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This article was created to share my knowledge about profitable ice hockey betting strategies, tips, and tricks for betting mainly in NHL or other hockey leagues.
I’ve been successfully/profitably betting on the most popular sports since 2013. I gained even more interest in this sport after started visiting the matches.
It’s a fast and aggressive sport with many goals that open plenty of entry points for smart bettors to make great profits.
So here are the strategies I used to make profits:
How to win ice hockey bets – NHL betting strategies
1. Arbitrage betting on ice hockey & NHL
OddsJam is the most affordable tool for arbitrage betting in the USA and also matched betting in the USA.
Arbitrage betting is a very simple betting strategy, and I already have a lot of articles about the upsides and downsides. But I will write some short sentences here too.
This technique is based on wrong odds and slow bookmakers. When there are hundreds or even thousands of matches available for betting, there will be betting opportunities too.
The bookies are offering similar odds for the same outcomes. But you probably noticed that sometimes the lines or odds seem a little bit wrong.
Their opinion is often very different about the possible outcome of an event, and they might offer very different odds compared to their competitors. These mistakes are causing the so-called sure bets.
For example:
- Bookie 1 Offers an odd of 1.80 for the home team while Bookie 2 offers 2.20.
- If you take the odds of 2.20, you will be able to cover the other outcome at another bookie on odds around 1.90.
- No matter who wins, you make a profit of 2% of your total stakes.
Placing 20-30 bets like this every day can generate a decent and guaranteed profit.
If you are looking for an affordable/free arbitrage scanner you can check the following reviews I wrote on the best free arbitrage scanner services.
2. Following a skilled NHL betting tipster
It might sound strange to read about tipsters after arbitrage betting. But many people don’t want to stay in front of the computer all day long to use sure bet finders.
Following the best tipster site or tipster is the only real solution for them. Unfortunately, hockey is not the most popular sport. So, only a few tipsters became good enough to be worth following.
Finding betting tipsters with a profitable and long betting history can be time-consuming.
Some of them are sharing their picks for a fairly high price. On the other hand, many skilled bettors have opened individual tipster accounts at tipster platforms like Tipstrr.
I think the tipster below is the only one worth following on this platform (if you are betting only on hockey).
If you are picking the right people to follow:
- betting history with Min tips: over 500
- Min odds: over 1.60
you can’t get wrong with the top tipsters.
On this platform, every individual tipster is motivated to offer picks that are profitable in the long run. This is their only way to get returning subscribers.
You can also check my Tipstrr Review.
3. Finding overpriced outcomes
This betting strategy is very similar to arbitrage betting. Again, your main goal is to find a bookie and an outcome, where the market is overpriced. But in this case, you won’t cover the other outcome.
The trick is to find wrong odds, that are higher than the true chance of winning it.
Example:
- The home team has a 50% chance to win the match based on historical data and news about players. For this, the average odds will be around 1.90, because the odds include the bookmaker.
- Some bookies can miss a piece of information and they offer an odd of 2.15 instead of 1.90.
Based only on mathematics and statistics: if you take advantage of these wrong odds, you will end up in profit in the long run.
And that profit is way higher than the one you could make with arbitrage betting at the same time.
Your only task is to find out which odds are overpriced. For this, you have several opportunities. The most basic one is subscribing to a bookmaker scanner software.
Similar article: Best basketball tipster site
They are following the majority of bookies and almost every sports event.
As I already mentioned some bookies are very accurate in defining the true chance of an outcome.
Comparing odds to them in these scanner services will display value bets.
Betting on these will mean that you are beating the bookmakers and their odds. You will lose some bets because you are not covering every outcome. But in the long run, you will end up with good profits.
I have to mention that the best move is to take these bets only for single bets. Using them in combinations will increase the risks and the variance.
Based on my experience BetBurger is the top value bet finder for in-play hockey betting.
4. Focus on in-play betting
No matter what kind of strategy you are following, betting in-play is way more profitable and less risky (regarding getting your account limited for taking wrong odds).
Placing bets pre-match is easier, the odds are not moving so fast and you won’t face a surprise goal while betting. But after getting enough experience I would advise focusing only on live betting.
You will find way more betting opportunities and the sharp bookies can define odd more accurately.
5. Forget parlay betting
Every time you add a new selection to your bet slip the possible profit is highly increased. But unfortunately, the risk of losing your bet is significantly increased too.
No matter how good your selections are, even with overpriced bets, you will face big variances. A lot of your bets will be lost in a row.
The only viable exception is placing combination bets with 2 selections and both of them should be with wrong odds. This way it will hold more value than risk, and in the long run, you can be profitable.
6. Stop following the favorites
Even the best team will lose sometimes. An odd of 1.15 or 1.20 is almost as risky as one of 1.40. Like in every sport, there are no sure teams and bets without risks.
The only exceptions are betting strategies where you cover the other outcome too.
You simply can’t know every detail about players and their motivation. Even after a longer winning streak, they can be beaten by the last teams.
Sometimes these miracles happen, and you don’t want to take that risk for those low odds.
7. Bet only on main leagues like NHL
Betting on every league, even on smaller ones is not the wisest idea.
Reasons why I would not advise this:
- The odds can’t be accurate even at sharp bookmakers
- Bookies tend to limit faster if you bet on small leagues
- The average stake sizes are low
8. Stop betting after a long losing streak
After losing many bets while NHL betting I can easily switch to the “let’s recover my losses” operation system. This is the worst you can do after losing too much.
Your decision-making system will change in the stake size and the betting picks too. You might see too much opportunity in some bets that are very risky in reality.
