NHL betting isn’t quite as popular as betting on other sports, like NBA, NFL, or MLB betting, all of which attract more than 50% of U.S. sports bettors each year. However, surveys suggest that about one-third of American sports bettors participate in hockey betting. Interested in joining them? Learning how to bet on NHL games can get you off to a great start.
Figuring out how to bet on the NHL can confuse those who’ve never done it. But our betting guide can help you understand how NHL odds work and show you how to bet on hockey from every angle. Discover more about NHL betting lines and find the betting strategies below.
How Does NHL Betting Work?
It’s tricky explaining how NHL betting works because of all the different types of bets that hockey fans can place. But that’s also one of the things making wagering on NHL games so much fun. When betting on hockey, you can choose to take moneyline bets, puck line bets, over/under bets, player prop bets, and more.
While in basketball, for example, bettors can bet on actions like points scored, assists, three-pointers, and blocks, in hockey, those actions may include the number of goals scored, the first/last team to score, the time the game will end, and more.
The key to developing a strong NHL betting strategy is having the hockey lines explained and then committing to knowing how to dissect them. It’ll put you in a better position to pinpoint and pounce on NHL betting trends.
How To Place a Bet on NHL Games
Before we explain the ins and outs of NHL betting markets, you need to know how to bet on ice hockey games. To start, search for a reputable hockey sports betting site that will allow you to participate in ice hockey or NHL betting online. Register for an account with a site specializing in NHL sports betting and make your first deposit while taking advantage of any available sign-up bonuses.
From there, take these steps to begin betting on hockey and using all the great NHL gambling options you’ll find:
- Click the “NHL” tab on an ice hockey betting site.
- Look through the NHL hockey betting options on offer.
- Choose the hockey bets you like and research them.
- Pick the NHL bet that delivers the best odds.
- Confirm your bet.
Learning how to bet on the NHL online is as simple as that.
NHL Betting Lines Explained - Main Hockey Bets
While finding out how to bet on hockey isn’t hard, coming up with surefire hockey betting strategies can cause complications. We would like to offer one piece of NHL betting advice that can help simplify things: Get a good overview of the different NHL betting lines and markets. Understand exactly what you’re betting on and the risks and rewards you face.
Once you get the hang of it, there’s nothing quite like hockey betting online, but you’ll need to know how to bet on NHL games using NHL team totals, NHL live betting, NHL game and player props, and more. Here’s more information about the main hockey wagers you can place.
Moneyline or Straight Bets
Moneyline bets, also known as straight bets, are the easiest bets to make in any sport, including NHL hockey. When you place a moneyline bet, you’ll wager on one NHL team to beat another NHL team straight up. You bet on the game outright - who will win or lose the game. You’ll just need to make sure you’ve had NHL odds explained so you know how much you stand to win with a moneyline bet.
Let’s say, for example, you want to wager on an upcoming Florida Panthers vs. Boston Bruins matchup. Simply make your way to the NHL section of an ice hockey betting site, and you should see this game along with money line odds for it:
- Florida Panthers -144
- Boston Bruins +128
The Panthers are the betting favorite in this case, so you would need to wager $144 on them to win $100. The Bruins are the betting underdog, so you could win $128 by betting $100 on them.
60-Minute Line or Three-Way Market
NHL games used to end in ties, but the league changed its rules to prevent ties from happening. Still, you can factor ties into the equation when you choose to place 60-minute lines, also known as three-way markets. Here is an example of the 60-minute money line for a Florida Panthers vs. Boston Bruins game:
- Florida Panthers (+105)
- Boston Bruins (+180)
- Tie (+340)
Just know that 60-minute lines only apply to regulation. If you bet on the Panthers or the Bruins and they win in overtime, you can’t claim a victory.
Puck Line
Puck line bets call for the favorite in an NHL game to “give” goals to the underdog. Using the Florida Panthers vs. Boston Bruins example again, the puck line odds for this game will appear next to its moneyline odds:
- Florida Panthers -1.5 goals (+180)
- Boston Bruins +1.5 goals (-210)
In this instance, you’ll need the Panthers to do more than just win. You’ll need them to win by two or more goals, and you’ll get rewarded for taking a larger risk by winning $180 for every $100 you wager.
