Free Picks for All Major Sports - November 9, 2007

Scooter

Colorado (10-5-0-0) at Vancouver (7-8-0-0)
Fri, Nov 9, 2007 10:00 PM ET
Vancouver (EVEN)
Bet this NHL game at Sportsbook.com

The Vancouver Canucks will be hosting the Colorado Avalanche tonight, at G.M. Place, for some hard hitting NHL action. The Vancouver Canucks will be looking for three in a row tonight after a recent, 3-2, win in Calgary. They got goals from Brendan Morrison, Byron Ritchie and Alexander Burrows. The Canucks have definitely improved on their defense and they are now scoring goals. They’ve scored seven goals in two games, which has been a big improvement for the Nucks. They have a better chance scoring on the power play, which is why they’re ranked 9th on PPG. Goalie Roberto Luongo is starting to look like last years’ superstar. He’s 6-8 with a 2.89 GAA along with a .904 save percentage. Though his numbers don’t seem like anything special, he is making superb saves and it’s just a matter of time before he’s shutting out teams. Defensively the Canucks are a little hurt with the injuries to Sami Salo and Kevin Bieksa, but the young guns from the Moose have pulled through. They need to start blocking more shots, sacrifice your bodies’ boys. The top producers for the Canucks are Daniel Sedin with 15 pts and Markus Naslund leads with 42 shots on net. The Canucks are 1-6 at home and their 4th in the Northwest Standings.

The Colorado Avalanche are also on a two game winning streak after their most recent, 4-3 (SO), win over the Edmonton Oilers. The Avs are playing with great offense and defense. Their offense is ranked 5th in goals scored, averaging 3.3 goals a game. The Avs defense is good at blocking shots and killing penalties. Their goalie Peter Budaj is 6-3 with a 2.95 GAA and a .894 save percentage. The main producer for the Avs is Paul Stasny with 19 pts and Joe Sakic leads with 51 shots on net. Other notable players are Wojtek Wolski with 6 goals and Marek Svatos with 7 goals. The Ava are currently 2-4 on the road and they are in 1st place in the Northwest Standings.

Bottom Line: Everything tells me to go with Colorado on this game based solely on the Canucks home record. But the Canucks are riding high on a two game road streak and they feel rejuvenated with the speedy young guns on the team. Roberto Luongo is showing signs of greatness and I like what I’m seeing.

The Canucks will get their second win at home! Let’s go Canucks!

Panthers come in off a home and home split with rival Tampa Bay. Florida is 5-2 at home this year, and looking for its third straight win at the Bank Atlantic Center. The biggest key to the Panthers success this year has been their power play & power play kill. They are ranked 4th in the NHL with a 23.2 PP%, and 12th in the league with a PP Kill at 83%. On the flip side, the thrashers(4-6 on the road), come in with the leagues 25th ranked power play at 13.4%, and the worst power play kill %. Atlanta has played alot better of late, and is 6-3 since the firing of their coach.

Bottom Line: Kovalchuk has really stepped up his game of late, and is the league leader in goals. However, in the end, it is very difficult to go against this panthers team at home. Jokinen-Zednik-Vokoun & Co. come away with another nice home win! 

Final: Florida 4 Atlanta 2

For a list of all the other Sportsbook odds go to Totalodds.com

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