The NHL season is heading into March, which means just a little more than month remains in the regular season. If you’ve been betting on the NHL odds all year and want to shake it up as the schedule comes to a close, try betting on the hockey pucklines.
NHL pucklines are hockey’s version of the pointspread, most often set at 1.5 goals. There is some tricky pricing when it comes to playing pucklines, with teams set as puckline favorites – those at -1.5 – priced with positive vig. The puckline underdog – set at +1.5 – is normally saddled with a higher vig. For example, Pittsburgh is a -1.5 puckline favorite of +135 while Anaheim is a +1.5 puckline underdog at -155.
Now that betting NHL pucklines is clear, here are the best betting trends in the NHL this season.
New York Rangers (41-22 ATS, +8.6 units)
The Rangers are near the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings but among the top in puckline profits, going 41-22 against the 1.5-goal spread for almost nine units. New York has one of the better offensive attacks in the NHL, scoring an average of 3.3 goals a night but giving up three goals against on average.
The Blueshirts sit 10th in the East, just outside of the playoff picture and only two points back of eighth place. The postseason push could help fuel this team down the home stretch of the season and keep the puckline money flowing in the Empire State.
Philadelphia Flyers (39-25 ATS, +9.6 units)
The City of Brotherly Love is home to puckline winners this season, with the Flyers flipping those 1.5-goal spread into almost 10 units of profits. Philadelphia has been fantastic at home against the puckline, posting a 23-9 record heading into the final month of the season.
The Flyers sit fourth in the Eastern Conference, backed behind one of the better two-way teams in hockey. Philly ranks ninth in goals per game at 3.3 while allowing opponents to light the lamp just 2.9 times against – 11th best in the NHL. The Flyers will be fighting until the end, trying to either jump into the Top 3 spot or hold off for home ice in the postseason in the No. 4 position. Good things for puckline bettors.
Colorado Avalanche (34-29 ATS, +6.5 units)
The record may not be as impressive as the Flyers and Rangers, but when the Avalanche do win against the puckline they make it worth your while. Colorado’s math just makes sense for those betting the NHL spread, with the Avs allowing just 2.7 goals against per game while countering with 3.4 goals of their own. All Colorado has to do is split one more goal past the goaltender and puckline players are happy.
The Avalanche are third in the Western Conference and sit only three points back of first place. They’ve been red hot in recent outings, going 7-2-1 in their last 10 games, however, they’ve posted four straight wins by only one goal heading into the weekend, which isn’t good enough for those laying the -1.5 goals in those contests.
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