The NHL; the fourth sport in the USA, the first sport in Canada and it’s getting bigger all the time. For years, sports fans have heard the argument that hockey isn’t relevant that people don’t care and that the NHL can’t possibly sustain growth and sell tickets in places like Nashville, Tampa or Las Vegas. That argument is the single largest misnomer in all of sports. It’s a stupid argument and it holds no water whatsoever.
The NHL is alive, thriving and bigger and better than ever before, both in the US and Canada. What is the reason for the success of the NHL? It’s very simple; hockey is the most honest game in all of sports. What do we mean by that? The NHL is not full of scrubs, they are full of the best of the very best hockey players in the world and these players are authentic. They were born to play hockey and sure some of them were born with a talent for the sport. Most of them started playing hockey when they were little boys and developed a love for the game. The ones that have made it to the big time, (the NHL) they got there because they believed in hard work and paying the price.
NHL hockey players sold out somewhere in their youth to become what they are today. Hockey is a multitalented sport that requires strict dedication and beyond comprehensible- hard work.
Take a Look at Wayne Gretzky: The “Great One”
Wayne Gretzky is widely thought of around the globe as the greatest NHL hockey player of all time and one of the very greatest professional athletes of all time and with just cause.
Gretzky was born on January 26, 1961, in Brantford, Ontario. The family moved to a house that had a flat enough yard to build an ice rink. It all started with Wayne’s heroes at home, his father, and grandfather; Walter and Tony. Wayne skated for the first time at the age of two years and ten months at his grandfather’s farm.
Walter is the one responsible for teaching Wayne and his brothers, Keith, Brent and Glen to play hockey. Walter built an ice rink in the family’s backyard and nicknamed it “Walley Coliseum”. They didn’t just play hockey, they practiced drills and worked on individual skills. This is the very place where the love for hockey was rooted in Wayne’s soul and he became a child prodigy.
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Gretzky played on an organized team at the age of six but it was made up entirely of ten-year-olds! He was much smaller than the other players, so much smaller than his jersey didn’t fit, so he tucked it in his pants.
When Gretzky was ten, he played for the Brantford Nadrofsky Steelers and scored an overwhelming 378 goals and recorded 139 assists in one season. His skill levels astonished his first coach, Dick Martin. By the age of 13, Gretzky had racked up an amazing 1,000 goals.
Wayne Gretzky proved to the sporting world that becoming the best is not always about natural ability.
It’s about the love of the game. His professional career precedes him. He was the best of the best and the very best that ever played in the NHL. What Gretzky did as an NHL player and what he did to further the game will never be duplicated in any sport. He was the greatest ever, and he will remain the greatest NHL player of all time. If he is not the greatest athletes of all time; he is in the argument and without a doubt, in the top five greatest of all time. He not only impacted the game for the better, he changed the game. He brought notoriety to the NHL; he single-handedly put the NHL on the map and made it everything it is today.
Do you see what we mean by hockey being the most honest game in all of sports?
To make it in the NHL a player must have some talent and must possess some natural ability, but the most important thing of all, love and passion for the game. The love and passion that fans see in the NHL is unlike any other sport. These men have played the sport since they were babies and they eat, drink sleep and live for this game. They live for the competition, the hits, the scoring, and the defense.
The NHL is a great sport to bet on. Hockey fans already know this and they know the endless possibilities. In the NHL, the players don’t quit, they play until the horn ends the third period and you can count on an all-out, 100% effort. There is a lot of money to be made betting on the NHL and we want to help answer some questions.
Check out some of the most popular ways of betting on hockey:
This past season has been superb, the action has been at a level unparalleled to that of recent seasons and there are more than a few great teams to bet on in the upcoming playoffs. The Las Vegas Golden Knights are the surprisingly good young upstarts and the Tampa Bay Lightning, look even better. Nashville is another team that looks well prepared going in. The trick is to do some research, find out who the best teams are and why they are good and exactly where their strengths and weaknesses lie.
Before Betting on Hockey or any Sport:
Set a budget. This is an absolute golden rule if you want to be successful at betting the NHL. You must set a budget and you must stick to it. Do not go over your budget. You know how much you can afford to spend on this hobby and you set the limits; be disciplined. Disciplined gamblers win a lot of money. Undisciplined gamblers find the poor house very quickly. Don’t let this happen to you.
