Sharks use Clowe's third period goal to beat Leafs

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02/08/2010 - Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryane Clowe's goal in the third period lifted the San Jose Sharks to a 3-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs at Air Canada Centre.

Dan Boyle and Joe Pavelski each had a goal for the Sharks, who have won four of their last five games. Evgeni Nabokov made 32 saves in the win.

Phil Kessel had a goal and an assist while Tyler Bozak scored for the Maple Leafs, who have dropped eight of their last 10. Jean-Sebastien Giguere, who posted shutouts in his first two games after being acquired by Toronto from Anaheim last week, gave up three goals on 26 shots.

With the score tied in the third period, San Jose took the lead with 6:39 to play. Devin Setoguchi sent a pass from the left side that hit off the skate of a Maple Leaf in front and went right to Clowe, who buried it for a 3-2 lead.

From there the Sharks defense shut down the Maple Leafs, who pulled Giguere with 1 1/2 minutes to play but were unable to net the equalizer.

The Maple Leafs got the only goal of the first period as Kessel got the puck at the right circle, skated down low and sent a pass across the ice to Bozak, who one-timed it home with 9:24 to play in the frame.

San Jose scored a pair of goals in the second period to grab the lead.

The first goal came off a right circle faceoff win as Joe Thornton won the draw and the puck came back to Boyle, who fired a shot on net that bounced past Giguere at the 3:17 mark.

Just 2:24 later, the Sharks made it a 2-1 game when Pavelski fired a wrister on net using the defender as a screen to sneak the puck past Giguere.

Toronto, though, tied the game in the final minute of the second with a power- play marker as Dion Phaneuf's wrister from the right point was kicked out to the left side where Kessel buried it for his 21st goal of the year.

Game Notes

Tomas Kaberle's assist on Kessel's goal was the 400th helper of his career...Toronto plays its final game before the Olympic break at St. Louis on Friday...San Jose continues its six-game road trip in Columbus on Wednesday...San Jose has won four straight against Toronto and has not lost a game to the Maple Leafs since January 29, 2002.

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Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.