit of a lull here," Giordano told NHL.com after the win over Vancouver. "I felt like we haven't played our best the last few games. (Friday) I thought we were solid throughout 60 minutes. You play like that and you're going to come out on the right end a lot of nights."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Stars (14-14) at Coyotes (11-18)

Date: December 27, 2016 9:00 PM EDT

The Dallas Stars are hoping to finish 2016 on a strong note to push themselves back in the playoff picture. The Arizona Coyotes are banking that the three-day Christmas break will help a young team climb back on a path of progress.

One team won't get its wish when the Stars and Coyotes meet on Tuesday at Gila River Arena to launch the final week of the calendar year.

"It's easy to panic, but I think that creates a bad environment," Stars general manager Jim Nill told the Dallas Morning News of a team that is 19 points behind last year's pace through 35 games. "If you stay calm and have confidence in your team, I think that's the best way to lead."

Dallas' struggles have been well documented, and they are largely tied to a staggering rash of injuries. Top-nine forwards Ales Hemsky (hip), Mattias Janmark (knee), Patrick Sharp (concussion), Cody Eakin (knee) (undisclosed), Jason Spezza (lower body) and Jiri Hudler (illness) have all missed significant portions of the season. Only the Edmonton Oilers have lost more man-games to injury in the Western Conference.

"It doesn't make you change your plan, but you are a different team," Nill said. "The coaches are coaching a different team, so they have to coach it differently. The team we envisioned at the start of the year, we're going to get there ... but the reality is this isn't that team yet, so you have to do what you can to win games now."

The Coyotes have their own injury-related problems with center Brad Richardson (broken tibia and fibula) and left wing Max Domi (broken hand) out indefinitely, but coach Dave Tippett saw a greater issue in his team when it dropped its fourth straight game on Friday to Toronto.

"I think our team needs a break," Tippett said. "We're struggling to score goals and we're making some mistakes at key times that are coming back to bite us. We've got to evaluate where we are -- step back and look at few things and regroup."

The Coyotes have lost 10 of 13 games in December (3-8-2) and have managed just 25 goals during that stretch. Part of the problem stems from the team's poor possession numbers. Arizona is dead last in the NHL with a Corsi For percentage at 45.35 and Arizona has the second-worst goal differential in the league at minus-33.

"Our puck play continues to bite us a bit," Tippett said.

Stars coach Lindy Ruff has not announced which goalie will start in Arizona but Kari Lehtonen won his last game and has played well on the road recently. Eakin is suspended one more game for his hit on New York Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist on Dec. 15 but the Stars could get Sharp back in the lineup.

Mike Smith is expected to start in goal for Arizona despite a four-game run with a save percentage under .900. Defenseman Jakob Chychrun (upper body) and right winger Ryan White (lower body) are expected back in the lineup after missing Friday's game.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Sharks (21-12) at Ducks (17-12)

Date: December 27, 2016 10:00 PM EDT

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- The San Jose Sharks and Anaheim Ducks entered the Christmas break riding different waves of momentum.

On Tuesday night, the paths of the Pacific Division powers will merge again at Honda Center.

The Sharks won two in a row and six of seven heading into the break. They beat visiting Edmonton in overtime Friday to move into first place in the Pacific, one point ahead of the second-place Oilers and three in front of Anaheim.

"We talked as a group about finishing strong going into the Christmas break, and they've earned it," San Jose coach Pete DeBoer told CSN Bay Area. "We haven't had an easy schedule, but we got contributions from almost the entire organization to get here."

The Ducks dropped their last two contests and went 2-3-1 on a six-game 10-day road trip that culminated with Thursday's 2-1 overtime loss to the Ottawa Senators.

Anaheim owns the momentum in this series, however, beating the Sharks twice in the previous 31 days, both by the score of 3-2.

The Ducks hosted the Sharks on Dec. 9 and came away with the win after defenseman Hampus Lindholm scored his only goal this season with 5:38 remaining, giving Anaheim a 60-59-11 edge in the all-time series. The other win came Nov. 26 in San Jose.

