As sports betting continues to expand in popularity, so too does the popularity of wagering on the NHL. Billions of people bet online each year, so it stands to reason that professional hockey — one of the most popular sports in the world — sees plenty of action.
Interested in joining the millions of hockey fans who bet on the NHL? Here’s everything you need to know, from important events to understanding odds, different kinds of bets, and more.
How to bet on the NHL: A guide to betting on hockey
Reading hockey betting odds
The most important thing to know in sports betting is how to understand the odds. Hockey odds are pretty straightforward once you know the three basic terms:
- moneyline
- puck line
- over/under total
These are oddsmakers’ projections for how a game will turn out, including winner/loser, margin of victory, and final score combined goals. Let’s go into a little more detail before we proceed.
Moneyline
Moneylines are simple: it’s a number — either positive or negative — assigned to each team in a set matchup. That number represents each team’s odds to win. When bettors pick the straight-up winner of the game and put money on it, they’re betting the moneyline.
The negative number (usually -105 or greater) typically represents the odds for the favorite, also known as the team that the sportsbooks expect to win. The positive number (typically +100 or greater) represents the odds for the underdog, or the team less likely to win the game.
You will always win less of a payout on a winning bet with negative odds, and profit more on the payout of a winning bet with positive odds.
Moneylines allow oddsmakers to set and tweak odds for games based on each team’s implied win probability. No sportsbook would ever give you 2-to-1 odds on an outright winner if that team was widely known to be the superior of the two in a matchup.
We often see lopsided or uneven matchups in the NHL, even in the playoffs. Moneyline odds allow bettors to pick straight winners and also enable sportsbooks to limit their liabilities attached to the overwhelming favorites.
How to read a moneyline
Reading moneylines is simple. Favorites have negative (-) odds, with the number indicating how much you would need to risk to profit $100 with a win. Underdogs have plus (+) odds, with the number indicating what you would win on a $100 bet.
Let’s say you have some interest in betting the Panthers over the Blackhawks. If Florida is listed as a -350 favorite, that means you would need to risk $350 to net a profit of $100 if the Panthers win.
If you think the Blackhawks will pull off a miraculous upset, you could bet $100 on them at +350 and walk away with a $350 profit if Chicago indeed pulls off the W.
Puck line
Another way for oddsmakers to set odds for an NHL game is through the puck line. This is the process by which oddsmakers analyze both teams in a matchup, consider their strengths, weaknesses, and other factors, and assign a spread that predicts how much the favorite will win by.
The puck line is almost always -1.5 goals for the favorite and +1.5 for the underdog because hockey is so low-scoring. The favorite at -1.5 will have varying levels of odds attached to it, based on the multiple factors oddsmakers consider in the head-to-head matchup.
Betting the puck line swaps out the moneyline odds for goals. The favorite has goals taken away from it — usually listed at -1.5 — and the underdog receives those goals (+1.5).
If a team is projected to win, that favorite must win by two goals to cover the spread. Similarly, teams projected to lose can only cover if that underdog either (a) wins or (b) loses by fewer than two goals.
Let’s go back to the hypothetical Panthers-Blackhawks game. Florida would be listed as a -1.5 favorite with some juice, as it would be a heavy favorite. Chicago would be +1.5 with plus odds because it’s widely expected to lose the game.
If the Panthers win by two, they win and cash all the -1.5 puck-line bets on Florida. If Chicago wins — or loses by one — it rewards its +1.5 puck-line backers with a winning payout.
Over/under total
People love betting the over/under, also known as the total, and the majority of casual bettors almost always prefer to bet the OVER. Betting the total is simple: the sportsbook lists a projected total for a game, and you either bet on the two teams to finish with a combined score OVER or UNDER that total.
This couldn’t be more simple. If the total combined score winds up higher than the projected total, then the OVER wins. If the final score total is lower than the projected total, then the UNDER wins.
