NHL Best Bets 4/21/26 – Playoffs Round One

Tampa Bay Lightning forward high fives his teammates after a big goal scoring a goal.

Let's set the table first. Raddysh posted 22 goals and 48 assists for 70 points in 73 games this season — nearly doubling his career totals in both goals and points within a single year. That placed him fourth on the entire Tampa Bay Lightning roster in scoring, behind only Kucherov, Guentzel, and Hagel — from the blue line, as an undrafted defenseman who spent years bouncing between the AHL and the NHL. He finished seventh in scoring among all NHL defensemen and sixth in points per game, Daily Faceoff and he did it with a shot that genuinely frightens people. Raddysh led the entire NHL in shots over 90 mph with 97 — nearly double the second-place player's 48 NHL — and that cannon on the point translates directly into assists when teammates are crashing the net for rebounds and deflections. Not a bad set up for an NHL best bet.

And now, with Hedman out, Raddysh will continue to be Tampa Bay's top defenseman. That position can make or break a playoff run, so Raddysh will need to step up to prove he can be the Lightning's number one moving forward. Raddysh scored Tampa's first goal of the 2026 playoffs in Game 1 — a powerful slap shot that tied the game at 1-1 in the second period. He was active, engaged, and clearly not inhibited by any playoff nerves. The goal came in a losing effort, and Tampa is now in desperation mode down 1-0 in the series. A team that scored 3.49 goals per game this season and has Kucherov, Guentzel, and Hagel up front will not go quietly.

The situation worsened when Charles-Edouard D'Astous exited Game 1 after a hit, leaving Tampa's defensive unit even thinner. Yahoo Sports D'Astous is confirmed out for Game 2, with Carlile drawing in for his playoff debut. NHL Fewer healthy defensemen means Raddysh logs even more minutes tonight than he did in Game 1. More minutes equals more offensive zone time, more power play shifts, and more opportunities to set up the Kucherovs and Guentzels who are itching to get even after dropping the opener at home.Today we will lean into his assist. You can also take him for 3 SOG + a point if you think he will continue his scoring ways. But either way you slice it, Raddysh looks primed to be part of our NHL best bets tonight.

Avalanche forwards Gabriel Landeskog and Nathan Mackinnon celebrate after scoring a goal.

Before anything else, one important caveat to acknowledge: Landeskog was held pointless in Game 1 despite Colorado winning 2-1, and the Avalanche went 0-for-4 on the power play CBS Sports — the unit he anchors. That's real. But here's why Game 2 is a completely different picture.

This is the entire bet in one sentence: Colorado went 0-for-4 on the power play in Game 1 against a Kings team that finished with one of the league's worst penalty kills. That will not happen again. Colorado led the entire NHL with 3.63 goals per game this season, Daily Faceoff running a machine of an offense built around MacKinnon, Makar, Necas and a loaded supporting cast. Their power play has not been one of the league's most dangerous all season. But a 0-for-4 night is the kind of statistical outlier that almost always corrects itself immediately — and when that power play starts clicking, Landeskog is positioned directly in the middle of it.

The Kings had the fourth-worst goals-per-game rate in the entire NHL this season — the worst of any playoff team — at 2.68. Daily Faceoff Meanwhile, Colorado is the highest-scoring team in the league. LA's path to winning this series is keeping it close and grinding, which means they will need to take risks offensively in a must-stay-alive Game 2 on the road. More open play, more penalties drawn by Colorado's speed, and more power play opportunities for Landeskog to cash in on. Especially as Colorado's depth at forward can do laps around the Kings defensive core. And those mismatches should come in play at 5on5. Landeskog is a on a strong 3rd line with Kardi at center, making this an NHL best bet.