The NHL puck line explained

What the puck line is

A puck line bet is a bet on the winning margin. The sportsbook gives one team a head start of 1.5 goals and takes 1.5 goals from the other, and only then is the bet settled. The minus sign means the team gives goals away; the plus sign means it receives them.

Bookmakers offer it because hockey is a low-scoring game with a lot of one-goal results. A strong favourite on the moneyline can be priced at -200 (1.50) or shorter, which many bettors find too little to be worth a bet. The favourite winning by two goals is a different prediction, with a different price.

On the main line the goals are almost always fixed at 1.5 and the price moves. That is the difference from football and basketball, where the point spread moves from game to game and the price usually stays close to -110 (1.91).

Half a goal means no ties

Because the line is 1.5, a tie after the adjustment is impossible. The bet wins or loses; there is no refund. Here is how a favourite at -1.5 is settled at different final scores:

• Favourite wins 1-0: after the line it is -0.5 to 0, so the -1.5 bet loses.
• Favourite wins 2-0: after the line it is 0.5 to 0, so the bet wins.
• Favourite wins 3-2: after the line it is 1.5 to 2, so the bet loses.
• Favourite wins 4-2: after the line it is 2.5 to 2, so the bet wins.

The underdog at +1.5 wins in every other case: if it wins the game, or if it loses by exactly one goal.

A worked example

Say Edmonton hosts Ottawa and the sportsbook prices the game like this:

A $10 bet on each Edmonton and Ottawa option would be settled like this:

• Edmonton win 4-1 in regulation: Edmonton moneyline returns $15.00. Edmonton -1.5 returns $24.00. Ottawa +1.5 loses.
• Edmonton win 3-2 in regulation: Edmonton moneyline returns $15.00. Edmonton -1.5 loses. Ottawa +1.5 returns $16.06.
• Edmonton win 3-2 in overtime or a shootout: Edmonton moneyline returns $15.00 at most sportsbooks. Edmonton -1.5 loses. Ottawa +1.5 returns $16.06.
• Ottawa win, any score: Ottawa moneyline returns $27.00. Ottawa +1.5 returns $16.06. Both Edmonton bets lose.

The trade is clear in the numbers. Edmonton -1.5 pays $24.00 instead of $15.00, but loses every one-goal win. Ottawa +1.5 is cheaper than the Ottawa moneyline, but returns $16.06 instead of $27.00 when Ottawa wins outright.

Puck line, moneyline and totals compared

The three main NHL markets ask different questions about the same game.

If you expect a favourite to win comfortably, the -1.5 line pays more than the moneyline. If you expect an underdog to keep the game close but are not sure it wins, +1.5 covers the one-goal loss. If you have a view on how open the game will be but not on who wins, the total is the market. The NHL betting guide covers all three, plus period bets and props.

The reverse puck line

Most sportsbooks also offer the line the other way round, sometimes called the reverse or alternate puck line: the favourite at +1.5 and the underdog at -1.5. The favourite at +1.5 only loses if it loses by two or more, so it is priced very short, often well beyond -300 (1.33). The underdog at -1.5 has to win by two goals, so it pays a long price. Alternate lines at 2.5 goals and more are common too. They are the same idea with a bigger head start, and the prices move a long way with each extra goal.

The empty net

One hockey habit decides many puck-line bets: pulling the goalie. A team trailing by one goal late in the third period usually takes its goalie off for an extra skater. That leaves the net empty, and the leading team can score into it from its own end.

For the puck line, an empty-net goal turns a one-goal win into a two-goal win. A favourite leading 3-2 with ninety seconds left loses the -1.5 bet; the same favourite winning 4-2 after an empty-net goal wins it. The reverse is also possible: the extra skater scores, the game goes to overtime and the -1.5 bet is gone.

That swing is why the favourite at -1.5 often pays a plus price, and why a puck-line result can change in the final seconds. If you bet the puck line, expect some bets to be decided by a goal nobody saved.

Overtime and the shootout

NHL regular-season games tied after 60 minutes go to five minutes of three-on-three sudden-death overtime, then to a shootout. In the playoffs there is no shootout: teams play full 20-minute periods until someone scores.

How books usually settle the puck line

At most North American sportsbooks, the standard puck line includes overtime and the shootout. A shootout win is usually counted as one goal for the winning team in the final score, however many shooters score. Some sportsbooks, especially those that use European-style rules, settle hockey handicaps on the 60 minutes of regulation only. Check the book's rules or the market name: regulation-only markets are often labelled "60-minute", "regulation time" or "excluding overtime".

Why it rarely changes the standard line

For the standard 1.5-goal line, the two rules give the same result. A game tied after 60 minutes always ends with a one-goal margin: overtime stops at the first goal, and a shootout adds one goal. So if a game goes past regulation, the favourite at -1.5 loses and the underdog at +1.5 wins, whichever rule the book uses.

Where it does matter

• Totals. If regulation ends 3-3, Over 6.5 has lost on a regulation-only total but wins on a total that counts overtime. A shootout usually adds one goal to the total.
• Alternate and 60-minute lines. A 60-minute puck line treats a regulation tie as a tie, so the favourite at -0.5 or -1.5 loses even if it wins in overtime.
• The moneyline. The standard two-way moneyline usually includes overtime and the shootout; the three-way 60-minute line does not, and a tie is its own result.

Postponed, suspended and shortened games also follow each sportsbook's own rules, so check the book's rules before you rely on any of the above.

Puck lines in parlays

Puck lines are popular parlay legs, because a favourite at -1.5 adds a plus price where the moneyline would add very little. The arithmetic is the same as for any parlay: convert to decimal and multiply. Edmonton -1.5 at +140 (2.40) with a second leg at -110 (1.91) gives a parlay price of about 4.58, so $10 returns about $45.82. Remember that both legs have to win, and that a sportsbook may not let you combine the puck line and the total from the same game outside its same-game parlay product. Our parlay guide explains how these are calculated and why the margin grows with every leg.

What the puck line changes and what it does not

The puck line changes the price and what has to happen for the bet to win. It does not change the probability of the result, and it does not remove the bookmaker's margin.

Edmonton -1.5 at +140 (2.40) is not a better bet than Edmonton on the moneyline at -200 (1.50). They are two different predictions with two different chances, and both carry the sportsbook's cut. In the example above, the two puck-line prices imply 41.7% and 62.3%, a total of about 104%: the extra 4 points are the margin. How implied probability and the margin work is explained in our odds formats guide.

Four checks before a puck-line bet

1. Read the market name. Puck line, 60-minute puck line and alternate puck line are settled differently.
2. Check the starting goalies. A backup in net moves the chance of a two-goal win more than almost anything else.
3. Know the settlement rules. Overtime, the shootout and postponed games are in each sportsbook's rules, and they differ.
4. Compare the price. The same -1.5 line can be +140 (2.40) at one sportsbook and +155 (2.55) at another.

If a word on the bet slip is unfamiliar, the glossary explains it.

Bet within a budget

A late empty-net goal that costs you a puck-line bet is part of hockey, not a reason to bet bigger on the next game. Set a budget for the season, use the deposit limits in your account and stop when the budget is spent. Betting is for adults only: 19+ in most provinces, 18+ in Quebec and Manitoba. Our responsible gambling page lists free, confidential help for every province we cover, and the sports betting hub covers the sportsbooks on our Canadian list.