The NHL is considered to be the largest, most popular ice hockey league in the world. The National Hockey League consists of 30 teams, with 6 of those teams located in Canada, and 24 in the United States. The 30 teams are split between a Western Conference and Eastern Conference, just as the NBA is. The league was originally put together back in 1917, in Montreal, Canada. Currently the NHL has players in around 20 countries playing in it. hockey betting is also quickly becoming one of the more popular sports to bet on as well. For sports bettors, you’re offered quite a few different options for betting on the NHL; as well as an 82 game season (the same as the NBA) with games almost every night throughout the season. The NHL is currently set up on a point system, where you get 3 points for a win, and 1 point for a loss in overtime or a shootout.
NHL Odds and Betting Types
hockey betting offers you quite a few different options for bets, especially during the playoffs and Stanley Cup Finals. The most popular type of bet in hockey betting is the straight bet. Straight betting adjusts the odds by which team is favored to win the game. For example if the Vancouver Canucks are playing the Carolina Hurricanes, the Canucks may be favored so the odds of betting them in a straight bet could be something like -180; while betting the Hurricanes as underdogs will give you odds of around +140. While straight betting is the most popular form of hockey betting, they do also offer spread betting. Spread betting in the NHL works differently than most sports though. The line is always set at -1.5 or +1.5 for each team, but the odds change just like straight betting. For example if the Boston Bruins are playing the Montreal Canadians, the Bruins may be -1.5 with odds of +120, while the Canadians are +1.5 at -140. What this means is that although the Bruins are favored, it is expected to be a close game.
Another type of hockey betting that is offerred is total betting. Total betting is a total number of goals projected for the game, and you can either bet on the over of that number, or the under. An example of a total bet, is if the Philadelphia Flyers are playing the New Jersey Devils and the total is set at 5.5 with odds of -110; in order for you to win a bet on the over, the two teams would have to combine to score at least 6 goals, otherwise the under bet would win. The odds on a total bet are pretty standard and stay around even money or -110, with the highest it will typically go being -120.
An interesting type of hockey betting that is offered is prop betting. Prop betting offers you different props on players and the game. A few examples of prop bets are things like, “which team will score first”, “total goals scored by one team”, “player A’s total goals+assists”, etc. All of these bets will have two different choices with the odds adjusted by which side is favored. So if you are betting on a player’s total goals+assists, it may be set at 1.5 with the odds of -120 on the under, and +110 on the over. Another option for prop betting is betting on things such as “highest scoring period”, or “margin of victory”. These bets have odds that vary by the favorite as well. So in the margin of victory, if it’s projected to be a close game; betting on a 1 goal win or 2 goal win, won’t give you nearly as good of odds as betting on a 3 or 4 goal win. And for the highest scoring period bet, it typically varies on how the teams have been scoring as of late, but it’s either the 2nd or 3rd period that gets the better odds on that bet.
The last and final betting option for hockey betting is the first goal scorer in the game. This bet will have anywhere from 10-12 players, as well as an “any other player” option. Each player will get odds on scoring the first goal, with the “any other player” option typically getting the lowest odds on the board since that includes multiple other players. The odds for the players offered will normally range between +550 to +1800 depending on the players on each team.
NHL Major Events to Bet On
The NHL Stanley Cup Finals definitely qualify as the biggest event in the NHL, especially for sports bettors. The NHL Playoffs in general tend to draw a large following from not only fans, but also from sports bettors. The NHL Stanley Cup Finals offer multiple options for game props and players props, and each game of the seven game series is researched in-depth by major sports bettors. You’ll get a ton of info about each team throughout the post season, which will help quite a bit when placing your bets. While some days of the regular season will have multiple games per day, the post season gives more attention to each game; as well as the props offered for each game.
Hockey Betting Tips and Strategy
When betting on the NHL, it’s always important to follow the teams last few games. If you’re very interested in total betting, you need to watch how a team’s offense and goalie have been playing over the past 2 or 3 games. Doing your homework in hockey betting is very important because of the different options of bets that are offered, especially during the posteason. Another tip is to take a shot on player prop bets when you’re betting on first goal scorer. The odds may seem high, but if you research which players have been scoring well and playing well overall; it’ll give you a big advantage when placing that bet. It can also be very important to not get drawn into the better odds that are offered in a spread bet compared to a straight bet. Hockey has quite a few games that end up as one goal wins for one of the sides, which could destroy a bet if you picked the team at -1.5 goals. Always make sure that you manage your bankroll as well, but if you follow these basic tips you’ll be sitting pretty for your hockey betting during the NHL season.