Here are some of the best sports plays for all you gamblers out there.

The Game: Philadelphia Flyers @ Pittsburgh Penguins

The Pick: Over 7

The Reason: Seven may seem like a high total for a hockey game, but not when the Flyers and Penguins are facing off.  At least one team has surpassed the seven-goal total in three of the four games in this series thus far, while they have combined for at least seven goals in all four games.  These two teams have gone under the total just once in their last nine meetings, and the goaltending on both sides has looked incredibly shaky, as they have stopped just 81.5% of the pucks headed their way.  The Pens have gone over the total in 14 of their last 15, while the Flyers have gone over in nine of their last 11.  Look for another high-scoring game to unfold tonight, as these two teams go over the total once again.

The Game: Los Angeles Lakers @ San Antonio Spurs

The Pick: Spurs -6.5

The Reason: The Spurs have been lights-out at home, as they are 25-5 straight-up at the AT&T Center, and 21-8-1 against the spread.  As for the Lakers, they are a disappointing 11-20 against the spread on the road this season.  The Spurs have won their last five straight and 10 of their last 11 at home.  They are also 9-1-1 against the spread in their last 11 home games.  With Kobe Bryant still nursing a shin injury, look for the Spurs to take advantage of his absence as they earn the win and cover the spread against the Lakers tonight.

2012 Record: (70-70-7), This Week: (4-4), Last Week: (4-5-1)

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Braden Holtby was incredible between the pipes for the Washington Capitals last night, as he stopped 43 of the 44 shots he faced during the first 60 minutes of play.  And he was forced to make an additional save when an extra 5.3 seconds were added to the game, after the timer-keeper forgot to start the clock following a face-off in the Caps’ zone with only 9.5 seconds remaining.

According to the NHL’s V.P. of Hockey Operations, Mike Murphy, the officials in the time-keeper’s box were attempting to get the attention of the referee in order to tell him that more time needed to be added to the clock, but due to the excessive noise inside the Verizon Center, the on-ice officials couldn’t hear the horn.  That left the time-keepers unprepared to start the clock once the puck was dropped, causing the 5.3-second delay.

Thankfully, Holtby was able to come up big and rob Patrice Bergeron with those extra seconds still on the clock, ensuring that the Capitals would avoid any controversial outcome and earn the important 2-1 victory.

Check it out.

When LeBon James took his talents to South Beach two summers ago, he also brought along his on-the-bench farting antics.  And now it appears as though his teammates have adopted those antics as their own, as they were busy letting ‘em rip on the bench while LeBron was ripping apart the Chicago Bulls on the court last night.

Shaq took a closer look at the incident that took place on the Heat bench with just over three minutes remaining in the first quarter, as an unknown player passed gas, causing at least four Miami players to search within the confines of their towels, jerseys and jackets for some fresh air.

Check it out.

We have showed you some incredible backheel goals in the past, but none may be better than the one we were treated to via Spain’s fourth tier Tercera Division earlier this week, as Espanyol B’s Bubacar Njie Kambi, a.k.a. Bakary, somehow got his left boot on the ball and flicked it over the opposing keeper for the golazo.

It was the type of goal you’d expect to see from La Liga stars like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, but in this instance, it was a match between little known Espanyol B and Montanesa that produced this El Clasico-calibre goal.

Check it out.

Hat Tip – [101 Great Goals]

Those who tuned in to watch the Indiana Pacers take on the Milwaukee Bucks last night (yes, I am talking about all ten of you), may have thought they accidentally stumbled upon an NHL playoff game, as tempers flared during the fourth quarter, causing players from both teams to nearly come to blows.

After watching Danny Granger get run over by the Bucks’ Larry Sanders, several of the Pacers players came to the defense of their teammate.  Despite being out-numbered, Sanders wasn’t backing down to all of the white jerseys surrounding him, as he threw a jab at David West’s face before attempting to get his hands on Granger once again.

After losing their third straight game, the Milwaukee Bucks’ season may be figuratively done, as they sit three games back of the eighth-place 76ers with only four games remaining.  As for Larry Sanders’ season, it could be literally over if the NBA chooses to take a strong stance against his actions from last night.

Check it out.

