At SBO, we’re fully fledged fans of ice hockey, and you’ll find us celebrating every October when the beginning of the NHL season swings around.
With the wide variety of domestic and international leagues, it’s essential to find an ice hockey betting site that offers markets for all competitions – not just the Stanley Cup finals!
We only recommend ice hockey betting sites with superb odds and bonus offers for NHL competitions, so why not claim an offer and bet on your favourite team? Here you can check out hockey sportsbook reviews.
A Brief History of Ice Hockey
The Society for International Hockey Research (SIHR) offers the following definition of the game: “Hockey is a game played on an ice rink in which two opposing teams of skaters, using curved sticks, trying to drive a small disc into or through the opposing goals”.
Ice Hockey, recognizable to this definition, originated in the mid-to-late 1800’s in Canada. James G. Creighton, of Nova Scotia, is widely credited with bringing the ‘Halifax-rules’ to Montreal in the 1870’s, where they were developed to become the ‘McGill-rules’. Creighton is also credited with coordinating the first ever organized game of ice hockey, on March 3rd, 1875.
In Europe, the first recorded games of ice hockey were played at the Prince’s Skating Club in Knightsbridge, England. A few year later, France and Belgium played two international games and a further three years on, the LHIG – which later became the IIHF – was established in Paris, France.
A Beginner’s Guide to Ice Hockey Betting
Ice Hockey is the king of all ice-based sports and is one of the most popular sports in Canada and the United States. The pinnacle of club-based ice hockey competition is the National Hockey League (NHL), which sits with the NBA, NFL, MLB as the most famous sporting leagues in the United States.
Don’t be mistaken, though, because ice hockey is also played in central and eastern Europe, the Nordic countries, and Russia. In areas such as Croatia, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, and more, ice hockey is the most popular winter sport. It’s popularity led to inclusion in the Olympic games, and it has been a consistent feature of the Olympics ever since.
Regulation v Full Game Ice Hockey Betting
Betting on ice hockey follows a similar pattern to betting on other sports like football, but there is a clear distinction between the two most common types of betting market.
Regulation Time Betting (3-Way Betting)
Betting sites set markets for a traditional 1X2 betting format, where you select the home side, away side or the draw. European punters, in particular, will be used to this format of betting.
It’s important to note that this market only covers the result of the match after regulation time; so if you back the home side but they don’t win until overtime or after a shootout, your bet is a loser as the regulation time result was a tie.
Full Game Betting (Moneyline Betting)
Most bookmakers also price ice hockey games in a simple home/away format, thus excluding the possibility of a draw. The odds will be slightly shorter because there are only two possible outcomes, but this bet covers you whether your selected team wins in regulation time, overtime or after a shootout.
It’s very straightforward but many a punter has fallen into the trap of betting on the wrong market and losing out on what they thought was a winning bet. In general, betting on ice hockey includes overtime unless otherwise stated.
Alternative Ice Hockey Betting Markets
As the sport is so popular, especially in Northern Europe, bookmakers are keen to offer ice hockey fans a variety of ways to bet on a huge choice of games from Sweden to Germany, and Finland to Denmark. Some of the more common markets include:
Game Lines (Puckline)
Many punters will know this bet as something similar to an Asian handicap, where the favorite to win the match is given a -1.5 handicap and the underdog listed with a +1.5 handicap. This allows for a more even betting heat and also eliminates the possibility of a draw.
The favorite would need to win two goals or more to beat the ‘puckline’, while the underdog could lose the match by one goal but still ‘win’ the bet courtesy of the +1.5 added to their score.
Overtime is included in this bet, unlike a typical Asian handicap on a football match.
Total Betting (Over/Under)
This is a simple bet on the total number of goals scored by both teams combined during a match.
Usually, the line set by bookmakers is 5.5 goals and you simply need to decide if there will be more or less than 5.5 during the match.
This market also includes overtime, and as there is no chance of scoring half a goal, the result can only be over or under.
3-Way Game Lines
This is similar to the game line listed above but in a three-way format. The favorite will be listed with a -1 handicap and the underdog with a +1 handicap.
As you will have guessed, this also opens up the possibility of a tie – in the instance that the favorite only wins by one goal.
Odds for the draw in this market are usually very good because you are, in effect, predicting an exact winning margin of one goal.
3-Way Total Betting (Over/Under)
In this betting market oddsmakers set a goal line (usually 5 goals) and you can predict over 5 goals, under 5 goals, or exactly 5 goals. Once again, the odds for predicting exactly 5 goals are high.