San Jose got on a roll following last season's Christmas break, going 29-15-4 to finish third in the Pacific and advance all the way to the Stanley Cup finals.

Brent Burns continues to be on pace to match his offensive numbers from last season, entering this game with 13 goals and 32 points after putting up career highs of 27 goals and 75 points in his 12th year in the NHL. Burns is on pace to become the first defenseman since Bobby Orr to record 30 goals and 70 points with at least 350 shots on goal in a season.

Joe Pavelski has also put up offensive numbers consistent with recent seasons, but the two 37-year-old stars for the Sharks, Patrick Marleau and Joe Thornton, are showing signs of a decline.

Marleau, in his 19th season, has totaled nine goals and four assists in 34 games this season, well off the 25 goals and 27 assists he posted in the 2015-16 regular season. Thornton has two goals and 21 assists coming into this game after totaling 19 goals and 63 assists last season.

Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf continues to go the direction of Thornton and be much more of a set-up man than finisher.

Getzlaf has four goals in 32 games, but he has 24 assists to stand as the team's points leader. Getzlaf, who has finished at plus-14 or above in the last four seasons, is minus-7. The only year he finished in the negative was 2011-12 (minus-7), when the Ducks finished last in the Pacific and current coach Randy Carlyle was fired early in the season.

Getzlaf's longtime linemate, Corey Perry, has experienced a more drastic drop in production, as the 31-year-old right wing has seven goals after totaling 34, 33 and 43 in each of the previous three seasons. Perry went all of November without scoring a goal and has three in December.

Rickard Rakell has picked up some of the scoring void, scoring a team-high 14 goals in just 24 games this season following his holdout for a new contract.

These teams won't meet again March 18 in San Jose.

 

[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 42.5 49 OVER
12/16 7 37 34 UNDER
12/17 10 52 50 UNDER
12/18 6 31 31 PUSH
12/19 5 OFF OFF
12/20 12 64.5 68 OVER
12/21 2 10.5 10 UNDER
12/22 10 54.5 51 UNDER
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