One nasty brawl was all Israel Football Association chief Avi Luzon needed to see in order for him to suspend all of the weekend’s football action.  It took place today during a match between Hapoel Ramat Gan and Bnei Lod, as players and coaches from both teams exchanged several kicks and punches throughout a frightening three minutes of on-field violence.

Luzon has called off all of Saturday’s Premier League and National League games as a result, stating the following during an interview with Channel 2 TV:

“I don’t want someone getting killed on the football field, heaven forbid. With all due respect to football, I don’t want football played tomorrow after today’s events.”

Many have chosen to criticized Luzon for his inability to stop the violence in Israeli football, with some even asking for his resignation.  However, he has reiterated his belief that he believes he is not the one to blame for the on-field violence, and I can’t help but agree with him.  After all, I didn’t see him throwing any of those punches on the field during today’s brawl.

You can watch the violence unfold in the video below.

Hat Tip – [ESPN]

Stephen Strasburg continued his impressive start to the 2012 MLB season on Saturday, as he allowed four hits and no earned runs through six innings of work during the Washington Nationals’ 3-2 extra innings victory over the Florida Marlins.  It was his fourth start of the season, and he threw 60 of his 94 pitches for strikes, while one of his 34 balls should actually count as two balls, as that was exactly what it connected with after eluding the glove of catcher Wilson Ramos and striking home plate umpire Greg Gibson in the groin.

Surprisingly, Gibson was able to remain in the game after taking the 96 mph fastball where the sun don’t shine, leading us to believe that he is the second man in less than a month whose protective cup helped save his manhood from a nasty sports-related injury.

Check it out.

When asked prior to the start of the 2011-12 NBA season about how his teammates have dealt with him changing his name to “Metta World Peace,” Ron Artest responded by talking about how thankful he is that Jesus Christ did not let him lose his teeth when he was 20 years old.

Strangely enough, Artest doesn’t seem to be equally thankful that James Harden still has his teeth at the age of 22, as he attempted to dislodge them from his mouth with a vicious elbow during yesterday’s game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder.  Despite his claim that the elbow was unintentional and simply a part of his post-dunk celebration, Artest was assessed a flagrant two foul and was ejected from the game.  As for Harden, he was taken to the locker room for evaluation and did not return.

Here is a look at Metta World Peace’s nasty elbow that should earn him a rather lengthy suspension.

Hat Tip – [Washington Post]

With so much at stake night in and night out—huge contracts, endorsement deals, championships, history, the adoration of millions of fans—it’s hardly surprising that professional athletes can sometimes lose their cool in the heat of competition. We’ve seen this happen about 15 times already in the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs, and we’re not even done with the first round. But sometimes the competition doesn’t merely take a turn for the worse. Sometimes, the competition takes a turn for the childish. And that’s when players end up with bite marks.

Yes, today we’re taking a look at biting in sports. It may seems pretty crazy, since most of us kicked the nasty habit by the time we finished the second grade, but we can’t go more than a year or two without some high profile biting incident making the cover of sports pages around the world.

So sit back and get ready to be amused by 9 of the most infamous cases of sports biting in recent memory.

Here are some of the best sports plays for all you gamblers out there.

The Game: New York Rangers @ Ottawa Senators

The Pick: Under 5

The Reason: After combining for a total of six goals in the opening game of their best-of-seven series, the Senators and the Rangers have not gone over the five-goal total in their following four games (two unders and two pushes).  These two teams have now gone over the total just twice in their last ten meetings.  The Sens enter tonight’s game having gone under the total in six of their last eight at home.  With the Rangers on the brink of elimination, look for goaltender Henrik Lundqvist to be at his best, as he and Sens goaltender Craig Anderson ensure that this game goes under the total tonight.

The Game: St. Louis Cardinals @ Chicago Cubs

The Pick: Cardinals -110

The Reason: The Cards enter tonight’s game with an 11-5 record.  They have won six of their last eight overall and five of their last seven on the road.  As for the Cubs, they have lost seven of their last eight overall, and five of their last seven at home. St. Louis starter Jamie Garcia is 2-0 on the season with a 3.06 ERA, and he has not allowed more than three earned runs in any of his last four starts against the Cubs.  The Cards currently rank second in the NL in offense and defense.  Look for them to get the better of their division rivals, as they come away with the win at Wrigley Field.

