Crosby to return from high ankle sprain

Hockey Betting Lines

03/04/2008 - Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pittsburgh Penguins superstar center Sidney Crosby will make his return to the lineup after missing six weeks with a high ankle sprain, the club announced Tuesday.

The club placed Crosby on injured reserve on January 19 because of the injury, suffered the previous day in a contest against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Mellon Arena. Consequently, the phenom has missed Pittsburgh's last 21 games.

He will be in uniform as the Pens visit the Lightning in Tampa.

Prior to the setback, Crosby picked up 20 goals and 43 assists for 63 points in 46 games this season. He was chosen as a starter for the Eastern Conference in the upcoming All-Star Game, garnering the most votes in fan balloting for the second straight year.

The 20-year-old first-overall pick of the Penguins in 2005 has amassed 95 goals and 285 points in just 206 career games over three NHL seasons.

Wwclassifieds2000 Hockey Betting News

<< Blackhawks giving it up for their shorties
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It would be safe to assume that rarely in the NHL has a team's head coach pushed his players to take a penalty. Yet, when the Chicago Blackhawks find themselves down a man, they are the ones making the other team pay. Chi

<< Lions sign TE Gaines
Allen Park, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Lions signed free agent tight end Michael Gaines to a four-year deal and re-signed tight end John Owens to a one-year deal on Monday. Additional terms were not disclosed. Last season, Gaines

<< Jets make it official with Faneca
Hempstead, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Jets made it official on Monday and announced the signing of Pro Bowl guard Alan Faneca, who played the first 10 years of his NFL career with Pittsburgh. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, b

<< Rapids add Brazilian midfielder Gomes
Commerce City, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Rapids announced on Monday the signing of Brazilian Midfielder Rafael Gomes for the 2008 season. "We welcome Rafael to the team with open arms," Rapids coach Fernando Clavijo said. Gome

<< Patriots and Moss close to new deal
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New England Patriots and star wide receiver Randy Moss are reportedly on the verge of a new contract. The Boston Globe reported on its website that the sides have agreed to a three-year, $27 million

Cards renew contracts of Wainwright, Reyes >>
Jupiter, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Cardinals renewed the contracts of pitchers Adam Wainwright and Anthony Reyes Tuesday. The 26-year-old Wainwright went 14-12 with a 3.70 earned run average last season, while Reyes was a di

Line of Scrimmage: Legend of Favre Reaches Final Chapter >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brett Favre never cared much about outside perception, and spent even less time worrying about his legacy. Never were those facts more evident than on Monday, when Favre somewhat unexpectedly lowered the c

War Pass - Can he carry his speed to glory? >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - There's a big difference between being undefeated in March and winning the Kentucky Derby on the first Saturday in May, but War Pass has an outstanding chance to join the likes of Seattle Slew, Smarty Jones

Pens make a stop in Tampa >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Though he will still have to wait to team with Marian Hossa for the first time, Penguins captain Sidney Crosby may be back on the ice tonight when Pittsburgh takes on the Tampa Bay Lightning at St. Pete Times Forum. Crosb

Forsberg set for second act with Avalanche >>
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Peter Forsberg announced that he will make his return to NHL action with the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday night as the club takes on division-rival Vancouver at Pepsi Center. Forsberg returns to the ice with

SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting

NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.


That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.

A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."

It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.

The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.

So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."

Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.

Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.

Seriously.

The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.

The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.

Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."

The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts MasterCard needs.