At the same time, you won’t have to worry about losing your bet if the Bruins win outright or lose by just one goal when you take their puck line. However, you must bet $210 to win $100 when taking the Bruins.
If you’re familiar with “spread betting” as commonly found on NFL sportsbooks or basketball sportsbooks, puck lines are essentially the same concept but in ice hockey. You’re betting on the number of points that your preferred team will win or lose by.
Placing moneyline bets on NHL games can simplify your ice hockey betting experiences, but it isn’t one of the best NHL betting strategies. Constantly betting the moneyline can force you to lay too much money on favorites or endure close losses by underdogs that won’t win you any money. It’s what makes puck line bets such an appealing option for some ice hockey bettors.
Over/Under or Total Bets
Oddsmakers create an over/under number for all NHL games - focussing largely on the number of goals scored. You’ll need to bet on whether two teams – individually or combined – will score enough goals to go over that number or whether the final count will be under the given number. The betting odds for NHL totals look like this:
- Florida Panthers/Boston Bruins Over 5.5 (+116)
- Florida Panthers/Boston Bruins Under 5.5 (-133)
In this situation, betting $100 on the over, that is, their match will see over 5.5 goals (at least 6 goals in total), would win you $116. In the under market, you would have to bet $133 to rake in a $100 profit; this also implies that the probability of their match seeing fewer than six goals is a lot higher.
If you want to learn how to bet on NHL games without having to pick one NHL team or the other to win, over/under bets can provide you with this opportunity.
Game and Player Props
NHL game and player props haven’t caught on as quickly as their counterparts in the NBA or NFL. You won’t always find many NHL hockey props available, even for marquee matchups.
However, the best hockey betting sites have started ramping up their prop bet selections. These bets allow you to wager on whether certain events will occur within a hockey game.
Here are examples of game prop bets for a Florida Panthers vs. Boston Bruins contest:
- Team Scoring First To Win Game: Yes (-220) or No (+180)
- High Scoring Period (Regulation Only): 1st Period (+350), 2nd Period (+260), 3rd Period (+185), or Tie (+225)
- Race to 3 Goals During Regulation: Florida Panthers (+115), Boston Bruins (+175), or Neither (+260)
Here are several great examples of player prop bets for the same game:
- Jake DeBrusk Over 0.5 points (+112)
- Matthew Tkachuk 1+ goal (+160)
- David Pastrnak 4+ shots on goal (-145)
- Aaron Ekblad 1+ assist (+250)
Game and player prop bets add even more fun to the mix when betting on hockey games.
Futures
Learning how to bet on NHL games can stress you out if you don’t like making quick, decisive calls on wagers. Futures betting provides more time to think about which NHL bets you want to take. It also enables you to spend days, weeks, and often even months monitoring futures bets.
You can, for example, bet on which NHL player will win the Hart Trophy as the league’s MVP each season. Betting odds for this futures bet stood as follows late in the 2023-24 NHL season:
- Nathan MacKinnon (-450)
- Nikita Kucherov (+450)
- Connor McDavid (+1100)
- Auston Matthews (+2200)
You can also bet on which NHL team will take home the Stanley Cup each season. Before the 2023-24 NHL season, this is how the odds for this futures bet looked:
- Colorado Avalanche (+900)
- Carolina Hurricanes (+900)
- Toronto Maple Leafs (+1000)
- Edmonton Oilers (+1000)
- New Jersey Devils (+1000)
Live Betting
If you drag your feet and don’t get any bets before an NHL game starts, you might be under the impression you’re out of luck. Live betting, or in-game betting, makes getting bets on an NHL game possible after players have already taken the ice.
Live betting is a wonderful option for those who don’t have a good feel for how an NHL game might play out. You can watch a game for a few minutes to get some sense of how it’s going and then get in the wager you want to take.