2012 Record: (71-71-7), Last Week: (5-5)

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It was not a good weekend for the legs of Aussie Rules Footballers, as Robbie Gray of the Port Adelaide Power and Gary Rohan of the Sydney Swans both suffered frightening leg injuries that will end their respective seasons.

Rohan’s injury came during Sunday’s match against North Melbourne, as an opposing player rolled up on his ankle while chasing after a loose ball, resulting in a compound fracture to the left tibia of the Swans’ forward.  He has since undergone surgery to insert a pin into his broken left leg, but there is no telling how long the injury will keep him out of action.

Check it out.

As for Gray’s gruesome injury, it occurred during Saturday’s match against Collingwood, as he landed awkwardly on his right leg during the final minutes of his team’s loss.  Gray went down immediately, grabbing his right knee in pain.  It has since been determined that the midfielder suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament and will undergo season-ending surgery tonight.

Here is another look at the play that cost Gray the rest of his 2012 AFL season.

Justin Blackmon has a lot to look forward to in 2012, from being drafted by an NFL team, almost certainly in the first round, to making his debut as a professional football player. With all that’s ahead of him, it’s no wonder this former Oklahoma State stand-out likes to spend his free time relaxing and playing video games. Justin now joins NBA star Kevin Love as the second member of Team Ghost, a group of real-world elites, all of whom are passionate about gaming. This four-member squad will assemble over the next couple months, and when complete, will be an unstoppable force in-game.

Of his role on the elite Team Ghost, Justin says, “I’m the speed guy, I’m the first guy in… kind of set up everything.” Given that his Team Ghost role is such a close match to the one he plays on the football field, we’ll take him at his word when he says, “when you see me coming, you best run the other way.” You can hear him break it all down in the video posted on our Ghost Recon Future Soldier site, where you can also enter to win great prizes by guessing the remaining two members of Team Ghost.

You can find out all bout Team Ghost here.

The Boston Bruins were able to hang on for their playoff lives with a Game 6 victory over the Washington Capitals yesterday afternoon, following Tyler Seguin’s game-winning goal 3:17 into the first overtime period.  However, there is a strong possibility that this game would have never made it to the extra frame had it not been for the heroics of Bruins’ goalie Tim Thomas and his lucky paddle.

With Boston leading 2-1 midway through the second period, the Caps appeared to be on the verge of capitalizing on a costly Bruins turnover, as Alex Semin found Marcus Johansson alone at the side of the net for what looked to be the game-tying goal.  But Thomas was not about to allow that to happen on his watch, as he dove across the crease and prevented the Caps’ forward from scoring what he likely believed to be an easy tap-in on an open net.

Washington would score late in the period, and they would add another goal in the third to tie the game at three, but they really could have used that extra marker from Johansson.  Instead, they came one goal short of advancing to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, and now find themselves in a must-win situation when they travel to Boston for Game Seven on Wednesday night.

Here is a look at the stick save from Thomas that helped set up Wednesday’s Game 7 at the TD Garden.

When Guadalupe and Baltazar took their 22-foot skiff out into the Sea of Cortez on Sunday, they may have been anticipating a big day on the water, but not this big!

While fishing off the coast of Sonora, Mexico, the two commercial fishermen were surprised to find a dead great white shark trapped in their net.  They became even more surprised when they realized that the shark they had just captured was among the biggest of its kind, measuring in at approximately 2,000 pounds and 20 feet in length.

According to reports, the two towed the fish two miles to the shore, where nearly 50 people were waiting to help them drag the dead predator onto the sandy beach.

So how does one put a dead 2,000 pound great white shark to good use?  According to Pisces Sportfishing, “not one scrap went to waste” as “it fed the whole town.”

Hat Tip – [ABC News]

Some women have shown that they are capable of translating their good looks (and a bit of athleticism) into a successful career in sports, while other women have used their looks to advance their singing careers.

Some may argue that the WTA’s sixth-ranked tennis player, Caroline Wozniacki, is a perfect example of the former, as she has yet to win a women’s Grand Slam title during her professional career, but has still gained recognition as one of tennis’ most popular female stars.

As for Caroline’s singing career, I wouldn’t expect it to experience the same type of success as her tennis career has endured.  After all, not even her good looks and some auto-tune is enough to overcome her deficient vocal cords.

You can hear exactly what I am talking about via her newly released single, “Oxygen.”  Check it out.

