Tuesday night brings another busy slate across the NBA and NHL, with several teams looking to build momentum as the regular season winds down. With playoff races tightening and travel spots starting to stack up, tonight’s matchups present bettors with a mix of contenders, desperate bubble teams and potential value on the board. Here are tonight’s best bets brought to you by BetOnline.ag. Click here to join. All new players get a 50% welcome bonus and up to $250 in free bets.
First Pick: Over 5.5 Goals
Rundown: The Los Angeles Kings (26-23-14) look to secure back-to-back road wins as they are set to face off with the Boston Bruins (35-22-6) in a cross-conference matchup from TD Garden.
Los Angeles enters the matchup coming off a thrilling 5-4 overtime victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets, capped off by a game-winning goal by leading-scorer Adrian Kempe. The win provided two pivotal points for Los Angeles as they look to secure a wild card spot in the crowded Western Conference. The Kings have been exceptional away from Crypto.com Arena this season, posting a record of 16-8-7 on the road in 31 games. Despite scoring the fourth-fewest goals per games (2.60) this season, Los Angeles has seen in uptick in offensive production in recent games — scoring 13 goals in the last three contests. The Kings will look to even the season-series after falling 2-1 in overtime to Boston back in November.
On the other end of the ice, Boston has been prolific on home-ice — posting a 12-0-1 record in the last 13 games at TD Garden and owning a 24-8-1 overall home record this season. David Pasternak continues to be the driving force for Boston, leading the team in points with 75 (23G, 52A). Similar to Los Angeles, Boston is fighting for a wild card spot as they currently reside in the eighth and final slot in the Eastern Conference. Los Angeles' victory over Columbus Monday helped Boston's efforts as the regular season winds down.
With two teams fighting for playoff positioning, expect tonight's contest to be high-energy — leading to a shootout at TD Garden.
Second Pick: Los Angeles Lakers +2.5
Rundown: The Los Angeles Lakers (39-25) hit the middle game of a five-game home stretch as they host the Minnesota Timberwolves (40-24) in a Western Conference battle from Crypto.com Arena.
Los Angeles searches for its third consecutive win while Minnesota is looking to rebound after from Saturday's blowout loss to the Orlando Magic. The Lakers have captured four straight victories at home and own a 20-12 overall record behind the LA faithful this season. Superstar guard Luka Doncic continues to pave the way for the Los Angeles offense, leading the NBA in points per game (32.5) and third in assists per game (8.4). LA could be without LeBron James, as he is questionable for tonight's matchup with an elbow injury.
Prior to the loss against Orlando, Minnesota won five straight games with 24-year-old Anthony Edwards leading the team in scoring in each of the victories. Edwards continues to improve since entering the league in 2020, posting his best offensive output in his career averaging 29.6 points per game. The Timberwolves currently own the third best record in the Western Conference, sitting 0.5 game above the Houston Rockets. These two teams could meet in the first round of the NBA playoffs if Denver were to leapfrog Los Angeles for the fifth seed in the West.
With a playoff-atmosphere on the horizon, expect Los Angeles to play with intensity behind the home fans and keep this matchup within one possession.