Parlays
Parlay bets have increased in popularity across the board, but they’ve become especially popular among NHL bettors. These bets require you to package two or more wagers into a single bet. Each wager included in an NHL parlay bet must win for it to cash.
The biggest benefit of taking parlays when betting on NHL games is that it’ll automatically provide you with greater odds. Let’s say you were to place a parlay bet using two individual bets on a Florida Panthers vs. Boston Bruins game and a Dallas Stars vs. Colorado Avalanche game. Your parlay bet might look like this:
- Florida Panthers (-144)
- Colorado Avalanche (-113)
Under normal circumstances, you would need to bet $144 on the Panthers to win $100 and $113 on the Avalanche to win $100. When you parlay these NHL picks, you can bet $100 on your parlay bet for a chance to win about $220.
Same-Game Parlays
Same-game parlays, or SGPs, are similar to parlays in that they call for you to package together NHL bets. The difference between a regular parlay and an SGP is that an SGP will include a series of NHL bets all stemming from the same game.
Many of these SGP bets will likely be prop bets. If you put the prop bets we mentioned earlier into an SGP, they would look like this:
- Jake DeBrusk Over 0.5 points (+112)
- Matthew Tkachuk 1+ goal (+160)
- David Pastrnak 4+ shots on goal (-145)
- Aaron Ekblad 1+ assist (+250)
When you create an SGP using these prop bets, you can get +1900 odds. That means you would win $1,900 on a $100 SGP bet.
Grand Salami
As the name implies, grand salami bets are meatier versions of NHL over/under bets. Instead of betting on just one NHL game to go over or under in total goals, you’ll bet on whether a series of NHL games will combine to go over or under a set number.
Grand Salami bets can provide tons of fun on nights when the NHL has numerous games on its schedule.
Derivatives
Derivatives are bets placed almost exclusively by experienced NHL bettors instead of those learning how to bet on NHL games for the first time. They should still be on your radar since they provide a more advanced way to bet on ice hockey games.
Derivatives are any NHL bets that allow sports bettors to wager on what will happen during a specific portion of an NHL game. This can include:
- The team winning at the end of the first quarter
- Whether or not teams score a goal in the second half of the second quarter
- The team that scores first not winning the game in the end
Derivatives add an interesting new wrinkle to NHL betting.
Understanding NHL Betting Odds
After having hockey betting explained through the breakdown of different types of NHL bets, you can begin selecting which kinds of hockey bets you wish to place. You will, however, need to understand how NHL betting odds work to decide how much to wager.
NHL odds are typically displayed as American odds. These odds look like this:
- -105
- -150
- +100
- +155
- +250
Low numbers, like -105, indicate favorites in the NHL, while larger numbers, like +250, represent underdogs. When you see a negative number, it’ll indicate how much money you need to wager to win $100. When you spot a positive number, it’ll suggest how much money you can win by wagering $100.
If, for example, the Florida Panthers are a -150 favorite against the Boston Bruins, you’ll have to bet $150 on the Panthers to win to collect $100. The Bruins, meanwhile, will usually be a +130 underdog in this case, meaning you can win $130 by betting $100.
How To Bet On the NHL - Tips and Strategies
An NHL season features over 1,300 games, providing plenty of opportunities to place wagers on the NHL.
By using our NHL betting tips, you can improve your chances of winning. Here is how to bet on NHL games without blowing through your bankroll.
NHL Betting Tips
Each of these tips for NHL betting can take your ice hockey wagering to the next level:
- Do Your Research and Bet With Your Head: The National Hockey League introduced a special NHL EDGE advanced statistics section to its website in 2023. Turn to it early and often for research purposes so that you can place smarter NHL bets overall. It’s filled with stats that could give you a slight edge.
- Analyze Head-to-Head Records: The NHL has its fair share of storied rivalries, such as the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens rivalry. It also has some teams that play better against certain teams than others. Evaluate past head-to-head matchups for two NHL teams before betting on either one.