Tuesday’s games

Devils lost four of last five games with Pittsburgh; Penguins lost three of last five visits to Garden State. Under is 8-2 in last ten series games. Pittsburgh won seven of last ten games but lost 7-1/2-1 in last two road games; over is 7-3 in their last ten games. New Jersey lost eight of last nine games, but split last four home games. under is 3-1-1 in their last five games.
Islanders lost six of last eight games with Washington; Caps won last three visits to Brooklyn, outscoring Isles 11-5- under is 6-2-1 in last nine series games. Washington won seven of its last nine games overall, three of last four on road; under is 2-0-1 in their last three games. Islanders won 4-2/5-1 in last two games, after a 5-game skid; they lost three of last four at home. Over is 8-2 in their last ten games.
Road team won seven of last ten Ottawa-Ranger games; seven of last eight series games stayed under. Ottawa is 3-2 in last five visits to Manhattan. Senators won last four games, outscoring opponents 15-7. Over is 5-0-1 in last six Ottawa road games. Rangers lost 7-2/7-4 in last two games; they split last four home games. Under is 5-2-2 in their last nine games.
Bruins won four of last five games with Columbus; last three series games went over total. Boston won three of its last four visits to Ohio, but lost seven of last ten games overall- they’re 2-3 in last five road games. Over is 5-4-1 in their last ten games. Blue Jackets won their last ten games, allowing 15 goals; under is 6-3-1 in those ten games.
Detroit won eight of last nine games with Buffalo; road team won four of last five series games. Sabres lost four of last five visits to Motor City. Under is 3-1-1 in last five series games. Buffalo lost its last four games, outscored 14-6; they lost last four road games. Over is 2-1-1 in their last four road games. Detroit lost five of last seven games, four of last five at home; over is 2-0-1 in their last three games.
Road team won seven of last ten Minnesota-Nashville games; Wild is 5-3 in last eight series games, 4-2 in last six visits to Motor City. Under is 3-1-1 in last five series games. Minnesota won its last ten games, allowing total of 15 goals; over is 4-1-1 in last six series games- they scored 16 goals in last three road games. Nashville lost last three home games, outscored 11-3; three of their last four games stayed under.
Chicago won six of last nine games with Winnipeg but lost 4-0/2-1 in two meetings this season; teams split last four games in this building. Six of last seven series games stayed under total. Winnipeg won three of last four games overall but lost three of last four on road; under is 4-3-2 in their last nine games. Blackhawks lost last two games, both at home; over is 3-1-1 in their last five games.
Calgary-Colorado split last ten games, going 3-3 in last six games in Denver (over 3-3). Flames won seven of last ten games, three of last four on road- over is 3-1-2 in their last six games. Colorado lost five of last six games; they were outscored 13-4 in losing last three home games. Four of their last five games stayed under the total.
Home side won seven of last eight Dallas-Arizona games; under is 7-3 in last seven series games- Dallas Stars lost four of last six games in desert. Dallas is on road for first time in 15 days; they lost last two road games, 3-1/4-2. Under is 5-1 in their last six games overall. Arizona was outscored 15-6 in losing its last four road games; under is 7-2-1 in their last ten games. Coyotes lost four of last five home games.
Ducks won five of last six games with San Jose; under is 4-0-3 in last seven series games. Sharks lost last three visits to Anaheim by combined score of 7-4. San Jose won six of last seven games, with three of last five wins in OT/SO; over is 3-1-3 in their last seven games. Anaheim lost three of its last four games, but won last three at home- this is their first home game in 15 days; over is 7-2-1 in their last ten.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

NBA roundup: Cavaliers sit James, fall to Pistons
By The Sports Xchange

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Tobias Harris scored 21 points and the Detroit Pistons took advantage of LeBron James' absence to snap a five-game losing streak by downing the Cleveland Cavaliers 106-90 on Monday night at The Palace.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 18 points, Marcus Morris supplied 15 and Jon Leuer and Reggie Jackson chipped in 13 eacht. Andre Drummond added 11 points and a game-high 17 rebounds in a game the last-place Pistons never trailed.
James, who played 40 minutes in Cleveland's 109-108 win over Golden State on Christmas Day, sat in street clothes as coach Tyronn Lue opted to give him the night off. James was rested in two other games this season after playing a home game the previous night. Cleveland lost to Memphis and Indiana in the games he didn't play.
Kyrie Irving led the Cavs, who had their five-game winning streak snapped, with 18 points and eight assists. Kevin Love contributed 17 points and 14 rebounds.

Nets 120, Hornets 118
NEW YORK -- Randy Foye hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer as Brooklyn snapped a five-game losing streak.
The Nets won the game when Foye took the inbounds pass from Bojan Bogdanovic, moved a few steps to his left by the top of the key with Kemba Walker draped on him and quickly released the shot just before the buzzer.
The Nets needed Foye's dramatic shot because of what unfolded on the previous possession. Tyler Zeller converted a putback with 2.3 seconds left after Walker's drive was blocked by Trevor Booker and the Nets failed to get the rebound.
Bogdanovic came off the bench for the first time and led the Nets with 26 points, Sean Kilpatrick added 23 and Brook Lopez had 11 of his 20 in the fourth quarter. Batum led the Hornets with 24 points and Jeremy Lamb had 17. Walker was held to 15.

