Capitals visit Blackhawks in clash of NHL powerhouses

Hockey Betting Lines

03/14/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Capitals and Blackhawks could very well meet this year in the Stanley Cup Finals, but neither probably feels like a championship- caliber club right now.

Both Washington and Chicago will try to bounce back from disappointing losses this afternoon in a clash of NHL powers at the United Center.

The Capitals lead the league with 99 points, three more than the Western Conference-leading San Jose Sharks. Washington also owns a 14-point advantage for the top spot in the East, while Chicago comes in three points behind San Jose in the West.

Washington, though, capped a 3-1-1 homestand on Friday with a disappointing loss to Tampa Bay. Tomas Fleischmann and Brooks Laich had the goals for the Capitals, with Fleischmann netting his 20th of the season to surpass his previous career high set last season.

Alex Ovechkin, the NHL's leading point scorer with 96, had his third straight two-point game with a pair of assists, while Semyon Varlamov made 24 saves.

"We didn't do the job as forwards and defensemen," said Washington head coach Bruce Boudreau. "We stayed out too long, we got outworked and we didn't play the way we were capable of playing. That's the reason we lost. It had nothing to do with goaltending."

The Capitals suffered their first regulation home loss since Dec. 28, as they had been 14-0-1 in their previous 15 as host. They were also defeated one day after they clinched the Southeast Division without even stepping on the ice.

It is unknown who will get the start in net today as Washington kicks off a four-game road trip. Jose Theodore is 5-6-1 with a 2.58 goals-against average in 12 career starts versus the Blackhawks, while Varlamov has never faced them.

While the Caps feel they were simply outworked on Friday, the Blackhawks return home knowing a late collapse cost them two points. Chicago held a one- goal lead in Philadelphia Saturday afternoon, but saw the Flyers tie the game with just over two minutes left before Philly's Chris Pronger tipped a pass by netminder Cristobal Huet with just 2.1 seconds left in regulation in what ended up being a 3-2 setback.

"Getting out of here without a point -- that's how we should see it," Huet said after making 31 saves. "We lost two points. It's something you have nightmares about."

Kris Versteeg and Marian Hossa tallied for the Blackhawks, who had taken three of four games coming in. Patrick Kane had a nine-game points streak end in the game, a run in which he had totaled four goals and 10 assists.

Antti Niemi is expected to be in goal today for Chicago and he will make his first ever start versus the Capitals.

The Blackhawks had won three straight over the Caps before Washington posted a 4-2 home win over them on Oct. 11 of last season. Chicago blanked the Capitals, 5-0, the last time the teams met at United Center on March 19, 2008.

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Pacific-10 Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Stanford

Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.

Should be in:

Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.

Southeastern Conference odds
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State

It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.

Work left to do:

Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney.

Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson.

Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable.

Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile.

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