Halak inks four-year deal with St. Louis

Hockey Betting Lines

07/06/2010 - St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Blues have signed goaltender Jaroslav Halak to a four-year contract.

Halak was acquired from the Canadiens on June 17 in a trade that sent forwards Lars Eller and Ian Schultz to Montreal.

"Jaroslav will be a big help for our organization moving forward," said Blues general manager Doug Armstrong. "He has made a great commitment to the Blues as he enters the prime of his career."

The 25-year-old Halak was 26-13-5 with a 2.40 goals-against average and five shutouts during the regular season for the Habs. He ranked ninth in the NHL in GAA and his .940 save percentage was fourth-best in the league.

Halak split playing time during the regular season with Carey Price, but starred in the playoffs this spring. He helped Montreal reach the Eastern Conference finals, a run that included Game 7 road victories over Washington, which had the best record in the league, and Pittsburgh, which had been the defending Stanley Cup champs.

The Canadiens lost to the Flyers in five games in the conference finals, leaving Halak's playoff record at 9-9 with a 2.55 GAA.

"I've been looking forward to playing in St. Louis ever since the trade was announced," said Halak. "I believe in my abilities and hope to do some good things for the Blues."

Halak has racked up a 56-34-7 record with a 2.62 GAA and nine shutouts in 101 career games since breaking into the NHL in 2006.

Wwwfreescoreboard Hockey Betting News

<< Germany, Spain set for semifinal showdown
Durban, South Africa (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Germany's Bastian Schweinsteiger said Spain is the "best team in the world," but also thinks there are "weaknesses" that can be exploited in Wednesday's FIFA World Cup semifinal. Germany lost to Spa

<< Top seeds, Szavay advance in Budapest
Budapest, Hungary (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top seeds Alisa Kleybanova of Russia and Alexandra Dulgheru of Romania were among Tuesday's opening-round winners at the $220,000 Budapest Grand Prix. Reigning champion Agnes Szavay of Hungary also re

<< Lesue, Dietz and Belton earn weekly AFL honors
Tulsa, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Utah wide receiver Aaron Lesue, Tampa Bay quarterback Brett Dietz and Milwaukee defensive back Tracy Belton have been named the JLS Ironman, Russell Athletic Offensive Players and Riddell Defensive Player of the Wee

<< James wields unprecedented power, takes Knicks for a ride
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Like most of you, I'm tired of the LeBron James hoopla and wish the superstar would stop channeling Aretha Franklin and let us all in on what team he will be toiling with next season. Rumor has it that LeB

<< Pennetta among Day-2 winners in Bastad
Bastad, Sweden (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded Flavia Pennetta highlighted Tuesday's first-round winners at the $220,000 Swedish Open. The Italian Pennetta pasted Swedish wild card Anna Brazhnikova 6-2, 6-0 on the red clay at Bastad Tenn

AL West: Underrated stars stepping forward for Angels >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim manager Mike Scioscia knows who his most valuable players are, though they may not be recognized as easily on a national scale. Nevertheless, they are the guys who deliver the clutch hits, make t

Reds add striker Mista to fold >>
Kansas City, KS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Toronto FC signed Spanish forward Miguel Angel Ferrer Martinez "Mista" through the end of the 2010 season, the Major League Soccer club announced on Tuesday. The 31-year-old joins Toronto FC after

Seattle's Lee named AL Pitcher of the Month >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Seattle Mariners left-hander Cliff Lee was named the American League Pitcher of the Month for June. Lee went 4-1 in June with a 1.76 earned run average and went the distance in four of his six starts i

Marlins' Johnson voted NL Pitcher of the Month >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Florida Marlins pitcher Josh Johnson has been named the National League Pitcher of the Month for June. In five June starts, Johnson pitched to a 1.18 earned-run average and a 3-1 record, striking out 38 in

Mets' Wright named NL Player of the Month >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Mets third baseman David Wright has been named the National League Player of the Month for June. Wright batted an NL-best .404 and knocked in 29 runs during the period, becoming the first Me

Big East Conference odds

Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence

Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.

Work left to do:

Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.

Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.

DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...

West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.

Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.

For more March Madness odds go to MySportsbook.com

For more College Basketball betting lines go to BettingExpress.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.