Hockey is one of the most exciting sports to have action on throughout the betting world. The pace that the NHL is played at leads to it being one of the most eventful viewing experiences in all of sports. Sportsbooks will offer a number of different wagering types for bettors to place and one of the most popular is what is known as the “puck line.”
What is the puck line
The puck line is a type of wager specific to hockey. It combines the idea of a moneyline and a point spread. Traditionally, most sports rely on the moneyline for matchup based wagering. An example of this is below:
Detroit Red Wings -175
Toronto Maple Leafs +130
For this matchup, the Red Wings are the favorite to win. A bettor would need to place a $175 wager in order to profit $100. If betting on the underdog, the Toronto Maple Leafs, the same bettor can place a $100 wager in order to payout a profit of $130.
Sportsbooks will also offer what is known as a point spread. A point spread is the margin of victory that a sportsbook thinks a team will win by. An example of this for the NFL could look as follows:
If a bettor is wanting to place a point spread wager on the Packers to win this game, they would need to have Green Bay win by more than 3.5 points.
The NHL is able to combine these two betting styles into one which is referred to as the puck line. It is essentially a point spread of +/- 1.5 goals but also has a moneyline associated with it. For visual, a puck line could look something like the following:
Pittsburgh Penguins -1.5 (+125)
St. Louis Blues +1.5 (-130)
In this matchup, the Penguins are the favored team to win and the Blues are the underdog. A puck line wager works as an advantage for the underdog as it levels the playing field and gives them a 1.5 goal handicap prior to the hockey game beginning. Although the Penguins are the favorite to win the game outright, they become the underdog in terms of payout on the puck line.
Differences between puck line and moneyline
Even though the word “line” is in both wagering types, there are big differences between the puck line and moneyline when it comes to betting on hockey games. The moneyline requires a wager to be placed on which team will win the game. The puck line is based on goals scored and not wins and losses. With the spread being placed at 1.5 goals, a favorite would need to not only win, but win by at least 2 goals for a bettor to win the wager. And in return, an underdog can lose by one goal but still payout a winning bet.
The difficulty with betting on the puck line is that the majority of NHL games are decided by only one goal. According to NHL.com, the most common final score for a hockey game is 3-2. This would mean that in most cases, the underdog is who will come out victorious when placing money on a puck line wager.
Overtime
Most sportsbooks offer two different moneyline type bets. The first is regulation time wagering. In order to win this bet the chosen team must win in regulation time (60 minutes). If the game goes to overtime, this bet is considered a losing wager. The other betting option for a moneyline wager is OT Included, also known as a “two-way moneyline.” This, just as it sounds, is determined by the end result of the game. Even if the game extends past the 60 minutes and goes to overtime, the bettor can still win by picking the correct team.
Regulation time wagering will also come in what is known as “three-way moneyline.” Odds for this betting style can look as follows:
Nashville Predators -130
San Jose Sharks +180
Draw +280
This type of moneyline bet introduces the tie aspect, which is very common in the NHL. According to the Chicago Tribune, since 2005, over 23% of all NHL games go into overtime. Placing a moneyline bet on either team to win this game would need them to win in regulation to be redeemed a winner. A bettor can also place a wager on both teams to be tied at the end of the 60 minutes.
What happens in overtime for puck line bets
Overtime also has an interesting impact when betting on the puck line. This once again is a way to give the underdog an additional advantage. If an NHL game goes to overtime, the first team to score wins which means the final result will be determined by one goal regardless of which team wins. When referring to the above examples of a puck line, you can see that they are given in the fashion of +/- 1.5 goals. The underdog with the odds of +1.5 will always come out victorious in a game decided by one goal. Which means the underdog will win the puck line wager in an overtime game even if they don’t win straight-up.
Three-way puck line
A three-way puck line is similar to a three-way moneyline except for the fact that with the puck line, there is a handicap, or spread, attached to one of the teams to give them an advantage to start out. As with three-way moneyline betting, a three-way puck line only takes into account regulation time.