- Keep Abreast of Injuries: During the average NHL season, between 600 and 800 injuries take place. If a player suffers an injury and misses a game, make sure you know about it. The last thing you want to do is bet on a shorthanded team without realizing it.
- Don’t Stay Loyal to One Sportsbook - Shop Around: Many gambling sites can set you up with several NHL betting odds. Try out at least a few sites to see what wagering on hockey games through them is like. Look for the NHL sportsbooks offering the best betting odds, too.
- Follow the Odds: Do the betting odds for an NHL game seem fishy to you? Do your homework to see why these odds look so out of place. Oddsmakers set the betting odds they think will attract attention for both sides of a bet, so don’t walk into a trap they’ve set with NHL odds.
- Handicap Referees: Some sports betting websites go as far as to look at how NHL teams perform when certain referees take the ice to officiate games. When referee Tom Chmielewski officiated games this season, home teams were 43-32 against the puck line. When referee Pierre Lambert officiated games this season, the over came out in 39 games, while the under came out in just 28 of them.
- Focus on Trends: Has one of the top teams in the NHL been on a losing streak without its top scorer? Or has one of the league’s bottom dwellers caught fire after getting one of its young stars back? You should be aware of these types of trends when placing bets on NHL games.
- Consider Situational Spot-Bets: In some cases, an NHL team needs a win to clinch a playoff spot and might be playing a team that has already solidified its postseason positioning. This would be a good time to consider betting on the team that needs to win, even if they might not be as good as their opponents.
- Consider Home Advantage: Home teams in the NHL have had an average winning percentage of around 55% during both the regular season and playoffs in recent years. Taking home teams to win, even when not favored, is one of the many smart NHL wagering techniques you can use.
- Analyze the Schedule: Is an NHL team playing the second night of a back-to-back matchup, or does an NHL team have a tough game against a hated rival coming up on its schedule? In both these instances, an NHL team might not put forth one of its usual performances during the current game. Study the NHL schedule to look for small scheduling hiccups.
- Manage Your Bankroll: Before learning how to bet on NHL games, create an ice hockey betting bankroll for yourself. Base its size on how much money you can afford to spend on sports betting. Steer clear of placing large bets that could compromise your bankroll.
- Don’t Chase Losses: No matter how hard you work to inform yourself before placing NHL bets, you’ll hit cold streaks that will shake your confidence. They might also make you think you’re “due” for a win, which can lead to placing large bets than usual to make up for your losses. Chasing losses isn’t a good long-term NHL betting strategy.
- Be Selective With Your Betting: Just because NHL teams play over 1,300 games each season doesn’t mean you need to bet on all of them. Pick your spots when betting on NHL games and place bets you like rather than just placing them to get in on the action.
Responsible Gambling
Once you know how to bet on NHL games, you might want to wager on them all the time. It’s OK to enjoy yourself by betting on ice hockey games, but bet responsibly on your preferred NHL betting site. The following tips should help:
- Set limits on the amount of time and money you spend betting on NHL games.
- Avoid looking at NHL betting as a method of achieving financial success.
- Don’t drink alcohol or use drugs when placing NHL bets.
The National Council on Problem Gambling has set up the National Problem Gambling Helpline (1-800-GAMBLER) for those who suspect they may have gambling problems. Pick up the phone and call for help if gambling has taken a toll on your life.
Conclusion
Getting the hang of how to bet on NHL games can present challenges at first. It can be tough to figure out what makes a puck line bet different from a 60-minute line bet. As long as you wager through the right NHL betting site, you can pick up on how to place NHL bets effectively.
Keep all the NHL betting tips you read about here in mind as you set out to master ice hockey betting. They can help you catch fire as you bet on everything happening out on the ice during NHL games.
NHL Betting FAQs
How Do You Read NHL Hockey Odds?
Is NHL Betting Legal?
Which Hockey Bets Are the Most Popular?
What’s the Best NHL Betting Strategy?
What’s the Best NHL Betting Advice?
Does Overtime Count in Hockey Betting?
What Does Over/Under Mean in Hockey Betting?
What Does the Puck Line Mean in NHL Betting?
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