Rockets 131, Suns 115
HOUSTON -- James Harden posted his 24th double-double and Houston turned a breakout first quarter into a win over Phoenix.
The Rockets posted their second victory over the Suns in less than a week by establishing an early lead and not squandering it like they did last week in Phoenix, when Houston didn't pull away for good until the fourth quarter. The Rockets scored 39 points in the first quarter and led by as many as 34 points in the second half, draining 15 3-pointers en route to victory.
Harden finished with 32 points and 12 assists, his ninth 30-point, 10-assist game this season. Ryan Anderson added 15 points, including 10 in the first quarter, and forward Trevor Ariza posted eight points, 10 rebounds and five steals.
Eric Bledsoe paced the Suns with 24 points and Brandon Knight had 21.

Timberwolves 104, Hawks 90
MINNEAPOLIS -- Zach LaVine, Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins each scored more than 20 points and Minnesota tied a season high with 15 3-pointers.
LaVine, Towns and Wiggins combined to go 13 of 18 from beyond the arc. LaVine had 21 points and connected for six 3s. Towns had 22 points and 11 rebounds and Wiggins scored 21 as Minnesota came back strong a day after playing on Christmas for the first time in team history.
Atlanta, which had the weekend off after winning its fourth straight road game on Friday in Denver, was the team out of sync. The Hawks committed 19 turnovers and shot just 42.2 percent from the field. Dwight Howard returned after missing three games because of back tightness and had 20 points and 12 rebounds for the Hawks.

Bulls 90, Pacers 85
CHICAGO -- Dwyane Wade had 21 points and five assists and Chicago held on against Indiana.
Nikola Mirotic added a season-high 20 points off the bench for the Bulls. Forward Jimmy Butler contributed 16 points despite going 3 of 12 from the field. Chicago snapped a three-game losing streak and improved to 9-6 on its home court.
Aaron Brooks scored a season-high 19 points off the bench to lead the Pacers. Myles Turner had 16 points and eight rebounds. Indiana has lost three games in a row for the first time this season. The Pacers fell to 4-12 on the road.

Pelicans 111, Mavericks 104
NEW ORLEANS -- Anthony Davis scored 28 points, including nine in the final six minutes, to lift New Orleans over Dallas.
Davis also grabbed 16 rebounds, and Langston Galloway made all five of his 3-point attempts and scored 17 points for New Orleans.
In winning for the third time in four games, the Pelicans made 12 of 25 3-pointers and placed six players in double figures. E'Twaun Moore totaled 16 points, Buddy Hield 14, Dante Cunningham 11 and Solomon Hill 10.
The Mavericks saw their modest two-game winning streak end. d Deron Williams had 24 points and nine assists to top Dallas. In his second game back from a strained right Achilles, Dirk Nowitzki played 17 minutes in the first half and scored 10 points and had four assists.

Wizards 107, Bucks 102
WASHINGTON -- Otto Porter had 32 points and 13 rebounds, and Washington rallied from a 10-point, fourth-quarter deficit.
John Wall contributed 18 points and 16 assists for the Wizards.
Porter drained five 3-pointers, including a long ball from the corner for a 104-100 lead with 49 seconds left. His shot from beyond the arc started a 15-2 run after the Bucks took their largest lead at 96-86 lead as Malcolm Brogdon's jumper capped a 12-2 spurt.
Washington was a different team in the home-and-home rematch compared to a 123-96 loss Friday at Milwaukee. Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo impressed with 22 points and 12 rebounds Monday, but that production didn't match his 39 points in the home victory.
Washington made three of four free throws in the final 13.1 seconds to seal the victory.

Magic 112, Grizzlies 102
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Aaron Gordon scored 30 points and six teammates followed in double figures, leading Orlando over Memphis.
The Magic led from start to finish for the second consecutive game, duplicating a victory on Friday over the Los Angeles Lakers. The Grizzlies never got closer than 10 points in the second half.
Elfrid Payton had 16 points, including three straight baskets in the fourth quarter that stopped a late Memphis rally. Serge Ibaka had 16 points and six rebounds. Nikola Vucevic had 13 points and nine rebounds, and Jodie Meeks also had 13 points, all in the first quarter.
Mike Conley led the Grizzlies with 17 points.

