NHL Tuesday best bets: Lightning to pounce on sitting Ducks

It was a successful weekend for our best bets as the Kings and Devils both came through for us.

Let's dive into a couple of the many games on Tuesday night's slate as we look to keep things moving in the right direction.

Ducks (+380) @ Lightning (-500)

The Anaheim Ducks are the NHL's worst defensive team. They rank dead last in suppressing shots, scoring chances, expected goals, and goals. In many cases, it's not even close.

They're always a team I'm looking to attack, especially in the latter half of a road back-to-back against a great team like the Tampa Bay Lightning.

There's not much juice worth the squeeze on the moneyline or puckline, so we're going to attack the first-period market, which will be a common theme.

The Ducks have conceded 71 first-period goals this season, the second most in the NHL. For perspective, the Canucks (75) are the only other team that's allowed even 60 goals in the opening frame. Anaheim is always falling behind early.

It just so happens that the Ducks' opponent, Tampa Bay, leads the NHL in first-period goals scored despite playing a couple of games fewer than all of the teams surrounding the Bolts up top.

The Lightning have significantly more firepower, are better defensively, and have a big edge between the pipes with Andrei Vasilevskiy set to match up against Lukas Dostal.

Given the Lightning's first-period prowess, and the fact that they're coming off back-to-back defeats, I expect them to come out flying and get an early jump on this putrid Ducks side.

Bet: Lightning first period -0.5 (-120)

Golden Knights (-290) @ Blackhawks (+240)

No Mark Stone, no problem. The Vegas Golden Knights have quietly picked up five consecutive wins - including victories over playoff teams like the Lightning and Wild - and sit tied for the top spot in the Western Conference.

On Tuesday night, they get a date with a tanking Chicago Blackhawks team that, despite winning its last couple of contests, remains level with the Ducks for dead last in the West.

This is a huge mismatch on paper and, if the first 50-plus games are any indication, it should shine through very early in this contest.

The Golden Knights are a veteran-heavy team that consistently starts on time. They rank in the top five in first-period goals and top five in first-period goals against; no other team can say the same.

Conversely, the Blackhawks rank dead last in opening-frame goals and 30th in goals against. They're having a miserable time at both ends of the ice, which isn't exactly surprising given the lack of talent on their roster.

The Golden Knights, who rank fifth in expected goal share over the last 10 games, should be able to dominate the run of play from the offset.

Assuming that's the case, it shouldn't take too long to break through Petr Mrazek. He owns a .885 save percentage and ranks near the bottom of the league in Goals Saved Above Expected. Suffice it to say, he's not the kind of goaltender who's going to keep his team in games it doesn't belong in.

Expect the red-hot Golden Knights to start fast in this one.

Bet: Golden Knights first period -0.5 (+100))

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