Lightning re-sign Szczechura

Hockey Betting Lines

07/16/2010 - Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Lightning re-signed forward Paul Szczechura to a one-year contract on Friday.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Szczechura appeared in 52 games last season for the Lightning, recording five goals and two assists.

He's played in 83 career games over two seasons with Tampa Bay and has nine goals and seven assists.

Www4bettingcris Hockey Betting News

<< Sunderland's Gordon to miss start of new season
Sunderland, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sunderland goalkeeper Craig Gordon will miss the start of the upcoming Premiership season after he fractured a bone in his arm. Gordon sustained the injury in training on Thursday after he fell awkwar

<< Szavay moves on in Prague; Garrigues ousted
Prague, Czech Republic (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Last week's Budapest titlist Agnes Szavay advanced to the semifinals of the $220,000 Prague Open tennis event with a straight set win over Slovenian Polona Hercog. The seventh-seeded Sza

<< Barrera completes West Ham move
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mexico international Pablo Barrera completed his move to West Ham on Friday, the club announced. The 23-year-old winger has moved to Upton Park from Mexican side UNAM Pumas on a four-year contract

<< Celtics to bring back Robinson
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Celtics are reportedly set to re-sign guard Nate Robinson. According to the Boston Herald on Friday, Robinson will ink a two-year, $8 million deal with the club that traded for him last season.

<< Sabres agree to terms with Conboy
Buffalo, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Buffalo Sabres reached a one-year contract agreement with forward Tim Conboy on Friday. The 28-year-old winger skated 12 games with Carolina in 2009-10, compiling 34 penalty minutes without recording a po

Montanes into semis in Stuttgart >>
Stuttgart, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Albert Montanes of Spain rolled over second-seeded Jurgen Melzer in the quarterfinals of the Mercedes Cup tennis event on Friday. Montanes, seeded fifth, cruised over the second-seeded

As the wind blows, scores soar at St. Andrews >>
St. Andrews, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After second-round play was stopped for 66 minutes at the British Open, the wind continued to blow at St. Andrews, and in the process, sent scores soaring. With the final group midway through th

EWU home victories would turn opponents red >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - In an effort to boost exposure, Eastern Washington University will literally go in the red this year, replacing the traditional grass surface of Woodward Field with red artificial turf. The move is admitte

Predators sign Lundmark >>
Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Nashville Predators signed center Jamie Lundmark to a one-year, two-way contract on Friday. The 29-year-old appeared in 36 games between Calgary and Toronto in the 2009-10 season and tallied five

Roberts, Skelton under contract >>
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Arizona Cardinals will head into training camp with their two FCS draft choices, quarterback John Skelton and wide receiver Andre Roberts, signed to four-year contracts. Skelton was the Cardinals' fifth-rou

How did changes to college football betting rules affect bettors?

The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.

While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.

For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.

1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.

2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.

How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.

Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.

Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.

How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).

Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.

Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on college football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.