Nuggets 106, Clippers 102
LOS ANGELES -- Nikola Jokic scored 24 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, and Danilo Gallinari and Will Barton contributed 23 points apiece, leading Denver past Los Angeles.
Gallinari also had 11 boards as Denver ended a two-game skid.
Jamal Crawford scored 24 points and Austin Rivers added 19 for the Clippers, who played without injured starters Chris Paul (strained left hamstring), J.J. Redick (sore left hamstring) and Blake Griffin (right knee surgery). The defeat was Los Angeles' third straight.

Kings 102, 76ers 100
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- DeMarcus Cousins finished with 30 points, and his 3-pointer from the top of the arc with 20.9 seconds left lifted Sacramento to its fourth consecutive win.
Joel Embiid led Philadelphia with 25 points, but his 3-point attempt from the top of the arc fell short as time expired.
Rudy Gay, back from a hip injury, finished with 17 points and nine rebounds, and Ty Lawson added 12 for the Kings, who overcame an eight-point deficit in the final period.

Raptors 95, Trail Blazers 91
PORTLAND, Ore. -- Kyle Lowry scored 27 points to lead Toronto past Portland.
DeMar DeRozan contributed 20 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists as the Raptors earned their fourth win in a row and their 14th in 16 outings. The own seven consecutive road victories. Patrick Patterson added 15 points and eight rebounds, and Jonas Valanciunas collected 12 points and 12 boards for Toronto.
CJ McCollum scored 29 points and handed out seven assists for the Trail Blazers, who lost for the sixth time in a row and the 10th time in 11 contests. Mason Plumlee had 13 points and 15 boards for the Blazers, who were without Damian Lillard (ankle).

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Grizzlies (20-13) at Celtics (18-13)

Date: December 27, 2016 7:30 PM EDT

BOSTON -- It was just last Tuesday that Isaiah Thomas torched the Grizzlies with 44 points as the Boston Celtics left Memphis with a come-from-behind overtime win.

On Tuesday night, Thomas, in the midst of a hot streak that began after he returned from a groin injury, gets a chance to do it again as the teams meet at TD Garden.

The Celtics, who have won five of their last six, host a team that, since losing to Boston, has won at Detroit and at home against the Houston Rockets -- but lost at Orlando on Monday night.

On Sunday in New York, the Celtics blew a late lead but escaped with the win over the Knicks. Thomas scored 27 points to keep his average at just over 30 per game in the past six. The win came after a tough home loss to Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder in Boston.

Marcus Smart hit the go-ahead 3-pointer and the Celtics played defense on two straight possessions to raise their record to 18-13.

"I was really pleased," Celtics coach Brad Stevens said of the gritty Christmas Day win. "I just told them in there, they've showed a lot of toughness over the last few weeks.

"But certainly the last -- we basically played three games in 60 hours, and in three different cities. And our guys just, there was never an excuse. We were just going to play as hard as we could."

Stevens will be even more pleased if his team can figure out a way to win at home, where the Celtics, who just began a stretch of 16 of 22 games at home, are just 6-6.

Thomas scored 34 points and engaged in a scoring duel with Westbrook in the fourth quarter on Friday night. Westbrook finished with 45 points. On Monday, the guards were named players of the week of their respective conferences.

At Memphis, Thomas scored 36 of his career-high 44 points after halftime and through the overtime. He was 17 of 17 from the foul line in that game -- and scored the most points ever by a Celtics player against the Grizzlies.

"I just told myself to be a little more aggressive and look for my shot a little more," Thomas said, later adding: "I wasn't trying to get 40, but I knew I needed to be more aggressive."

The Celtics trailed 45-31 at halftime but rallied, and the Grizzlies went flat.

"Basically, we stayed in the locker room at halftime," Memphis coach David Fizdale said.

On Monday night, Memphis fell to 20-13 overall and an impressive 8-6 on the road. They enter Tuesday night's game 7-0 in the back half of back-to-backs.