After losing a significant amount I always stop betting for at least some hours. In many cases, I take a day off. I’ve been a profitable bettor since 2013, but I still can have bad days (sometimes even bad weeks).
9. Specialize yourself in a single league/betting market
I know from experience that becoming an expert in one sport and even one single league can give you an advantage against bookies.
In most cases, bookies see only the big picture. They are defining the odds and “correct” betting lines for the main markets like the possible winner and the number of points/goals.
The smaller markets are generated automatically. Following a match in-play will give you the advantage of spotting good betting opportunities.
A penalty of a key player might have a bigger impact on the following 2 minutes that bookies can’t figure out that fast. They might drop the odds, but in many cases, those still can hold a decent value.
10. Use a proven staking method
While this strategy/advice for hockey betting got only the 10th position on the list, it is still one of the best ways to optimize your results.
With the right staking strategy you can significantly increase the profitability while decreasing the impact of losing streaks.
The most recommended staking methods for hockey betting are the Kelly criterion and flat staking.
Visit the following article on bankroll management systems and learn more.
Best NHL & Ice Hockey odds comparison sites
1. OddsJam NHL odds comparison site
OddsJam is offering insanely valuable information for bettors from the USA and Canada. They are scanning over 50 bookies from the US, and many international ones too.
OddsJam is a professional odds comparison site that supports betting strategies like arbitrage betting, value betting, matched betting, etc.
You can also check my detailed review of this odds comparison site here: In-depth OddsJam Review.
2. OddsPortal: odds comparison
For bettors from other countries, OddsPortal is the best tool for odds comparison. Their services are offered completely free.
NHL & Ice Hockey betting odds
Betting on the NHL at the highest odds possible will always be the shortest and surest route to success. Each bookmaker is trying to figure out the most accurate odds for each outcome.
But in many cases, some of them can’t take each factor into consideration. These will cause an opinion difference between bookies.
Some services are constantly scanning the majority of bookmakers. They are able to display the highest betting odds on most sports and betting markets.
Ice Hockey odds comparison sites are opening new opportunities for NHL bettors. Finding the highest odds every time will guarantee you the highest payouts.
Getting the highest ice hockey odds with the help of these comparison sites allows you to place bets where the payout is higher than the possibility of the outcome.
This strategy is called value betting. Below you will find more information about this topic.
How to bet on ice hockey? What is the best way?
If you want to read about betting strategies and tips that are profitable and based on mathematics, you came to the right place.
I don’t like sharing unnecessary ideas and betting tips like you should follow some players, etc. This kind of betting advice is fun to read, but later you can’t make any use of that.
Do you know why?
Because you are not the only one who is analyzing the physical and mental state of the players.
You can follow teams and players on social media and maybe once in a while, you can get useful information. But trusting in these might not be the best idea.
Why?
Because bookmakers and other bettors already know this information and most of the time the odds are already reflecting it.
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Why is this a problem?
Every time you get lucky to find good information, probably hundreds of other bettors find that out. And what are they doing right after it?
Well…placing bets with decent stakes. Many smart players will place their bets on bookies who are not going to limit them.
Bookies like Betfair Exchange or Pinnacle are the best choices for them.
But their bets will trigger something you might not think about ever. You can place bets on the most accurate odds at these bookies because a lot of smart bettors are using them.
Every time a small group starts betting on a market at these bookies, the odds start dropping.
The majority of their competitors can’t offer these sharp (accurate) odds, so they start copying theirs.
If you are not lucky enough to get this insider information, the odds will already include that drop.
Best Ice Hockey betting system?
If you are willing to bet only on your own without following tipsters, the surest strategies and betting systems for ice hockey are the ones based on mathematics.
Don’t be afraid, I’m not gonna share complicated statistical or mathematical equations. The strategies I will mention are related to the situations I already mentioned.
A lot of bookies are getting information about the right odds from each other.
When someone finds out the right odds the other bookies are following them (if that bookmaker has enough credibility like Pinnacle).
The good news for you is that not all of them can update the odds in time. These mistakes are offering a big advantage for smart bettors.
Placing bets on these wrong odds or lines will off you a chance for decent and guaranteed profits.
You might think this is not possible. Well, I and thousands of bettors have made thousands (some of us even millions) of euros in profits.
Best markets for hockey & NHL betting
You can find overpriced markets for both strategies in almost every market. The biggest question is: is it worth a try?
1. Handicap betting
Handicap betting is one of the most famous markets among bettors. You can find handicap bets for match winners, total goals, etc.
These markets are used by almost every bettor, so it won’t be that suspicious if you start placing arbitrage or value bets on these.
Choosing the right markets for smart betting techniques can have a big impact on your profitability.
Being a winner, in the long run, is not an advantage for average bookies. The more you can stay under the radar by choosing the right markets and odds, the more money you can make.
2. Over/under markets
Over/under markets on hockey is very similar to handicap betting. They are fairly fast markets with a lot of mistakes if enough goals are scored.
Based on my observation, the faster points are scored in a match, the more arbitrage and value betting opportunities appear.
This is the main reason why tennis and basketball betting are gold mines when the matches are in play.
Hockey is not that fast from this point of view, but the bookies tend to have less information about the majority of teams.
The less they know about a team/sport the more mistakes and overpriced odds they are offering.
Conclusion
The best betting strategies for Ice Hockey are based on mathematics. Anyone without deep knowledge about the teams and players can be profitable by betting on overpriced markets.
My main betting tip for Ice Hockey is to forget parlay betting and start betting strategies like arbitrage or value betting.
