2010 NHL Entry Draft Preview

Hockey Betting Lines

06/22/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The National Hockey League will hold its annual Entry Draft this weekend at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, and the Edmonton Oilers, holders of this year's No. 1 overall pick, will get the event started Friday evening.

The Oilers entered the draft lottery in April with the best chance at landing the top pick and for the third straight year the club with the worst record in the NHL wound up with the No. 1 overall selection. This marks the first time that Edmonton has held the top pick at the NHL draft.

It is widely believed that the first two picks in this year's draft will be used to select forwards from the OHL, as the most talked about prospects leading up to Friday's first round have clearly been Taylor Hall and Tyler Seguin.

A winger, Hall poured in 57 goals in 76 games, including the playoffs, for Windsor last year and helped the Spitfires win their second straight Memorial Cup. Seguin, who has drawn comparisons to Hall of Fame centerman Steve Yzerman, led the OHL with 48 goals during last year's regular season.

Draft experts believe the Oilers will take Hall over Seguin in the top spot despite Seguin's standing as the top-ranked North American skater by NHL Central Scouting. Hall is considered to have the bigger upside as an offensive player at the next level due to his blazing speed.

Whatever way the Oilers go, the Boston Bruins are just happy to be picking second this year. Boston was the top seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs in 2009 and made it to the conference semifinals this past spring. The Bruins are picking this high due to their trade of Phil Kessel to Toronto prior to the start of the 2009-10 season.

Either Hall or Seguin will do nicely for the offensively-challenged Bruins, who certainly would like to add another scorer following this spring's playoff meltdown. Boston infamously blew a 3-0 series lead to Philadelphia in the postseason, becoming just the third team in NHL history to lose a series after holding a three-games-to-none edge.

But, after Hall and Seguin, the picture gets a bit cloudier. Erik Gudbranson and Cam Fowler, a pair of defensemen from the OHL, are considered to be the best blueliners available and could both go in the top-five.

The top European player to be selected could be Nino Niederreiter, but for scouting purposes the Swiss winger is listed among North American skaters because he plays for Portland in the WHL. Niederreiter's combination of size and playmaking ability caught the scouts attention at the 2010 World Junior Championships.

Finnish forward Mikael Granlund doesn't have the size of Niederreiter, but he is the top-rated European skater by Central Scouting. Granlund was named Rookie of the Year at the top level of Finnish professional hockey in 2009-10 and showed an innate ability to create scoring chances for his teammates. He has been described as a "Saku Koivu clone".

Once again there isn't a goaltender eligible for this year's draft that could be considered a can't-miss prospect, although Calvin Pickard, a prospect from the WHL, is considered to be the best of the bunch.

The most intriguing unknown heading into every draft is how actively teams will pursue or entertain trades. After all, the majority of the players selected this weekend won't be making any kind of impact for NHL teams over the next few years, but there is proven professional talent to be had via trades at the draft.

The first round of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft will begin Friday evening at 7 p.m. (et) and rounds 2-7 will start on Saturday morning at 1 p.m. (et). The entire first-round order is as follows:

1. Edmonton 2. Boston (from TOR) 3. Florida 4. Columbus 5. NY Islanders 6. Tampa Bay 7. Carolina 8. Atlanta 9. Minnesota 10. NY Rangers 11. Dallas 12. Anaheim 13. Phoenix (from CAL) 14. St. Louis 15. Boston 16. Ottawa 17. Colorado 18. Nashville 19. Los Angeles 20. Pittsburgh 21. Detroit 22. Phoenix 23. Buffalo 24. Atlanta (from NJD) 25. Vancouver 26. Washington 27. Montreal 28. San Jose 29. Anaheim (from PHI) 30. Chicago

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American Idol Betting Odds: Season 6  

The online gambling websites are in the process of deciphering each American Idol contestant and his or her chances of winning Season 6 to come up with the early American Idol betting lines.

Tim Dalton of MySportsbook.com has been locked away in a soundproof room coming up with all the latest tallies, we are told. "American Idol has become one of the most significant betting events of the year," claims Jack Black of MySportsbook.com.  "Last year, millions were bet during the season across the globe, not just in America.

It's tough early on since we really do not have a glimpse as to how well each of these individuals will perform solo on a week-to-week basis.  It's like Week 1 of the NFL.  Pre-season means nada!

We do know the 24 finalists however.

Sanjaya Malakar is the young man whose sister failed to make it into the Top 24.  He's very low key but - unless he totally flubs - will probably win over the young girlie vote for a few weeks anyway.  He's too young to go all the way, according to Payton O'Brien. 

Brandon Rogers - Who?

Phil Stacy is the military guy who missed his daughter's birth because of the Memphis audition.  He should go a good distance.

Chris Sligh - He's got the humor and in many ways he's the Anti-American Idol much like last year's winner Taylor Hicks was.  And this is why he'll probably get pretty far in this competition.  He's chubby, white with a big curly afro....but more importantly, a great voice!  People love "real", not "real cute" to go all the way. 

"Blake Lewis should go far because of his uniqueness and looks.  He's the boy next store with a twist - he beat boxes.  But on top of this, he's a great singer, and I adore him," Payton O'Brien relayed.

A talented beat-boxer Blake Lewis was a hit during the group sing in Hollywood but Simon explained that this is a singing contest just before he told him he was “in.”

Paul Kim has caught our own roving reporter, Jenny Woo's eyes. 

"I love the fact that there is a Korean American on the show and he is bound to get more Asians tuning into the show," Woo said from her Miami Beach estate.  "There has never been a major presence of Asian-Americans on American Idol in the past.  He's a hottie with a nice voice so that should help to take him far.  Expect heavy betting action from the Asian community."

Sundance Head - He's not perfect, but he's got the personality that will take him through a few weeks, plus he's got the lineage (son of Roy Head - whose 1965 single, "Treat Her Right," hit No. 5 in the charts) 

And the others:

Rudy Cardinas
AJ Tabaldo - the 5th time is the charm
Nicolas Pedro
Chris Richardson
Jared Cotter

The girls

"Melinda Doolittle has one of the best voices," says MySportsbook.com Reporter and an acclaimed dancer in her own right, Destiney Lewis.  "It is great to see a back up singer step out like she has.  The girl needs to gain more confidence but that can also be a positive.  I think she will go far."

Alena Alexander - Those tears (she never seems to stop bawling) should get her far.

"Single mom Lakisha Jones I suspect will be a pretty big favorite entering Week 1 of the competition," says Destiny Williams.  Jones is an excellent singer and down to earth.  "She'll have a wide appeal," echoed O'Brien.

Nicole Trellis - Seems to exert confidence.

Amy Krebs - a powerful singer.

Antonella Barba
Gina Glocksen
Hailey Scanardo
Jordan Sparks
Stephanie Edwards
Leslie Hunt
Sabrina Sloan

MySportsbook.com is offering a 20% signup bonus with an initial deposit (i.e. open your American Idol betting account with $300, receive another $60 in which to bet with). 

Last two contestants will be?

1 Male/1 Female +100 (a $10 bet pays $10 plus your initial $10)

2 Males +170 (a $10 bet pays $17 plus your initial $17)

2 Females +130 (a $10 bet pays $13 plus your initial $10)

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