Parlay betting
Parlays are wildly popular. In short, parlays allow bettors to combine multiple bets (legs) in one big bet for a larger potential payout. The odds of winning are longer because all bets in the parlay must win for the entire parlay to cash out even a penny. Thus, the potential reward is greater.
Bettors only need to combine two legs to make a parlay, but the most popular parlays tend to be in the range of 3-5 legs. With every additional wager bettors add to parlays, the risk becomes bigger and therefore the potential payout becomes greater.
Sportsbooks typically allow bettors to add between two and 12 games in a hockey parlay. Some books will also allow you to incorporate player or game props, also known as over/under stat props.
How to calculate a parlay payout
Now that you know the definition of a parlay and how you can bet one, let’s quickly break down how to calculate a parlay bet value.
Once you figure out the odds for each matchup, bet, or prop, just divide what the total payout would be by the bet amount.
Let’s imagine a $100 parlay bet on these teams:
Panthers (-150)
Devils (+170)
Rangers (-120)
Florida: -150 to win 100 with a payout of $250 250/150 = 1.6666
New Jersey: +170 to win 170, with a payout of $270 270/100 = 2.7
New York: -120 to win 100, with a payout of $220 220/120 = 1.8333E
Each of those three numbers we calculated is your multiplier. Now, just multiply those numbers to get your parlay odds. 1.6666 x 2.7 x 1.8333 = 8.2495
That final number is 8.25, meaning your winnings would work out to be 7.25 for every dollar you bet on that particular parlay. Translation: your $100 bet just turned into a $725 win.
If you hate math or just don’t want to go through the bother of calculating your parlay odds manually each time, have no fear. Most sportsbooks do the legwork for you, and you can also find a ton of independent parlay calculators all over the Internet.
Player prop betting
Player prop betting has become wildly popular, much like fantasy sports has risen to such popularity since the turn of the 21st century. Props allow you to bet on a player, team, or game going OVER or UNDER a set statistical amount.
You can bet over/under player props on all sorts of statistics. You can also bet yes/no props for various hypothetical situations, like “Will the Maple Leafs’ Auston Matthews record a hat trick?” or “Will Cale Makar lead the Avalanche in assists?”
Futures betting
Another fun method of betting on the NHL is the futures market, which allows you to bet on whether or not something will happen in the future. You can place futures bets on teams to win the Stanley Cup, the Eastern or Western Conference titles, or even a division.
You can also bet on players to win NHL awards like the Hart Trophy or Vezina Trophy. As these are far less likely to predict way ahead of time, these futures bets often yield longer odds and therefore carry much higher potential payouts.
What are some common sports betting terms?
- Action – Any wager, or any bet you have on any game.
- Bonus – Funds or free bets rewarded or gifted via promotions run by a sportsbook.
- Book – Sportsbook. An establishment that accepts wagers on the outcome of sports events.
- Chalk – Favorite. “Betting the chalk” is putting money on the projected winner.
- Cover – When the favorite wins by more than 1.5 goals or when the underdog loses by less than the 1.5 goals (covering the “puck line” or “spread”).
- Dog – Underdog. The team projected to lose, always getting 1.5 goals and usually yielding plus moneyline odds.
- Futures – Wagers placed on the outcome of something in the future, like an award, a championship, or a statistical title.
- Handicapper – Someone who studies and wagers on sporting events.
- Handle – Total amount of wagers taken on a sporting event.
- Hold – The percentage amount the sportsbook makes.
- Hedging – Betting the opposite team or side of your original wager in order to either try to middle the game, or to reduce the downside exposure of the original wager.
- Hook – A half point, used by sportsbooks to avoid a push (no betting win or loss).
- Juice – A commission built into the line offerings, also known as “vig” or “vigorish.”
- Laying the Price – To bet the favorite by laying moneyline odds.
- Limit – The maximum wager accepted by the sportsbook on a particular line offering.
- Line – The current odds or point spread offered on a particular game.