The Grizzlies fell behind early and never made much of a run at the Magic on Monday night.

"We were dead tonight," Fizdale said. "For whatever reason, we had nothing in the tank."

The coach was happy to be able to get right back at it, saying, "I'm glad we play right away after getting our butts kicked. We don't deserve a day off after that. It's time to get right back to work.

"And it's a team that you've got to instantly respect walking in. So hopefully our guys will regroup from this and we'll go up there and get a tough win."

"It hurts when it happens, but the wonderful thing is that we play tomorrow so we can kind of erase this out of our minds," said veteran Vince Carter, who played in his 1,300th NBA game, moving him into a tie with Ray Allen for 20th place on the career list.

Before the game, Fizdale asked about Carter, who turns 40 next month. "It's an honor to have him on the team," Fizdale said.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Thunder (19-12) at Heat (10-21)

Date: December 27, 2016 7:30 PM EDT

MIAMI -- The Traveling Westbrook Show hits South Beach on Tuesday night.

There was a time when the name Russell in basketball meant only one thing: Bill Russell, the Hall of Fame center for the Boston Celtics.

For today's NBA, though, that name can only mean Russell Westbrook, the Oklahoma City Thunder point guard who is setting the NBA on fire this season by averaging a triple-double: 31.7 points, 10.9 assists and 10.4 rebounds.

He leads all NBA players in scoring and is No. 1 in rebounding among guards. He is second in assists heading into the Tuesday contest against the Miami Heat.

Westbrook has 51 career triple-doubles, which is No. 1 in the NBA among active players. For perspective, consider that in 29 seasons, the entire Heat franchise has just 22 triple-doubles.

"I've never seen a point guard so athletic," Heat counterpart Goran Dragic said Monday. "He's an unbelievable athlete. He can jump so high, grab those rebounds. He does everything for them."

In the first season since fellow superstar Kevin Durant fled as a free agent to the Golden State Warriors, Westbrook is stamping his name as an MVP favorite.

Already this season, Westbrook has graced the cover of GQ Magazine, Sports Illustrated and SLAM. National publications such as USA Today and The New York Times sent reporters to cover him.

Westbrook can add to his exploits on Tuesday night, when his Thunder (19-12) faces the struggling Miami Heat (10-21), who are just 5-11 at home.

The Heat had a chance to draft Westbrook with the second overall pick in 2008 but instead selected Michael Beasley, who has bounced around the NBA as a relative bust.

Had Miami drafted Westbrook, maybe the Big Three era with LeBron James and Chris Bosh joining Dwyane Wade doesn't happen exactly the same. Who knows how history would have been altered.

The only thing for certain is that Miami would love to have Westbrook, who could be the second NBA player ever to average a triple-double for an entire season. Oscar Robertson averaged 30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds and a league-best 11.4 assists in 1961-62.

"I just go out and have fun," Westbrook said after the Thunder beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 112-100 on Sunday night. "I don't know if it's the most fun I've ever had, but it's definitely at the top because of the group of guys we have. Everybody is so unselfish. Everybody is willing to do great things. Everybody is willing to get better. We're young and blessed to be able to play this game. You can't do nothing but have fun."

Westbrook had so much energy on Sunday that he nearly tore a young fan's hand off in celebration. After another spectacular assist and a Minnesota timeout, Westbrook excitedly swung his right hand to meet those of a group of fans in the first row.

It was all good, though. No one was hurt. After all, Westbrook can do no wrong this season, or so it seems.

Many of Westbrook's assists come on passes to 7-foot center Steven Adams and 6-11 backup post Enes Kanter. Adams is averaging 11.5 points while shooting 58.4 percent from the floor. Kanter is averaging 12.8 points and shooting 55.5 percent.

A third under-25 promising big man on the Thunder roster is 6-11 starting power forward Domantas Sabonis, the 11th player taken in the 2016 NBA Draft. The rookie, who is the son of Basketball Hall of Famer Arvydas Sabonis, has a versatile skill set and is averaging 6.6 points and 3.4 rebounds.

