08/14/2008 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Flyers reached an agreement with head coach John Stevens on a two-year contract extension on Thursday.
Per club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.
"I am very excited," Stevens said. "This is something that we talked about in the early part of the summer. We knew that it was just a matter of time before we got it done. I love being a part of this organization and the direction that the team is heading."
Stevens, who had agreed to a one-year contract extension worth a reported $650,000 in December, finished his first full season behind the bench with a 42-29-11 record, good enough for fourth place in the Atlantic Division and a sixth-seed in the postseason.
However, the 42-year-old led his club to a surprise berth the Eastern Conference finals, one season removed from having the worst record in the NHL.
"John is very deserving of this contract," said Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren. "He is a very energetic coach who brings a lot of enthusiasm and passion to the game, and we look forward to working together over the next few years."
Since his hiring on October 22, 2006, Stevens has compiled a 63-71-22 mark in 156 games, his first foray into the NHL coaching ranks after a successful tenure in the American Hockey League.
Prior to his elevation with the big club, Stevens was the head coach for the Flyers' AHL affiliate -- the Philadelphia Phantoms -- for six seasons (2000-06), compiling a 230-181-33-25 record to go along with 29 playoff wins and a Calder Cup championship in 2005.
<< Saints DT Thomas out two months
Metairie, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New Orleans Saints defensive tackle Hollis
Thomas suffered a right triceps injury in practice on Wednesday that will
sideline him about two months.
A starter for much of his two seasons with New Orlea
<< Blake ousts Federer from Olympics; Williams sisters out of singles
Beijing, China (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - James Blake has finally slayed the dragon.
The eighth-seeded Blake had been 0-8 against Super Swiss Roger Federer going
into Thursday's tennis quarterfinal match at the Olympics, but the American
pulled out
<< Penguins break ground on new arena
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Penguins broke ground on
their new arena Thursday.
The new multi-purpose facility, which is located beside Mellon Arena, is
slated to open in time for the 2010-11 season.
Among
<< Playoff hopefuls conclude set in South Beach
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Cardinals have to be frustrated with the way
the red-hot Milwaukee Brewers have been playing lately. The Cardinals are four
games behind the Brewers in the NL Wild Card standings, but their Central
division riva
Coyotes ink Perreault >>
Glendale, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Phoenix Coyotes re-signed center Joel
Perreault to a two-year contract on Thursday.
The 6-foot-1, 197-pound Perreault appeared in 49 games for the Coyotes last
season and notched seven goals and 10
Proud Spell and Music Note highlight Alabama Stakes >>
Saratoga Springs, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Proud Spell and Music Note, two of
this year's leading three-year-old fillies, top a field of six for Saturday's
128th running of the $600,000 Alabama at Saratoga Race Course. The 1 1/4-mile
race is
Padres' Young back on DL >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Padres placed pitcher Chris
Young on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to August 11, with a strained
right forearm on Thursday.
The righty suffered the injury on Sunday in the Padr
Nationals' top pick Crow signs with Fort Worth team >>
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Right-handed pitcher Aaron Crow, the
Washington Nationals' top pick, ninth overall, in this year's draft, has
signed a deal with the Fort Worth Cats of the American Association.
The Nationals
March Madness odds and printable March Madness brackets
With the field of 64/65 set, MySportsbook.com has the Florida Gators as the 4-1 favorite to successfully defend their National Championship. Men’s Division-1 College Basketball has not seen a team repeat as National Champions since Duke won back to back championships in ’91 & ‘92. After losing three out of four late in the season, the Gators are full of momentum as they won their last four games by an average of 18 points. Not surprisingly, right behind the Gators are the other three top seeds: Kansas 5-1, UNC 6-1, and Ohio State 7-1. Many consider Kansas to be the hottest team in the country, having won 11 straight. With Kansas, it is hard to ignore all of the early exits from the “dance” in recent years. With an impressive ACC Tournament, UNC ensured themselves the other top seed. UNC has about as much talent as any other team in the tournament but with a team that’s best players are primarily freshman and sophomores, could youth be a concern. Behind freshman sensation, Greg Oden, OSU will look to do what their football team failed to do just a few months earlier. OSU seems to have peeked at the right time, as they currently have a 17 game winning streak. Since the tournament field was expanded in 1985, there has never been an instance where all four #1 seeds advanced to the Final Four. It is obvious that each of the top seeds have the talent to make it through to Atlanta. But as everyone knows, when makes the NCAA Tournament so special are all of the spoilers and “Cinderella” stories that knock off the favorites on a daily basis.