- Linesmaker (Oddsmaker) – Professional who establishes the probability of one team defeating another. Oddsmakers create the line and run line.
- Long shot – A team heavily expected to lose.
- Moneyline bet – A bet on the straight-up winner of a game, underdog or favorite.
- Off the board – A game, prop, or future in which the sportsbook is not accepting any wagers.
- Overlay – The odds of a particular wagering proposition are higher than they should be.
- Over/Under (total) bet – Wager that applies to the final score/total goals in a given contest.
- Parlay – A combination of straight bets to increase potential payout. All selections must win for the bet to win.
- Pick ’em – Neither team is favored, meaning the game is considered a toss-up for betting purposes. Pick’em odds usually hover around the -105 to -115 range.
- Price – Line or odds of a game or wager.
- Prop bet – A wager on a specific event happening or not happening in a game, usually involving stats. Example: Will Connor McDavid record 3 points?
- Puck line –The forecasted 1.5-goal differential between two teams. A minus (-) indicates the favorite and a plus (+) is the underdog. Odds vary for either side of every puck line.
- Rollover – The required amount of real-money wagers a player has to accumulate after they have accepted a bonus from a sportsbook in order to qualify for a withdrawal.
- Round Robin – A method of parlaying two or more teams in all possible team parlay combinations. For example, a three-team round robin of ABC can produce three separate two-team parlays: AB, AC and BC.
Frequently asked questions
What do the plus (+) and minus (-) mean in NHL betting?
The plus (+) and minus (-) in sports betting refers to either the point spread or betting odds.
Puck lines
With puck lines, the ” – ” always refers to the favorite and the ” + ” always refers to the underdog. The favorite is giving goals to the underdog, who in turn is getting points. To cover the puck line, the fave needs to win by more than 1.5 goals. The underdog doesn’t need to win to cover — it can cover by simply losing by less 1.5.
Moneyline
Favorites usually have a ” – ” unless it’s a pick’em (coin-flip) and both teams have negative odds. But in most cases, the favorite will have a ” – ” in front of its moneyline odds while the underdog will have a “+ .” Moneyline betting has nothing to do with the winning or losing margin but everything to do with wins and losses. Minus odds tell you how much you will need to risk in order to win $100. Plus odds tell you how much you will make on a $100 bet.
What is a “unit” in sports betting?
A unit in sports betting is a measurement of the size of a given bet. It’s mainly used because everyone’s bankroll is different and a unit refers to the percentage of a bankroll, aka the amount of money are using to spend on sports betting. One unit is usually equal to one percent of a bankroll, though it’s not the same for everyone.
All bettors — especially new ones — should establish bankrolls. You should always bet within your means and with an amount that you are comfortable or capable of losing.
Here’s an example of a unit: If your bankroll is $1,000, one unit would be $10 or 1%. In this situation, if someone puts three units on a wager with a sports betting app, it would be a $30 bet. When someone recommends betting 3-5 units on a wager, they are saying they are quite confident in the win probability of that wager.
What is the 2-5 rule in betting?
Many bankroll management theories exist, so it’s up to you to decide which theory or strategy works best for you. The Kelly Criterion, aka the 2-5 rule, suggests that bettors should never risk more than 2-5 percent of their bankroll per wager.
Example: If you’re starting the basketball season with a $500 bankroll, the 2-5 rule would say that your largest bet should be no greater than $25. Your bet size would then decrease as your bankroll does.
Where is online betting on the NHL legal?
More than 30 states (and Washington D.C.) have already legalized online sports betting, and more states have already begun the framework to legalization.
The states in which online sports betting is already legal include:
- Arizona
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New York
- Ohio
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Tennessee
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wyoming
What is a good return on investment (ROI) in NHL betting?
Even a professional will say that simply doubling your money on a bet is a positive. Others prefer lower-risk, lower-reward wagers in which they walk away with 10 percent or 20 percent profit. Everyone’s different, just like every bankroll is different.
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