Shooting guard Victor Oladipo is second on the team in scoring (16.1 points per game), but he has an injured right wrist and has missed seven straight games. He is expected back soon but may not be quite ready to face Miami.

That would be a break for the Heat, who can use all the help available, cosmic or otherwise.

The Heat have two established standouts, center Hassan Whiteside and Dragic. However, they need better performances on the wings, which is why Justise Winslow's 23-point, 13-rebound effort against the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday was such a positive for Miami.

Winslow, Miami's first-round pick out of Duke in 2015, is just 20 years old. There is a huge upside with Winslow, who is tough, smart and dedicated to his craft. He plays terrific defense but has yet to develop a consistent jump shot.

Perhaps Thursday's effort -- Miami's most recent game before breaking for Christmas -- is a sign of good things to come for Winslow.

"We need that," Heat forward James Johnson said of Winslow. "I want (Winslow) to keep playing like this, with this kind of confidence. If he does, it will help us in the long run."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Rockets (23-9) at Mavericks (9-22)

Date: December 27, 2016 8:30 PM EDT

The last time the Houston Rockets swept a season series from the Dallas Mavericks, Dirk Nowitzki was 19 years old and playing for DJK Wurzburg in Germany.

The first three times Houston beat Dallas this season, Nowitzki did not play.

It is uncertain if Nowitzki will play Tuesday when the Rockets visit the Mavericks and attempt their first season sweep of their divisional rivals since the 1997-98 season.

"I don't know," Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said Monday of Nowitzki's status. "We'll know (Tuesday). That's all I can tell you right now."

Nowitzki has appeared in only seven games this season due to a strained right Achilles strain. He missed eight games with the injury Nov. 6-21 before playing a combined 47 minutes Nov. 23 and Nov. 25. Nowitzki then missed 14 more games before returning Friday for Dallas' 90-88 win against the Los Angeles Clippers.

The 38-year-old scored 16 points Friday while playing only in the first half. On Monday in New Orleans, Nowitzki scored 10 points in 17 minutes and also only played the first half in a 111-104 loss.

With or without Nowitzki, the Tuesday meeting is the 16th game against a team over .500 for the Mavericks, who dropped their first 14 games against winning teams before Friday. After Tuesday, nine of the Mavericks' next 10 games will be against losing teams

"Our schedule between November and December has been a beast," Nowitzki said. "We've had the toughest schedule, I'm sure. The good thing is, once you get through the stretch, January is probably the easiest month out of all of them. We have multiple two-day breaks ... so we just have to get through (this) stretch. We'll fight through it."

Houston's attempt to get its first season sweep of the Mavericks since the tail end of the Hakeem Olajuwon and Charles Barkley era is part of its recent momentum swing in the series. The Rockets are 9-3 in their past 12 meetings with Dallas after losing 16 of 19 meetings.

In the first meeting this season, James Harden scored 26 points in a 106-98 win at Dallas on Oct. 28 when Nowitzki sat out with a stomach ailment. On Oct. 30, Harden made a free throw with 0.1 seconds left and scored 28 points in a 93-92 win when Nowitzki was sidelined due to the lingering effects of the stomach ailment and a sore Achilles tendon that became more significant than Dallas anticipated.

The teams last met Dec. 10 in Houston. Harden scored 18 points and handed out 16 assists in a 109-87 rout, which was the sixth win in Houston's recent 10-game winning streak. It also was the fifth straight time Houston held Dallas under 100 points, something it had not done since the last three meetings of the 1997-98 season and the first two of the lockout-shortened 1999 campaign.

Overall Houston is 12-2 in its past 14 games. The Rockets (23-9) saw their 10-game winning streak end on Dec. 20 with a 102-100 home loss to the San Antonio Spurs and are 2-1 since.

