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01/11/2007 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Flyers claimed goaltender Michael Leighton off waivers from the Nashville Predators on Thursday.
The 25-year-old Leighton gives the Flyers depth between the pipes should Antero Niittymaki or Robert Esche be sidelined by injury. Niittymaki and Esche have both missed time this season with injuries, forcing the team to call up netminders from the American Hockey League with no experience in the NHL.
"I think more than anything Michael is an insurance policy for us," said Philadelphia general manager Paul Holmgren. "We think that he is a good, young goalie. At times this year, we have run the risk of either Antero (Niittymaki) or Robert (Esche) being injured and then having to put a young goalie who, in our opinion, is clearly not ready for the NHL at this point in time into a game. Michael gives us insurance so that we won't expose ourselves like that. He will report to the Flyers, so we will have three goaltenders."
Leighton appeared in one game this season for Nashville allowing two goals in just 20 minutes of action. The Predators claimed him off waivers from the Anaheim Ducks in late November.
In three seasons in the league, Leighton is 8-21-14 with three shutouts, a 2.98 goals-against average and .901 save percentage in 43 games.
The Flyers also announced Thursday that they have reassigned forwards Eric Meloche and Stefan Ruzicka as well as defenseman Jussi Timonen to their American Hockey League affiliate, the Philadelphia Phantoms.
<< Utah Jazz
Signed guard C.J. Miles to Idaho (NBDL).
<< Nerud to receive Lifetime Achievement Award
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The National Thoroughbred Racing Association
(NTRA) has announced that Hall of Fame trainer John Nerud will receive the
Eclipse Award of Merit for a lifetime of outstanding achievement in
Thoroug
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New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Just as they both did a week ago, Yao
Ming of the Houston Rockets and Cleveland's LeBron James still lead their
respective conferences in votes received after the fourth and final returns
of the
<< Nuggets ship Boykins to Milwaukee
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Denver Nuggets dealt guard Earl Boykins to
the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday.
Forward Julius Hodge and cash considerations were also part of the deal in
exchange for guard Steve Blake.
The move was ma
Mets ink hurler Sanchez >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Mets have finalized a one-year
deal for pitcher Duaner Sanchez, general manager Omar Minaya announced on
Thursday.
"One of the main reasons why we accomplished what we did last year was be
Irish RB Walker declares for draft >>
South Bend, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Notre Dame junior running back Darius Walker
announced on Thursday he will forgo his senior year and will make himself
available for the 2007 NFL Draft.
"After much thought and discussion with my fami
Will Colts provide more misery to Baltimore fans? >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - M&T Bank Stadium will be filled with many memories and
emotions on Saturday when the Baltimore Ravens host the Indianapolis Colts in
the divisional round of the AFC playoffs.
Baltimore was once home for the Colts, who left
Magical Saints host playoff test against streaking Eagles >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 2006 season has already been a magical ride for the New
Orleans Saints. Now the NFL's best rags-to-riches story has the opportunity to
accomplish an unprecedented feat when it hosts the high-flying Philadelphia
Eagles in
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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NEW YORK (AP) -By staying away from the cupcakes, Southern California earned itself a slim new ranking.
No. 1 always seems to fit USC.
Southern California jumped two spots to No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 on Tuesday, rewarded by voters for opening the season with a dominant performance on the road against a BCS conference opponent.
Georgia and Ohio State, the preseason Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, started their seasons with glorified scrimmages at home against FCS (formerly I-AA) teams. USC, however, traveled across country to face Virginia and could not have been more impressive in a 52-7 victory.
Georgia fell to No. 2 and Ohio State to No 3.
"We realize that rankings so early in a season are certainly fluid. But rankings do help establish a pecking order for things later in the season," USC coach Pete Carroll said in a statement. "As for moving into the No. 1 spot, it's nice to know that people think highly of our team."
Since reaching No. 1 on Dec. 7, 2003, the final-regular season AP poll of that season, USC has been No. 1 in 39 polls, by far the most of any team during that time.
"Some have said the voters are taking our schedule into consideration," Carroll said. "Our philosophy has always been to schedule outstanding opponents. We need to play challenging games like we just did, traveling across the country to open the season at Virginia. Games like that bring out our best and make us stronger as a team."
The latest voting was close. USC received 21 first-place votes and 1,539 points from the 65-member media panel. Georgia had 20 first-place votes and 1,506 points. Ohio State got 15 first-place votes and 1,497 points.
"I'd say we've evolved as pollsters," said Stewart Mandel of SI.com, who moved USC up to No. 1. "In the past, voters just kind of automatically moved teams up and kept teams where they were if they won."
Georgia beat Georgia Southern 45-21 on Saturday and Ohio State opened with a 43-0 win over Youngstown State.
"There's a bit of a growing backlash for the amount of teams that open with I-AA cupcakes," said Mandel, whose book "Bowls, Polls and Tattered Souls" chronicles college football's controversies. "To see a team [USC] go on the road and play a New Year's Day bowl team from last season, and not only play them but destroy them, how could you not reward that team?"
USC also jumped past Georgia to No. 1 in the USA Today coaches' poll, which has the same top five as the AP poll.
"It's definitely a privilege to be No. 1. But it's not heartbreaking to me if we drop," Georgia offensive lineman Josh Davis said. "It doesn't matter right now what we're ranked. What matters is our next game and right now, that's Central Michigan. The only time the polls matter is in December. That's when the polls matter."
While the Bulldogs opened easy, their schedule ultimately should be as difficult as any team's. Georgia's big nonconference test is at No. 15 Arizona State on Sept. 20. The Bulldogs also face six Southeastern Conference rivals that've been ranked in the first two polls.
As for Ohio State, the Buckeyes play at USC on Sept. 13 before getting into the Big Ten schedule.
But of the teams in this week's top 10, USC and Texas are the only ones that don't play an FCS opponent, and the Trojans are the only team that doesn't play a team from a non-BCS conference.
Get the latest 2009 BCS Championship odds at MySportsbook.com.
The last team to drop from No. 1 after a victory was USC last season. LSU jumped from No. 2 to No. 1 when it beat Tulane 34-9, the same week the Trojans edged Washington 27-24 on the road.
The last preseason No. 1 team to lose the top spot after winning its opening game was Florida in 2001. The Gators beat Marshall 49-14, but preseason No. 2 Miami opened with a 33-7 victory over Penn State and the Hurricanes jumped to No. 1 with Florida slipping to second.
The next four teams in the new Top 25 stayed the same: No. 4 Oklahoma (two first-place votes), No. 5 Florida (five first-place votes), No. 6 Missouri (one first-place vote), No. 7 LSU (one first-place vote) and No. 8 West Virginia.
No. 9 Auburn and No. 10 Texas each moved up a spot, taking advantage of Clemson's big drop. Clemson, ninth in the preseason, fell out after losing 34-10 to Alabama on Saturday.
Also falling out after losses were Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh and Tennessee.
Moving into the rankings were No. 21 Fresno State, No. 22 Utah, No. 23 UCLA and No. 24 South Carolina.
Alabama moved up 11 spots after its big victory over Clemson.
The second 10 started with No. 11 Wisconsin, followed by Texas Tech, Alabama and Kansas. BYU and Arizona State were tied for 15th. Rivals BYU and Utah are both ranked for the first time since 1996.
South Florida was No. 17, ahead of Oregon, Penn State and Wake Forest at No. 20.
The final five were all the teams to move into the ranking, except for Illinois, which dropped four spots and tied South Carolina for No. 24.
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