05/11/2008 - Halifax, Nova Scotia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Finland scored three times in the third period, including what turned out to be a phantom goal, to upend the United States with a contentious 3-2 victory at the 2008 World Hockey Championships.
Teemu Selanne ended with a goal and an assist, while Ville Koistinen and Mikko Koivu also tallied for Finland, which rallied from a 2-0 deficit and is within a point of idle Canada for the top spot in the Group F standings. The two squads play on Monday to decide the winner.
Sunday's game, though, was controversial and even ugly at the end, as the IIHF acknowledged after the game that Koistinen's goal -- Finland's first, just 2:12 into the final stanza -- should not have counted, as it entered the side of the net. Even after several replays, the goal was allowed to stand. After the game, the governing body said the video judge was fired from the rest of the tournament.
But the goal, as it happened, counted, and Selanne scored the equalizer halfway through the third. Koivu's tally with 3:50 remaining was the difference. Finnish goaltender Niklas Backstrom stopped 20-of-22 shots in the win.
Robert Esche made 42 saves in the loss for America, while Phil Kessel and Tom Gilbert scored for the US, which sits in third place in Group F and plays Norway on Monday.
In addition to the controversial call, the game was filled with penalties, and the teams engaged in a post-game brawl after America's Dustin Brown checked Finland's Jussi Jokinen with a hit to the head.
In other tournament action Sunday, Marcus Nilson scored twice for Sweden, which earned a 5-3 victory over the Czech Republic. As a result, the teams are tied for second in Group E with Switzerland, one point behind Russia.
Patric Hornqvist, Mattias Weinhandl and Anton Stralman also scored for the Swedes, while goaltender Henrik Lundqvist stopped 36-of-39 shots.
Patrik Elias finished with a goal and an assist for the Czechs, while Ales Kotalik and Tomas Fleischmann also scored. Tomas Kaberle added a pair of assists, while Milan Hnilicka allowed four goals.
Both Sweden and the Czech Republic are finished qualifying play, while the Swiss and Russians play on Monday.
Also, Herberts Vasiljevs tallied the go-ahead goal late in the first period, as Latvia cruised to a 4-1 win over Norway.
Lauris Darzins registered a goal and an assist for Latvia, which can clinch the fourth spot in the Group F standings and a place in the quarterfinals with a win over Germany on Monday.
Lars Erik Spets netted the lone goal for Norway, which must beat the United States Monday afternoon or have Latvia lose to Germany in regulation time in order to secure the final playoff position.
In Quebec City, Paul DiPietro posted a goal and two assists to help Switzerland obliterate Denmark, 7-2.
The Swiss, with nine points, are bound for the quarterfinals, while the Danes remain pointless in Group E of the qualifying round.
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Flyers, 4-2, in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals.
Talbot returned to the
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Red Sox, in the third installment of a four-game series.
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American Idol odds : Blake Lewis the Early Standout
An important American Idol betting lines recap from February 20 Guys episode. The 12 men came out flat overall with Blake Lewis appearing to have the early edge after the first hour and a half.
Rudy - was quite good singing "Free Ride" to start off. Randy was not impressed though. Paula thought he started off fantastic. "Never had anyone stop off so lively" said Paula but Simon (who does not like Rudy) does not feel he has a distinct voice and was not impressed either.
Brandon was a little pitchy according to Randy and Paula agreed. Simon said he was a good singer but the song was "too safe" and he needs to make an impact. He was listed at +1200 odds or $1200 paid out on a $100 bet should he win the competition.
Big favorite Sundance came in with a flat version of "Knights in White Satin" and the judges let him have it, including Paula. Randy claimed the song was out of pitch throughout.
Korean American - and a Jenny Woo favorite - Paul Kim was up next. Another pitchy flat one but Randy said he still liked his potential. Kim at +3000 odds was said to have sung a "third rate version of that (George Michael) song" according to Simon Cowell. He sang "Careless Whisper".
22 year old Chris Richardson was up next. He was listed with +1100 odds coming in. He got the best response from the judges though Simon did not believe the vocal was that great.
Nick was boring and pitchy. Simon didn't think he was that bad though and predicted he would be back next week. Nick Pedro was a big +3000 dog coming into this competition.
Beat boxer Blake Lewis was listed with early +1000 odds or $1000 payout on a $100 bet if he were to become the next American Idol winner odds . These of course were the early odds. He was considered original for picking an "odd song". He did not beat box and the judges felt it was the best vocal of the night.
Sanjaya came in as the second biggest favorite after Chris Sligh but his performance Tuesday night was not very good.
Chris Sleigh was the early favorite at +450 odds. Great voice and a great sense of humor. He's a real standout. Randy felt it was on point but maybe ahead of the chorus a little bit. Simon Cowell said he felt like he was in some "sort of weird student gig".
Jared Cotter followed. He was listed with +2000 odds early on to win the competition. The judges felt he needs to take more risks but looked good.
22-year old AJ Talbado, who has tried out for American Idol five times, was up next. "Kind of a theme park performance" said Simon. Though the judges felt he performed okay. Simon did feel AJ might be better than he originally thought.
Phil - this season's military favorite - came into this competition with +1200 odds to win the competition. He was the last to perform. He was certainly strong enough to get through this stage of the competition and perhaps the best one after a shaky start.
Tomorrow night, the ladies perform and I sure hope they do a better job than the boys. Check out all the American Idol betting odds here.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
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