How We Review the Best Ice Hockey Betting Sites
We start all our sportsbook reviews with licensing and security details to ensure that we only list operators that provide a safe betting experience for our players. After that, it’s all about the details that make your betting experience better and provide all the things that make a sportsbook a good choice for your bets.
Reviewing the best ice hockey betting sites is no different. After establishing that the operator is safe to bet with, here are some other criteria we look into when rating ice hockey betting sites:
- Betting features the operator offers: Betting features have become a crucial part of the sports betting sites’ offerings, especially the in-play betting feature. It adds excitement to your bets by allowing you to bet live on many markets of a hockey match with dynamic and constantly changing odds. If we are talking about a sports betting site with live streaming opportunities for ice hockey matches, it’s a big plus for bettors who enjoy watching live games. The possibility of cashing out on the bets before the end of the events is also a nice feature to have.
- Welcome bonuses and other betting promotions: We also check if a sportsbook offers a welcome bonus to its new customers, especially one that can also be used for ice hockey betting. Some operators have special promotions for betting on ice hockey, especially the ones targeting the markets where ice hockey is popular.
- The quality of odds: If a sportsbook constantly offers good odds, that’s a good sign that it respects its customers. You might want to compare odds at several sportsbooks to see which one offers the best odds for the markets you enjoy betting on.
- Available payment methods: When it comes to providing payment options to bettors, we like the saying “the more the merrier.” Players enjoy having a choice and pick the sportsbook that offers the payment method they prefer using for their betting.
- Betting options and markets: Including as many events and betting markets as possible in their ice hockey betting offer is crucial for attracting new customers and getting a high rank from us in our bookie reviews.
Popular Bets for Ice Hockey Betting
Picking the right betting markets and types for online ice hockey betting will depend on your betting preferences. Some types of bets are more popular for hockey than others because they are more suitable for the sport. We will name a few popular bets you can choose from based on your betting strategy and preferences.
Moneyline/Straight Bet
One of the basic types of bets that are popular for many sports is the moneyline bet. It is a straight bet where you predict the outcome of the match by choosing the team you think will win. This type of bet is particularly popular with novice bettors and those who don’t enjoy taking too much risk and complicating things.
Parlay Bet
Parlay or accumulator bets are the type of bet where you can include more than one ice hockey wager on the bet slip and need to get all of them right in order to win. This bet allows for larger payouts than single bets, but only if you get all the legs of your bet right.
Puck Line (Point Spread)
A point spread bet is called a puck line bet in ice hockey. Since there often aren’t many goals in a hockey match, the number of goals for this bet is typically low. If there is a clear favourite in the match, the odds are for them to win by at least a 2.5 or 3.5 goal margin, and for the underdogs to lose by more than the set margin. If there isn’t a clear favourite, the point spread could be set to a lower number.
Over/Under (Totals)
Speaking of the number of goals in a match, another popular bet is the over/under bet, or a totals bet. The bookie sets the number of goals they predict both teams will cumulatively score in a match and provides the odds of betting whether there will be more or fewer goals than that scored in a match.
Outright/Futures Bet
Outright is a popular bet for the outcome of the entire league or championship, so any long-term event. It is also known as a futures bet, especially in the US. You can wager on the team that will win the event, the expected MVP, the top scorer, or other bets.
Important Things to Know About Ice Hockey Betting Online
Ice hockey online betting sites provide you with many opportunities to bet on your favourite sport, which can be a bit overwhelming if you are a beginner. Here are some of the important things to keep in mind when starting to bet on ice hockey:
- Look for ice hockey online betting sites with good odds: As a beginner, you might not know what good odds are. The best way to discover this is to look into multiple betting sites and compare their odds. If a sportsbook consistently offers higher odds on ice hockey than its competitors, then you can consider signing up with it if it also ticks other boxes that make a solid sportsbook.
- Find a welcome bonus you like: Do you prefer a deposit match or a free bet bonus? If you enjoy claiming welcome bonuses, find the ones you like best and don’t forget to read the terms and conditions before claiming the promotion.
- Set the amount you can spend on your ice hockey betting activities: It’s easy to get carried away with your bets, especially if you are testing your strategy. Set the amount you are comfortable with spending on your ice hockey bets (you can often do that in your sportsbook account settings) and try your luck.
- Try a few bet types before you find the ones that best fit your betting preferences: Having a strategy in place for online ice hockey betting is a good thing, especially if you are betting on a dynamic tournament that doesn’t last the whole season. Trying out different bets before finding the ones you are comfortable with as a beginner could be a good way to build your betting strategy.
Most Popular Sports Leagues for Ice Hockey Betting
We don’t have to look very hard to know what the most popular ice hockey league in the world is, as every enthusiast knows that it is the NHL. That’s why NHL betting takes up the biggest piece of ice hockey betting action around the world. Here are the ice hockey leagues that are the most popular to bet on:
- NHL (National Hockey League): Even though it has “national” in its name, the NHL is a hockey league played by clubs from the US and Canada. It was established in Canada in 1917 as the Canadian national hockey league, which explains the name, but today it features 26 clubs from the US and seven from Canada. It is the strongest hockey league in the world, attracting the best hockey players and millions of fans and bettors. Playoff champions win the Stanley Cup.
- Champions Hockey League: In this league, 24 teams from Europe compete for the title of the best club on the continent for the season. Teams come from Sweden, Finland, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Germany, Austria and five teams from national leagues that receive a wild card.
- SHL (Swedish Hockey League): The Swedish national league is also among the popular leagues for ice hockey betting because of the many talented players who play there.
- Liiga (Finland’s professional hockey league): Another national league that is among the biggest in Europe. Just like the Swedish league, many talented players start here before going to the NHL, making the Liiga a popular ice hockey betting destination.
- Kontinental Hockey League (KHL): Considered by some as the second strongest hockey league in the world, the KHL has lost some of its glory as an international competition and is now a league consisting mostly of Russian hockey teams. It has also lost some of its popularity with sports betting enthusiasts but still remains among the popular hockey leagues to bet on.
There are many more leagues and competitions bettors bet on, including the Professional Women's Hockey League, the Australia Ice Hockey League or minor leagues like the American Hockey League or the ECHL (East Coast Hockey League). The choice is vast, you just need to find your favourite leagues and markets and enjoy.