Be sure to logon to MySportsbook.com to see check out all of the early lines and “March Madness” props. Also be sure to enter the “$10,000,000 Perfect Bracket Contest”. If someone has the skills to predict every winner, they will be set for life and walk away with $10,000,000. Even if no one can cash in on the Grand Prize, with a $35,000 guaranteed prize pool and a Mazda RX-8 to the first prize winner, Sportsbook.com’s bracket is a must for all “March Madness” fans.
MySportsbook.com’s odds to win the Championship and Regions:
| EAST | National Championship | Region |
| Arkansas | 300-1 | 50-1 |
| Belmont | 1000-1 | |
| Boston College | 100-1 | 40-1 |
| Eastern KY | 1000-1 | |
| George Washington | 75-1 | |
| Georgetown | 10-1 | 3-2 |
| Marquette | 100-1 | 40-1 |
| Michigan State | 100-1 | 25-1 |
| New Mexico St. | 500-1 | 200-1 |
| UNC | 6-1 | 6-5 |
| Oral Roberts | 500-1 | |
| Texas | 15-1 | 5-1 |
| Texas Tech | 200-1 | 5-1 |
| USC | 75-1 | 20-1 |
| Vanderbilt | 100-1 | 30-1 |
| Washington State | 40-1 | 15-1 |
| WEST | ||
| Duke | 50-1 | 10-1 |
| Florida A&M | 1000-1 | |
| Gonzaga | 200-1 | 40-1 |
| Holy Cross | 300-1 | |
| Illinois | 300-1 | 60-1 |
| Indiana | 75-1 | 40-1 |
| Kansas | 5-1 | 13-10 |
| Kentucky | 100-1 | 40-1 |
| Niagara | 1000-1 | |
| Pittsburgh | 40-1 | 8-1 |
| Southern Ill. | 50-1 | 12-1 |
| UCLA | 10-1 | 3-2 |
| VCU | 500-1 | 100-1 |
| Villanova | 100-1 | 40-1 |
| VA Tech | 50-1 | 15-1 |
| Weber St | 1000-1 | |
| Wright St | 1000-1 | 300-1 |
| MIDWEST | ||
| Arizona | 50-1 | 30-1 |
| Butler | 40-1 | 30-1 |
| Davidson | 300-1 | |
| Florida | 4-1 | 4-5 |
| Georgia Tech | 75-1 | 25-1 |
| Jackson State | 1000-1 | |
| Maryland | 30-1 | 6-1 |
| Miami-OH | 300-1 | |
| Notre Dame | 100-1 | 20-1 |
| ODU | 500-1 | 100-1 |
| Oregon | 40-1 | 6-1 |
| Purdue | 300-1 | 60-1 |
| Texas A&M CC | 1000-1 | |
| UNLV | 100-1 | 30-1 |
| Winthrop | 500-1 | 100-1 |
| Wisconsin | 15-1 | 7-2 |
| SOUTH | ||
| Albany | 200-1 | |
| BYU | 200-1 | 40-1 |
| Central CT St. | 1000-1 | |
| Creighton | 100-1 | 35-1 |
| Long Beach St. | 500-1 | 200-1 |
| Louisville | 40-1 | 10-1 |
| Memphis | 30-1 | 4-1 |
| Nevada | 75-1 | 35-1 |
| North Texas | 500-1 | |
| Ohio State | 7-1 | 6-5 |
| Penn | 500-1 | |
| Stanford | 200-1 | 50-1 |
| Tennessee | 100-1 | 20-1 |
| Texas A&M | 12-1 | 11-5 |
| Virginia | 75-1 | 18-1 |
| Xavier | 100-1 | 40-1 |
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