Sportsbooks will offer a few different options when it comes to this type of wager. The most common is giving the home team a one goal deficit to start. Let’s say for this example that the Detroit Red Wings are playing in San Jose against the Sharks. Detroit would essentially start the game up 1-0. If you bet on Detroit you would win that bet if they either win the game or lose by only one goal. If you bet on San Jose, they must win the game by two goals since they are starting down by one due to the handicap. If you bet on the draw, it is considered a +1 goal differential, so Detroit winning by one goal would cash this bet.
Three-way puck lines also come in the form of a 2-0 deficit. This is the same idea but if you bet on Detroit in this style, you will just need them to not lose by three or more goals for this bet to win.
Puck line betting strategies
With all the different types of wagering (three-way moneylines, overtime betting, starting the game down 2-0, etc.), it can lead to a lot of confusion when it comes to just wanting to enjoy an NHL game with some money invested on the outcome. There are certain times that betting on the puck line makes more sense than betting the moneyline. If there is a heavy favorite and little to no value to be had on the underdog, then the payout may not be very high when placing a moneyline wager. However, if picking a favorite to win by two or more goals, you’re likely to get them at a far reduced price and get a much better payout.
What to look for when placing puck line bets
As with most sports, there is so much data and numbers available that it can often become overwhelming when trying to get an edge before placing a wager. Below are a notes to consider prior to placing puck line bets:
Travel Schedule
Is one of the teams playing back-to-back games or three games in four nights? Oftentimes NHL teams will rest their main goaltender in this type of situation. If we can catch this news prior to oddsmakers adjusting the lines, there will be a lot of value on the puck line.
Important stats
Corsi – Corsi is just an advanced hockey term for a shot attempt in 5v5 play. If a team shoots the puck at the net it is considered “corsi for.” And if the other team gets a shot, it’s called “corsi against.” The difference between these two actions is what gives us the corsi percentage. A team over 50%, in theory, would have more scoring chances than they are allowing. This may be a good team to target based on the odds that are given.
Fenwick – This is the exact same stat as “corsi” it just doesn’t take into account blocked shots. Typically speaking, a team will have similar numbers when it comes to “corsi”and “fenwick.” My personal preference is to use “corsi” when handicapping NHL lines.
Home and Road Splits
Certain teams in the NHL will perform much better on their home ice than they do on the road. For example, during the 2019 season the St. Louis Blues were one of the best teams in all of hockey. Below was their home/road splits for that year:
Home Away
23-12-5 19-17-5
According to these results, the Blues may be a much smarter betting option when on their home ice.
There are a number of different things to consider when betting on hockey. Find a simplified approach that works for you and stick with it. There is no need to over complicate things when it comes to betting. The majority of the public is betting for entertainment purposes and to be more invested in the sporting event they are watching. Hockey is no different. NHL puck line betting allows the gambler to find great odds by giving the underdog a better shot at cashing a winning ticket. Find a strategy, place some bets, and enjoy some great hockey.
Puck Line. A hockey puck line is a goal spread and is similar to the run line in baseball. Bets are based on a 1.5 goal spread - bettors can either lay 1.5 goals with the favorite or take 1.5 goals with the underdog.
It is a good market to bet on if you think a team is going to win a game easily – sometimes by three goals or more. With a draw included as an outcome you can bet on, the spread in the 3-way puck line market is always a round number instead of a decimal.
In NHL betting, a three-way handicap puck line wager is similar to the three-way moneyline wager, except that in this scenario, there is a handicap or spread attached to the bet to give one team an advantage to start out with.
The puck line is the term for the spread betting option in a hockey game. The puck line is -1.5 goals for the favorite and +1.5 for the underdog in every game because hockey is so low scoring, with varying juice on each side depending on how even the teams are.
They are American money line odds; for example, +200 signifies the amount a bettor could win if wagering $100. If the bet works out, the player would receive a total payout of $300 ($200 net profit + $100 initial stake).
Line betting is when a match is handicapped by the bookmaker. If one side is considered to be 5.5 points better than the opposing team, you can wager that this team will win by more than 5.5 points. You can also back the opponent to lose by no more than 5.5 points or win the match.
