Struggling Lighting, Maple Leafs battle in Tampa

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01/21/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A pair of struggling teams will meet tonight in the Sunshine State, as the Toronto Maple Leafs visit the Tampa Bay Lightning at St. Pete Times Forum.

The Maple Leafs have dropped two of three and six of their last eight games, while Tampa has been on the losing end in three of four and five of eight contests. The Lightning are currently 13th out of 15 teams in the Eastern Conference with 48 points. Toronto is 14th in the East and five points in back of Tampa.

The Lightning are coming off an embarrassing road loss as they were slammed, 8-2, by the New York Rangers on Tuesday. Marian Gaborik had four assists to lead the Rangers, who had 16 different players register points in the rout at Madison Square Garden.

Antero Niittymaki allowed five goals on 20 shots through nearly two periods for the Lightning, while Dustin Tokarski surrendered three goals on 11 shots the rest of the way. Niittymaki is expected to get the start again tonight, as Tampa's No. 1 goaltender Mike Smith is still out with a neck strain.

Vincent Lecavalier and Alex Tanguay had the goals for Tampa Bay in Tuesday's loss.

"Their leaders outdid our leaders, their grinders outdid our grinders. Their coaches outcoached us," Lightning coach Rick Tocchet said. "The only thing we did was the bus was on time to get to this game. The bus driver was the best thing we had."

This evening's test marks the start of a four-game homestand for the Lightning, who are 11-6-5 as the host this year.

Toronto was more competitive than the Lightning in its last game, but still left Atlanta without a point after dropping a 4-3 decision to the Thrashers on Tuesday. Ilya Kovalchuk scored twice to lead Atlanta to the close win at Philips Arena.

Alexei Ponikarovsky scored two goals within a 32-second span while Niklas Hagman posted a goal and an assist for the Leafs. Vesa Toskala allowed four goals on 32 shots in the losing effort.

The Leafs' power-play was 0-for-5 on Tuesday and Toronto has just one goal in its last 23 opportunities with the man advantage.

"Our power play just isn't clicking right now," said Toronto head coach Ron Wilson. "We need to work on it, and we can't turn the puck over -- that happened several times and those are the important puck battles."

Toronto is 1-2-0 so far on a five-game road trip that is scheduled to end Saturday against the Florida Panthers. The Leafs are just 8-15-4 as the guest this season.

The Lightning and Leafs have split a pair of meetings this year, with each club winning a game on the road. Tampa has taken five of seven overall in this series, but Toronto has won four of the last seven at the Forum.

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FOOTBALL BETTING : Cassel Signs Contract

Kansas City, MO - Kansas City has not officially named Matt Cassel its starting quarterback, but there can be no doubt now.

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After praising his leadership and work ethic through spring workouts, the Chiefs announced Tuesday they had signed the 27-year-old Cassel to a multiyear contract. Terms were not disclosed, but he will almost certainly be one of the highest-paid members of the team.
"We are excited to be able to reach a long-term agreement for Matt Cassel to be a Kansas City Chief for many years to come," owner and board chairman Clark Hunt said in a statement. "His proven leadership on and off the field will be a tremendous asset to the organization."
Patriots made him their franchise player, meaning his salary for this season will be about $15 million.
New head coach Todd Haley, taking over for Herm Edwards after a 2-14 season, refused to name a starter at any position during offseason workouts. But it was obvious to everyone the team belonged to Cassel.
"I go out there each and every day with that focus that I'm the starter," Cassel said during a June minicamp. "Competition brings out the best in everybody."
The signing will come as welcome news to Cassel's new coaches and teammates. Amiable and hardworking, online football betting he appeared to win over everyone at minicamp.
"I think he's got some unique leadership qualities. I think his teammates like him and have respect for him. I think he's doing a pretty good job on the field, too," Haley said last month. "He's doing everything that I'm asking him, that our coaches are asking him to do. I don't have one single complaint how he's carrying himself."
After one workout, wide receiver Devard Darling declared Cassel "a breath of fresh air."
"He has a lot of swagger, a lot of confidence. It's good for us," said Darling. "We trust in him that he's going to go out there and lead us all the way."
nse to accommodate his specific abilities.
Trapped on the bench behind Heisman winners Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart at USC and then unable to unseat Super Bowl MVP Brady at New England, Cassel seemed destined to be a backup all his life. As Brady was helped off the field last September, Cassel seized the opportunity he'd been waiting for since high school.
In his only sustained action since his teens, he hit 349 of 555 passes for 3,949 yards at New England. He had 23 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions as the Patriots, who had gone unbeaten through the regular season the year before, finished 11-5 and out of the playoffs.
Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli, who had been Bill Belichick's assistant in New England, engineered the trade after the Patriots became convinced that Brady would recover fully from his knee operation.
"Since Matt arrived in Kansas City, he has embraced the team and the community," Pioli said. "His work ethic, his ability and competitive presence is what we expect from our players."

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