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How to Bet
Money Line
The money line in Hockey works the same way as it does in other sports, it takes the place of the point-spread. When betting the money line, you are betting that one team will win the game. The team you bet one does not have to cover any kind of point-spread. All that needs to happen is for your team to be the winner of the game. There will usually be a favorite in the game…
Example:
The minus sign, Las Vegas Golden Knights -120, always indicate the favorite and the amount that must be wagered in order to win $100. In this example, bettors must wager $120 to win $100 on the Golden Knights. The plus sign, Los Angeles Kings +100, always indicates the underdog. (NOTE: The -120 and +100 are examples, odd always very, the numbers used here are examples of how the money line works.) In this example, the Kings are the underdog and the money is even. This means that for every $100 wagered on the Kings, the bettor will win $100 or $5 for $5 or $10 for $10 and so on and so forth.
Totals (or AKA, the Over/Under)
The over/under is what total bets are most commonly referred to in the sports gambling world and this is a very popular way of betting. With totals, you are betting that the combined final score between both teams will either go over or under the posted house total on the game.
Example:
Las Vegas Golden Knights/Los Angeles Kings O/U— 5 ½. In this example the house (oddsmakers, line movers) have set the combined final score at 5.5, meaning that you can but under or over. If you were to bet the under, the total score can go to 5 and no higher or you lose, six points would be a loss. If you were to bet the over, the combined total must go to six or more, 5 would be a loss. If the total was set at an even 5 and not 5.5, and the final score was 3-2, 4-1, or 5-0, this would be a push and there would be no action, the bettor would get their money back. Totals are based on a money line such as -110 or +110.
Totals are a fun way to bet simply because betting this way eliminates a rooting interest. If you bet totals you don’t care who wins the game, you either want a lot of scoring or no scoring.
Puck Line Betting
The point-spread does exist in hockey also known as the puck line (goal spread betting) it’s common in hockey as well, but isn’t nearly as popular as money line betting. The line is typically set at -1.5 or +1.5 for either side, meaning that if you make this bet, the side that you choose must either win by more than 1 goal, or lose by less than one goal. The odds on this type of bet will vary depending on which team is favored, but the general idea behind this bet is to get better odds on a heavy favorite. Example, if a team is favored by as much as -300, betting a line of -1.5 may knock those odds down to -200 or -180. Here’s an example of a point spread bet:
Pittsburgh Penguins -1.5 (-180) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning +1.5 (+120)
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In this example, the Penguins are favored by 1.5 goals, and must win by 2, while the Lightning must lose by less than 2 to win their side. The odds of -180 for the Penguins mean that you’d bet $180 to win $100, while betting on the Lightning you’d bet $10 to win $12.
3-Way Lines
3 way betting lines are similar to that of money line betting, the exception is overtime, and shootout play is not included. You bet one team to win, the other team to win, or bet a tie. The idea behind this bet is to give you better odds on the favorite in each game. NOTE: This can make the bet tougher because you automatically lose if the game goes into overtime. 3 Way betting offers better payouts, if you are able to hit a bet, such as a tie. Here’s an example of a 3 way line-money Line.
Odds:
Carolina Hurricanes +210 vs. Montreal Canadians -180
3-way betting line odds:
Montreal Canadians to win: -120
Carolina Hurricanes to win: +340
Tie: +260
As you can see the odds move when it comes to a 3-way line bet.
Parlays
A parlay must include at least two teams, but the benefit of betting a parlay is that the payout is much higher. Typically a parlay in hockey will work a bit differently than in most sports. Below is a list of the general odds from 2-8 teams. Remember; if you lose one of the bets in a parlay, you lose the entire bet.
2 teams: 2.6/1
3 teams: 6/1
4 teams: 10/1
5 teams: 20/1
6 teams: 40/1
7 teams: 75/1
8 teams: 100/1
Grand Salami
In short; the Grand Salami is an all-inclusive total bet. This wager allows you the bettor, to bet the total of all the days’ games, either under or over. It works exactly as does a single game total, only this is every game total, combined for that day. In order for a Grand Salami to have action, every game must start and every game must go the required 55 minutes. If one game is postponed, this cancels the bet and you will get your money back.
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