Just like a point spread wager, you can bet on the favorite to win by more than the line or on the underdog to win by any score or to lose by less than the line. For the above game, puck line bets on the Bruins win if the team wins by two or more goals.
With underdogs, covering the spread requires winning the contest or losing by a less than the point spread. Potential profits with underdogs are higher with moneyline bets, but the point spread provides a margin for error and a way to win money on the team that loses a game.
The first line is usually composed of the best offensive players on the team. Teams rely heavily on this line, which generates the bulk of the team's scoring. These players often see the highest number of minutes among forwards in a game and are usually part of the team's starting lineup.
This means that the underdog must win outright or lose by exactly one point to cover the spread. Alternatively, a +1.5 spread means that the favorite must win by two points, runs, etc. or more. The +1.5 is the standard “run line” in MLB betting. Many baseball games are decided by fewer than two runs.
A 3-way bet is a bet on an event that has three possible outcomes: Team A wins, Team B wins, or a draw. The odds on a 3-way bet will always be higher than odds on a similar two-way bet considering there is an additional outcome. Therefore, when one places a 3-way bet there is only one way to win and two ways to lose.
Often referred to as the “60-minute line”, the three-way moneyline presents the options of home team (1), away team (2), and draw at the end of regulation (X). A hockey game has three twenty-minute periods of play that make up regulation time, which is followed up by overtime if necessary.
What does +600 mean in betting: If a team you are looking to bet on has odds at +600 this means they are big underdogs. But, a $100 bet on them would return $600 for the risk of taking a team 6/1.
A moneyline is simply a bet type that only includes Odds, as in “Odds to win”. Example: a moneyline of +150, is just +150 odds ($100 to win $150) for the listed team to win. A moneyline of -150 is just -150 odds ($150 to win $100) for the listed team to win. Philadelphia. +150.
If a team was at +140, that means you only have to risk $1 to win $1.40 or $100 to win $140. The key thing to keep in mind is that the payouts are constant regardless of how much you bet. To figure out the exact amount of risk/return, just divide the moneyline by 100.
Underdogs are given plus moneyline odds, meaning a $100 bet would yield that moneyline's total if the underdog wins the matchup: +300 odds means a $300 profit; +550 odds means a $550 profit; +1200 odds means a $1200 profit.
If you place a bet on the moneyline, that means you think the team you bet on will win the game. If they win, you win, no matter the score. While a point spread requires the team you bet on to win by a specified margin, moneyline does not.
A money line, used in baseball and hockey, takes the place of a point spread. Money line betting is simply wagering on the contest based on a given price rather than a point spread. The team wagered on has to win the game outright, regardless of the score.
If the money is coming from professional bettors you want to bet with the money because it's considered "sharp" or "smart" money. If the money is coming from average Joes who are betting for fun, you want to be against the money because it's considered public or "square" money.
A moneyline bet in sports betting is one of the easiest wagers you can place. There are two (or three in some sports) outcomes of a game or match, and you must choose the outcome you think will occur. Essentially, you must pick the team you think will win the game.
The blue line in ice hockey is what divides the hockey rink into three zones: the defensive zone, the neutral zone, and the attacking zone. The blue lines also determine whether or not a player is offsides.
It is said that goalie is the most difficult position to play within Ice Hockey, and one of the hardest to play in any sport. The main objective for a goalie is to keep the puck out of the net, and with a great one, they can control the game and greatly influence their team's confidence.
The centre-ice line divides the rink in half. The bluelines delineate each team's defensive zone. The area between the bluelines is called the neutral zone. At the far ends of the rink, a red line extends the width of the ice.
A spread of +3.5 means a team must win outright or lose by fewer than four points to cover the spread. A +3.5 spread is particularly enticing in football because, as noted earlier, 3-point victory margins are extremely common. An example of a +3.5 spread: New England Patriots +3.5. Miami Dolphins -3.5.
The point spread is the expected final score difference between two teams. It is represented as both a negative and positive number; if the spread is 3 points, you'll see that as both -3 and +3. The team that is the favorite to win gets the minus-number (-3); the underdog gets the plus-number (+3).
