Panthers shoot for rare victory over Sharks

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03/13/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Florida needs all the victories it can muster from now until the end of the season to even have a chance at making the playoffs. The Panthers could have a tough time getting a win today, when they visit the mighty San Jose Sharks at HP Pavilion.

The Sharks entered Saturday as the top-seeded team in the Western Conference with 95 points and only Washington is ahead of them in the overall NHL standings.

Meanwhile, Florida is tied for 12th in the East and is eight points out of a playoff berth. The Panthers have the longest active postseason drought in the NHL, having last appeared in the playoffs in the spring of 2000.

The Panthers haven't had much success against San Jose in recent years although Florida did notch a 4-3 home victory over the Sharks last season. Still, San Jose is 7-1 with a tie in the last nine encounters overall and Florida has lost four straight at the Shark Tank.

San Jose has won its last three games and won its last outing despite giving up five goals -- the most the Sharks had yielded since a 6-2 loss to Los Angeles on January 4.

On Thursday, Joe Pavelski registered two goals and two assists, as the Sharks exploded for six goals in the third period to rally past the visiting Nashville Predators, 8-5.

"It's a catch-22 thing to have any type of success," said Sharks head coach Todd McLellan. "This isn't going to happen again. If it does, it will be a miracle. For us to be successful, we have to have everybody on board for the first 40 minutes, not just the last 15."

Dany Heatley added two goals and a helper, while Manny Malhotra finished with a goal and two assists for the Sharks.

San Jose's Patrick Marleau reached the 40-goal plateau for the first time in his career, and Joe Thornton also tallied. Evgeni Nabokov made 40 saves to pick up the win, his 37th of the season.

Today's test marks the final contest of a five-game homestand for the Sharks, who have an excellent 22-6-7 mark as the host this year. Next up for San Jose is a six-game road trip, which begins Sunday in Anaheim.

The Panthers, meanwhile, had a three-game winning streak halted in their last game, getting blanked 3-0 Thursday night at Colorado. Paul Stastny scored twice in the second period to support a 27-save performance by former Florida goaltender Craig Anderson at the Pepsi Center.

Tomas Vokoun stopped 28 shots for the Panthers, who were shut out for the third time in 11 games.

"We've got to get more traffic, especially when the goalies are good like that," said Florida forward David Booth.

The Panthers have lost seven of their last eight away games and are closing out a three-game road trip tonight. Florida is 13-18-3 as the visitor this season.

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Football Betting: Defensive Rookie of the Year Awards

Oddsmakers have released the odds for the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award and Seattle Seahawks linebacker Aaron Curry has been made the opening favorite.

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Seattle took Curry with the fourth overall pick in April's NFL draft and plan on inserting him into its starting lineup right away. The Hawks traded linebacker Julian Peterson in the offseason, so Curry is expected to have a significant role in Seattle's defense next year and that's one of the primary reasons he is the favorite to win the NFL ROY Award.

Oddsmakers from online sportsbook MySportsbook.com have made Curry a 5/1 favorite to win this year's NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award. Given that he was the best defensive prospect in this year's draft and how he'll have plenty of opportunities to make plays in '09, Curry offers a ton of value at 5/1.

Another thing working for Curry is the position he plays. A linebacker has won the defensive ROY award six straight times and eight of the last nine years. Jerod Mayo, Patrick Willis, DeMeco Ryans, Shawne Merriman, Jonathan Vilma, Terrell Suggs, Kendrell Bell and Brian Urlacher were the most recent linebackers to take home the award.

Following Curry at 5/1 are Tyson Jackson (Chiefs) at 7/1, James Laurinaitas (Rams) at 8/1, Brian Orakpo (Redskins) at 10/1, Rey Maualuga (Bengals) at 10/1 and Jerry Peria (Falcons) at 10/1.

All the players mentioned above are expected to start for their respective teams, but Jackson and Peria are going to have a tough time being recognized on a national level given they're both defensive linemen. D-linemen rarely put up the numbers that it takes to win an individual award like the ROY.

A couple of players with some value are Clay Matthews (Packers) at 12/1 and Larry English (Chargers) at 15/1. Matthews is expected to start at outside linebacker in Green Bay's new 3-4 defense and could rack up a ton of tackles. English, who was an impressive player at Northern Illinois, is expected to be a situational pass rusher for the Chargers and could rack up a ton of sacks.

For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award, see below. And for complete odds for the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award, click the link provided.

2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award

Robert Ayers (DEN) 12/1

Ron Brace (NE) 25/1

Everette Brown (CAR) 16/1

Darius Butler (NE) 40/1

Patrick Chung (NE) 30/1

Aaron Curry (SEA) 5/1

Brian Cushing (HOU) 12/1

Vontae Davis (MIA) 30/1

Louis Delmas (DET) 30/1

Larry English (SD) 15/1

Evander Hood (PIT) 25/1

Tyson Jackson (KC) 7/1

Malcolm Jenkins (NO) 25/1

Paul Kruger (BAL) 50/1

James Laurinaitas (STL) 8/1

Sen'Derrick Marks (TEN) 20/1

Clay Matthews (GB) 12/1

Aaron Maybin (BUF) 15/1

Rey Maualuga (CIN) 10/1

Roy Miller (TB) 20/1

Michael Mitchell (OAK) 45/1

Fili Moala (IND) 30/1

Brian Orakpo (WAS) 10/1

Jerry Peria (ATL) 10/1

B J Raji (GB) 7/1

Clint Sintim (NYG) 35/1

Alphonso Smith (DEN) 40/1

David Verkune (CLE) 20/1

Jason Williams (DAL) 30/1

Field (Any Other Player) 6/1

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