Three Canadian teams are in action tonight and two factor into Friday's NHL playoff best bets.

The pregame narrative: The Edmonton Oilers head to Los Angeles in search of a 2-1 series lead over the Kings. I say they get it. Elsewhere, the New York Rangers are a good bet to win in regulation while the Colorado Avalanche and Winnipeg Jets should provide fireworks.

Check out my NHL best bets for April 26.

NHL best bets

Best Bet: Rangers 60-minute moneyline (-103)

The Washington Capitals are severely overmatched in this series.

Alexander Ovechkin and Co. snuck into the Eastern Conference's final playoff spot despite averaging 2.63 goals per game, the fifth-lowest mark in the league.

Their reward? Facing a Rangers team that won the President's Trophy behind the seventh-best offence and stellar goaltending.

The first two games have gone like everyone expected, as New York won both games in regulation, outscoring Washington, 8-4.

Even with this game being in D.C., I have a hard time seeing the Caps getting off the mat.

Washington is averaging 23.0 shots per game and will be tasked with beating Igor Shesterkin. The 2022 Vezina winner posted a 2.58 GAA this year to pair with a .913 save percentage.

Charlie Lindgren had a stellar regular season but has allowed eight goals on 58 shots this series (.862 SV%).

Key stat: New York is 4-2 against Washington this season, winning each game in regulation.

Quick picks

Oilers moneyline (-137): Edmonton dominated the series opener before a lifeless Game 2 performance. But I expect a much better effort from the Oil as the series heads to L.A.

Connor McDavid has feasted at Crypto.com Arena over the last two postseasons.

He has 11 points in six road playoff games against the Kings, and the Oilers have won four of those contests.

Stuart Skinner's shaky start is cause for concern but no team is more capable of winning track meets than Edmonton.

The Oilers averaged the fourth-most goals per game during the regular season and have scored 5.46 goals per game versus the Kings in their last 13 playoff meetings.

Jets/Avalanche over 6.5 goals (-105): Stopping the Avalanche at altitude is nearly impossible.

Colorado averaged a league-best 4.20 goals per game at home this season and went 31-9-1 in those games. It has already managed to score 11 goals against Connor Hellebuyck in this series and now gets to play in front of its home fans.

So why am I taking the over instead of betting Colorado moneyline? Goaltending.

Alexandar Georgiev stunk the joint out in Game 1, allowing seven goals on 23 shots (.696 SV%). He rebounded in Game 1 but had an awful .897 SV% in 63 starts this season, which isn't exactly a small sample size.

Both games have gone over this total and I expect another high-scoring affair tonight.

Picks made at 1:48 p.m. on 04/26/24.