NHL Tuesday best bets: Sabres to rebound vs. Blackhawks

Tuesday features an eight-game NHL slate. Let's explore a couple of plays that stand out from the pack.

Sabres (-175) @ Blackhawks (+150)

The Sabres enter this game on a 1-4-0 run and desperately need points as they look to remain firmly in the Eastern Conference playoff race. They should be able to get what they need against the Blackhawks.

In a season with some unbelievably bad teams in the league basement, the Blackhawks continue to make a strong case as the very worst. They're completely inept offensively at five-on-five, ranking 32nd in both expected and actual goals per 60 minutes.

Chicago also struggles on the defensive side of things, ranking 29th in goals against per 60 minutes at five-on-five.

Even on the tail end of a back-to-back, Buffalo should be able to play on its front foot for much of this game.

The Sabres are far better at full strength, have significantly more high-end talent, and a great deal of youth. One would think that will serve them well in a back-to-back situation; they can recover quicker and should have more gas in the tank.

Buffalo secured an overtime win when these teams met earlier in the season - and a well-deserved one at that. The Sabres generated 31 more shot attempts, 14 more scoring chances, and eight more high-danger scoring opportunities than their opponents.

Even more impressive was the fact the Sabres did that with a banged-up blue line featuring Kale Clague, Lawrence Pilut, and Casey Fitzgerald; none of those three should be in the lineup Tuesday.

With a much healthier defense, Buffalo is better equipped to slow down Chicago's meager offense - the Sabres allowed three goals on 26 shots in the previous meeting - and should spend more time on the attack.

Though Petr Mrazek starting would have been the icing on the cake, Blackhawks netminder Alex Stalock has conceded three goals or more in four of five appearances and looks to be coming back down to earth after a hot run.

Bet: Sabres in regulation (-120)

Ducks (+170) @ Flyers (-200)

Backing an under is always a scary proposition in Ducks games. Anaheim's defense is so putrid that any opponent can potentially surpass the game total singlehandedly.

That being said, value is value - and there's value on the under in this contest. The goaltending matchup hardly seems high-end on paper, but there could be more to it than that.

Samuel Ersson has played very well since joining the Flyers on a full-time basis. Through six appearances, he owns a 4-0-0 record and a .917 save percentage, which is well above the league average of .900.

It's unlikely Ersson is as good as he's shown thus far, but the bottom-feeding Ducks are probably not the team to slow him down.

Anthony Stolarz, meanwhile, is better than his surface stats suggest. He's conceded minus-0.068 goals above expected on a per-start basis, which means he's stopping what he should; that's not an easy task playing behind a Ducks team that depends heavily on its netminders.

John Gibson, in comparison, has conceded almost 0.40 goals more than expected on a per-start basis. Stolarz has clearly outperformed him.

Though Anaheim tends to bring out the best in opposing offenses, the Flyers slot 24th in shots per game and 26th in goals per game. Philadelphia is hardly a team Stolarz can't keep in check.

Expect a 4-1 or 3-2 game for the under.

Bet: Under 6 (-105)

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