In this case, if you bet on the Packers to win, and they win by 7, you win. If they win by 6, you lose. Same goes for a bet on the underdog. If the Seahawks lose by 7 points, you lose your bet, and if they lose by 6 points, you'll win.
When should you 3-bet? It is easy to understand 3-betting for value. When playing solid, aggressive poker, a good rule is to always 3-bet your strongest hands. This allows you to play much larger pots with your strongest hands, and it balances your 3-bet range when you want to include bluffs and weaker hands.
For example, a three number bet means dividing 36 by 3 to get 12, then subtracting 1 to equal 11. The payout rate for a three-number bet is therefore 11:1, meaning a $10 bet would result in a $110 payout if you won.
A 2/3 system consists of 3 bets which transpire from 3 picks -- three 2-pick multis (parlays). At least two of the three picks must be correct to gain some winnings - the exact amount of the winnings depends on how many of the predictions prove correct.
Pittsburgh is a -150 favorite, which means for every $100 the player wants to win on Pittsburgh, he must lay $150. To win $10, he would bet $15 and collect $25 if Pittsburgh wins.
The puck line is hockey's version of the point spread. When betting on the puck line, the favorite is -1.5 goals on the spread, with the underdog at +1.5 goals. Betting on the favorite requires your team to win its game by two or more goals.
The three-way line introduces the possibility of a draw. If you place a wager in the three-way market, your choices are Team A wins, Team B wins, or the draw. There can't be a push. The only two times that you'll get a push in soccer are a) On the total.
The puck line is one of the main hockey betting options at online sportsbooks. When you read the odds for an NHL game, the team with a negative puck line is the favorite, and a positive line indicates the underdog. In the above case, the Boston Bruins are 1.5-goal favorites on the puck line.
An NHL puck line bet involves a margin of 1.5 goals taken from the favorite point-spread style. If the (+1.5) puck line underdog wins the game outright, or loses by only 1 goal, the underdog puck line bet wins.
Whenever you wager on the puck line, you are betting on the favorite to win by two goals or the underdog to lose by one goal or outright. It's hockey's version of the point spread, but the spread never changes.
If a bettor is wanting to place a point spread wager on the Packers to win this game, they would need to have Green Bay win by more than 3.5 points. The NHL is able to combine these two betting styles into one which is referred to as the puck line.
When odds are presented with a plus (+) sign in front of them, that signifies the underdog. Whereas negative (-) odds tell you what you have to bet on the favorite to win $100, positive (+) odds tell you how much you'll win for every $100 you wager on the underdog.
The easiest way to become a great player on FanDuel is to get your feet wet by playing in as many leagues as possible. You don't even need to play for money to start since FanDuel offers free leagues (no prizes) and freerolls (free leagues with prizes).
Every NHL team has four forward lines of three players (left wing, right wing and center) and three defensive lines of two players (left and right defensem*n).
Odds with a plus sign are underdog bets. Plus odds tell you how much profit you will get on a $100 bet. A $100 bet with +200 odds nets you $200 profit plus your original $100 bet.
A 3-way bet is a type of bet with three potential outcomes. These outcomes are usually team A win, draw or team B win. A 3-way bet is also commonly referred to as a 1×2 bet (team 1, draw (x), team 2), but I will refer to it as 3-way betting for the rest of this article, which is the more common term here in Canada.
Why the puck? Hockey players way back when must've been some literary enthusiasts, because the puck is named after a character from Shakespeare. In “A Midsummer's Night Dream,” Puck was a flighty and mischievous elf. We all know how flighty that hockey puck can be, sliding smoothly across the ice in all directions.
It's a bet that a team will/won't lose by a certain amount of goals. Typically it's +/- 1.5. If its +1.5 you're betting that the team will lose by less than 2 goals if it's -1.5 you're betting that they'll win my more than 2.
What is the 60 minute line in hockey betting? A 60-minute line bet is similar to the moneyline because it is made based on who you predict to win the game. However, the 60-minute line only includes the three periods of regulation game time. The score at the end of period 3 determines the success of the bet.
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