The Rockets' two most recent wins were against the Phoenix Suns. On Monday, Harden posted his 24th double-double of the season with 32 points and 12 assists in a 131-115 home win over Phoenix. The Rockets never trailed and led by as many as 34 points.

It was Harden's ninth game with 30 points and 10 assists, and it came on a night when the Rockets shot at least 50 percent for the ninth time, reached 120 points for the 11th time and made at least 15 3-pointers for the 18th time.

Although the Rockets wound up allowing 115 points, most of the comments about their latest win centered on a defense that held the Suns to 42.6 percent shooting and forced 19 turnovers.

"Defense led to some easy buckets offensively," Harden said. "That's every game, so it's a matter if we can get stops. If we do (and) rebound the basketball, our shots become easier."

Houston forward Trevor Ariza said, "When we put effort and energy into both sides of the ball, we can be a really good team. It showed tonight, and we've just got to continue to do those things."

Montrezl Harrell started at center while the Rockets wait for Clint Capela to return from a fractured left fibula. Harrell scored 14 points and is averaging 15 points on 20-of-28 shooting in three starts for Capela, who is due to be back in action sometime in January.

The Rockets were without Patrick Beverley for the first two meetings with the Mavericks and may be without him Tuesday. Beverley exited the Monday game with a bruised left thigh and is considered a game-time decision. He will make the trip to Dallas.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Jazz (18-13) at Lakers (12-22)

Date: December 27, 2016 10:30 PM EDT

LOS ANGELES -- After ending their drought against the Los Angeles Clippers, the Los Angeles Lakers believe they can improve despite their endless fountain of youth and inconsistency.

"We just got to grow up, to be honest with you," guard Jordan Clarkson said Monday, a day after the Lakers earned a 111-102 win over the Clippers. "The game started being easy for us and we tend to relax. That's where we got to put our foot down and do what we're supposed to do, move the ball, do all the right things, do all the fundamentals."

Seven Lakers scored in double figures against the Clippers, led by Nick Young and Timofey Mozgov with 19 each. It was the first time the Lakers defeated the Clippers since Oct. 29, 2013, ending an 11-game losing streak.

The Lakers (12-22) also snapped a four-game skid and won for only the second time in the past 14 games.

Los Angeles will be looking to avenge a pair of losses to the Jazz this season. The latest defeat occurred on Dec. 5 at Staples Center where the Jazz prevailed 107-101 despite 38 points from Lakers guard Lou Williams. However, the Jazz took advantage of a short-handed Los Angeles crew missing several key performers.

"They were banged up, and you can see how injury can impact your team," Jazz coach Quin Snyder told the Salt Lake Tribune. "They're healthy now. They have Nick Young back. D'Angelo Russell is back. And Lou Williams is obviously playing at a high level. You saw the teams they beat early when they were healthy, so it's a tough game."

Young is on a roll. He sank 24 3-pointers over the past five games, including five on seven attempts against the Clippers. He is averaging 20 points, shooting 53.7 percent from the floor and 53.3 percent from long distance in that five-game span.

Williams remains the Lakers' scoring leader at 18.7 points per game.

The Jazz (18-13) will try to snap a three-game losing streak. Utah was handed a 104-98 setback by the Toronto Raptors on Friday night. Gordon Hayward scored a team-high 23 points in a losing effort.

Hayward paces the Jazz with an average of 22 points per outing.

Friday's loss came on the heels of a one-point defeat against the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday and a 30-point debacle against the Golden State Warriors on Dec. 20.

Injuries also are plaguing the Jazz. Starting point guard George Hill, who was off to a solid start, has a toe injury that is expected to keep him out Tuesday. Hill has sat out 13 games, but he practiced on a limited basis Monday, according to the Tribune. He could rejoin the club later this week.

Guard Rodney Hood, who has been slowed by flu, is expected to play against the Lakers.

Utah also got some welcome news with guard Alec Burks participating in practice Monday for the first time since undergoing ankle surgery on Nov. 1. There is no timetable for Burks' return.