Hat Tip – [Busted Racquet]

After beating the Indiana Pacers by a score of 109-106 on Saturday, the Philadelphia 76ers moved one step closer to clinching the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.  It should have been a feel-good moment for the entire organization, but 76ers head coach Doug Collins didn’t seem all that impressed, as he unleashed an expletive-filled tirade on the officials as he headed towards his team’s locker room.

Fox Sports Pacers caught some of Collins’ angry rant on camera.  You can check it out in the video below.

Mike Smith has been the story for the Phoenix Coyotes over the course of the past couple of months.  His 11-0 record between the pipes during the month of February put his team in a great position to contend for top spot in the Pacific Division.  His five straight wins to close out the regular season helped the Coyotes clinch that top spot.  And his 190 saves through the first five games of their Western Conference Quarterfinal series against the Chicago Blackhawks had his Coyotes one win away from advancing to the second round of the playoffs for the first time in 25 years.

Smith’s performance during Game 6 last night would ensure his Coyotes of that elusive playoffs series win, as he stopped all 39 shots he faced during Phoenix’s 4-0 victory at the United Center.  It was Smith’s first ever shutout during an NHL playoff game, and his 241 shots faced and 229 saves during the 2012 NHL playoffs are tops among all goaltenders.

The Coyotes’ victory sets up an interesting goaltending battle in the next round, as Smith will now face-off against Pekka Rinne of the Nashville Predators.  Goals will almost certainly be tougher to come by for the Coyotes during their Western Conference Semi-Final series, but if Mike Smith can continue to perform like he has throughout the past couple of months, they won’t need many goals.  Last night the Coyotes scored four, but they only needed one, as Smith earned the shutout and “The Stat Line of the Night” for Monday, April 23, 2012.

The Barcelona players and their fans have gotten awfully used to beating Real Madrid during La Liga action, as they had not lost to their bitter rivals in a league match since May 7, 2008.  Cristiano Ronaldo’s goal in the 73rd minute on Saturday would help Real Madrid end that streak of futility, as they earned the 2-1 victory at Camp Nou and essentially secured this season’s La Liga title, their first since 2008.

As you may have expected, that turn of events didn’t sit too well with the Barcelona fans, and a few of them decided to take their anger out on one man in a Real Madrid jersey.  But just like Real fought back after watching Barca tie Saturday’s game at 1-1 in the 70th minute, this fan was also doing some fighting back of his own, as he retaliated with a massive right hand before being escorted out of the stadium by his friend.

Check it out.

It was on this day in 1974 that the NFL granted a franchise to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.  The Buccaneers, along with the Seattle Seahawks, joined the NFL as expansion teams for the start of the 1976 season.

The Buccaneers would endure a tough opening stretch to their NFL arrival, as they failed to win a game in their inaugural seasons, and didn’t win their first game until the 13th week of their second season.  At that point they had gone 26 straight games without a win, and their 0-14 season in 1976 was the worst in NFL history until 2008, when they were outdone by the Detroit Lions; 0-16 season.  Their first NFL regular season victory would come against the New Orleans Saints, who fired their head coach, Hank Stram, shortly after the loss.

The Bucs would endure some tough seasons, but in 1979 they became the first post-merger team to win a division title, win a playoff game, and host a conference championship game.  They have made the playoffs a total of ten times and in 2002 the franchise won their only Vince Lombardi Trophy, beating the Oakland Raiders in Super Bowl XXXVII.

Here is a recap of their 48-21 victory over the Raiders at Super Bowl XXXVII.

Notable Birthdays

Chipper Jones, MLB – Born on April 24, 1972 (age 40) in DeLand, Florida

Carlos Beltran, MLB – Born on April 24,1977 (age 35) in Manati, Puerto Rico

Alessandro Costacurta, Soccer – Born on April 24, 1966 (age 46) Orago, Italy

The not-so-peaceful elbow that Ron Artest, a.k.a. Metta World Peace, delivered to the head of James Harden was one of the most talked about stories in sports from the past weekend.  It would therefore only make sense for this wild on-court incident that unfolded during Sunday’s game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder to receive the Taiwanese animation treatment from the people at NMA World Edition.

Just when you thought it was impossible to make a Ron Artest story even more bizarre than initially perceived, the Taiwanese have proven us wrong with the following video.

Check it out.