NHL Tuesday best bets: Road warriors

Monday night was very quiet in the NHL world, with just one game - played between a pair of non-playoff sides - on the schedule.

It's a much different story Tuesday, as we have a whopping 14-game slate to look forward to.

We'll use our best bets to focus on a pair of road teams that desperately need points. Let's dive in.

The Los Angeles Kings are in the midst of a three-game losing streak, which is far from ideal considering they're fighting for their playoff lives.

Luckily for them, they're in the ultimate get-right spot against the Chicago Blackhawks. The Blackhawks dropped eight of their last 10 games, posting some truly putrid underlying numbers.

At five-on-five, they've conceded 14.93 high-danger chances per 60 minutes, placing them ahead of only the lowly Montreal Canadiens in that time. Their share of the high-danger chances sits below 40%.

That spells trouble against this Kings team. Los Angeles generated high-danger chances at a more efficient rate over the last 10 than everyone but the Florida Panthers, Boston Bruins, and Edmonton Oilers. Its share of the high-danger chances sits at over 51% - nearly 11% clear of Chicago.

While the Kings' goaltending has been a problem of late, the same can be said for the Blackhawks. Chicago will turn to journeyman netminder Collin Delia, who's posted a mediocre .905 save percentage in the AHL this season. He'll likely have a tough time given how effective Los Angeles has been at generating top-tier scoring opportunities.

Look for the Kings to get back on track.

Bet: Kings (-145)

Not long ago, the Vegas Golden Knights were in a cold spell that seemed destined to cost them any chance of a playoff spot. They've righted the ship to get back within striking distance, winning six of the last seven games.

They're full value for their recent success, controlling upward of 54% of the expected goals and more than 57% of the high-danger chances at five-on-five. Those are powerhouse numbers.

The Vancouver Canucks have loosely hung around in the playoff race as well, but they don't have much more to offer than capable goaltending right now. Their share of the expected goals sits below 50% over the last 10 games, and they've controlled only 44.8% of the high-danger chances.

Vegas should be able to get the better of Vancouver at five-on-five, just as it did in each of their two previous meetings this month.

Captain Mark Stone has a realistic chance of rejoining the lineup for this game, which would make the red-hot Golden Knights even better at both ends of the ice and further increase the gulf between these two teams.

Thatcher Demko is more than capable of keeping the Canucks in games they don't belong in, however, which is why I'm electing not to go with a regulation play.

Bet: Golden Knights (-140)

Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.

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