Clifford's goal the difference in Kings' win over Lightning
Hockey Betting Lines
02/07/2012 -
Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kyle Clifford scored the eventual game-winner
midway through the second period as the Los Angeles Kings skated past the
Tampa Bay Lightning, 3-1, at Tampa Bay Times Forum.
Anze Kopitar and Dustin Penner also scored for the Kings, who got 24 saves
from Jonathan Quick in the victory to snap a two-game skid.
Steven Stamkos notched his league-leading 35th goal for the Lightning and
Dwayne Roloson stopped 17-of-20 shots in a losing effort. The Lightning have
now lost two of their last three contests after winning five straight.
Clifford's game-winner came at 10:16 of the second period as a result of a
blown coverage by the Lightning.
With the puck deep in their defensive zone, Kings defenseman Rob Scuderi
warded off some pressure and spotted Clifford coming out of the penalty box.
Scuderi sent a home run pass up the middle of the ice right to the tape of
Clifford, who went in alone on Roloson and backhanded it through the legs of
the Lightning netminder.
The Kings extended their lead to 3-1 at 17:46 of the second frame when Mike
Richards warded off his defender behind the net, wheeled out front and found
Penner, who ripped a quick wrist shot past Roloson.
Tampa pulled Roloson with a minute remaining in regulation, but was unable to
generate any good scoring chances.
Los Angeles opened the scoring just 2:47 into the game when Justin Williams
ripped a slap shot from the right point right to the tape of Kopitar, who
cleverly deflected the puck over the left pad of Roloson.
The Lightning tied it up at 7:49 of the second period with some excellent play
off the rush.
Teddy Purcell pushed the puck out to the neutral zone and raced up the left
wing. He gained the blue line and went in on a 2-on-1 rush with Stamkos.
Purcell glided to the left circle before sliding the puck over to Stamkos, who
converted an easy tap-in for the goal.
Game Notes
The Kings improved to 11-4-6 under head coach Darryl Sutter, and 19-4-5 when
scoring the first goal of the game...Kopitar has 11 points in his last 12
games...The Kings failed to convert on two power-play chances, while the
Lightning went 0-for-3 with the man advantage...Los Angeles improved to 15-2-4
when Richards records at least one point...Tampa Bay will visit the New York Rangers on Thursday, while the Kings will face the Florida Panthers, also on
Thursday.
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Big 12 Conference betting odds
Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State
Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.
Work left to do:
Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.
Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.
Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.
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