How To Bet On NHL

Get the low-down on all things NHL betting with Bodog’s quick-tips guide. Let’s jump in.

The weather might be cooling down when the much-anticipated hockey season rolls around each year, but on the ice, things are only ever heating up.

And if you like the heat, let it boil over into new territory; because, through every dazzling win, heart-wrenching loss, and spectacular play, the ties that bind all the hockey action together are your very own bets on the NHL. If you’re experienced at NHL betting, and know exactly what we mean, chances are you keep one eye on the match, and one eye on your bets.

If you’re new to the NHL betting scene, then you’re about to see what the real numbers come down to, and along the way you’ll discover a whole new source of NHL thrills that you never knew existed.

This is your go-to guide for NHL betting at Bodog Casino, and when you’re done, you’ll be well on your way to loving hockey just a little bit more, and celebrating extra loudly with your fellow fans.

NHL Betting Explained

When you hear fans talking about their bets during a game, chances are they’re talking about one of these three betting types. These bets are the core of any type of NHL betting, so it’s a great place to get you started.

Moneyline

It’s the Coyotes against the Kraken – who’s going to win? That’s the moneyline! It’s the easiest bet you can make, and it also happens to be the most popular. After all, the first question we all have when asking about a game is “who won?” When you bet on the favourite to win, the odds are lower than those for the underdog, which will pay out higher odds should they win the day. A good rule of thumb? Risk is reward when it comes to sportsbook odds of all stripes.

Puckline

The puckline is also a bet on who the winner will be, but there’s a point margin of 1.5 points. The favourite team will have negative -1.5 points, and the underdogs will have positive +1.5. In order to win your bet on the favourite, they have to win the game by 2 points. On the other hand, the underdog can lose by 1 point or win outright, and you would win on that bet. If you’ve made a point spread bet before, you’ll get the gist right away.

Totals

Let’s say the Islanders score 3 goals and the Canucks score 2. The total combined score at the end of that game is 5 (3+2). For a Totals bet, the sportsbook will make a prediction about what that final combined score will be for each game. Your job is to predict whether the combined score will be over that number, or under it. If your prediction was correct then – yep, you guessed it – you’ve just padded out your wallet.

NHL Prop Betting

Now that the basic bets are covered, let’s get more advanced. NHL betting on props adds a whole new element to the game – where winning really isn’t everything. Some bettors prefer to focus on these bets entirely, since they aren’t dependent on the outcome of the actual game itself.

Prop bets, rather than being scoreboard-dependent, focus on other events happening within the match. That poses plenty of interesting questions for the punter, who might look to the performance of individual players, the performance of the team, total shots on the goal, and total saves in the game, for instance.

In fact, let’s just look at some more examples of the most popular NHL prop bets:

  • Will Jared McCann score a goal at any time in the game?
  • Will Jakob Chychrun make over or under 2.5 shots on the goal?
  • Will Alex Nedeljkovic make over or under 22.5 saves?
  • Who will be the first team to score 2 goals?

As you can see, many props come down to a yes/no or over/under choice. They can also get more specific, such as what the first period exact score will be. The more specific or statistically remote a prop bet is, such as whether a defenseman can score a winning goal, the higher your payout odds will be.

NHL Parlay Betting

Parlay betting on the NHL has the potential to be one of your most profitable bets, but they are inherently riskier.

A parlay bet is a bet that groups two or more bets together onto one big bet slip. You can combine multiple types of bets – the puckline, the moneyline, totals, and props – most often pertaining to different games, but that depends on the types of bet you choose. The more bets you add, the higher your odds will get… which also makes it harder to win.

So let’s say that you’re certain the Montreal Canadiens, the underdogs, will beat the Toronto Maple Leafs outright… and you also think the total score will be over 5.5 in that same game. In another game, with the Columbus Blue Jackets facing off against the Buffalo Sabres, you’re sure that the underdog Blue Jackets can win on the puckline.

This is what your bet slip will look like for a parlay:

Montreal @ Toronto

Moneyline: Canadiens (+165)

Over/under: o5.5 (-131)

Columbus @ Buffalo

Puckline: Blue Jackets +1.5 (-160)

Total odds for your parlay: +659

In order for your parlay ticket to win, the Canadiens have to win outright, with a total score of 6 or more. At the same time, the Blue Jackets have to either win outright or lose by no more than 1 point. If all three are true, you win on +659 odds. If just one of them isn’t true – say the combined score was actually 4 – then you lose the entire ticket, regardless of the outcome of the other bets. High risk? Sure, but that’s why it offers high rewards.

Who Choose Bodog?

With so many sportsbooks out there, why would you choose to bet with Bodog?

The answer is easy. We’ve been a staple in the sportsbetting scene in Canada for over two decades, and we’re really showing our age when we boast that our online casino has been serving happy punters since 1994. So, we are certainly no fly-by-nighters.

Bodog takes your privacy incredibly seriously, and our platform is secured accordingly, using the most sophisticated encryption methods and the most impenetrable data storage systems. We handle your private information like we would our own.

On top of that, we have the most competitive odds in Canada, which you’ll find on the books well ahead of the event and updated in real time.

We offer plenty of helpful guides and how-tos, as well as heaps of bonuses to use towards sports betting.

Whether it’s your first time creating an account or you’re just cashing out for yet another payday in the NHL season, you can always be sure about one thing: Bodog Casino is here with the best odds year-round, which is befitting of Canada’s best sportsbook. You can bet on it.