Hockey betting 101 - How to bet the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs

The 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs begin on Monday night. Thanks to the legalization of single-game sports betting across North America, this could be the most heavily wagered-on postseason in NHL history.

Betting on hockey isn't nearly as prevalent as the wagering on other major sports in the U.S. As of Oct. 2021, the average MLB game draws five times as much betting handle as the average NHL game at the SuperBook at Westgate Las Vegas. Some of that barrier to entry is simply not knowing about all the various ways one can wager on an NHL game.

Here's a guide to wagering on the NHL, with some specific advice on betting the Stanley Cup Playoffs that will help the newbies and the puckheads.

Odds as of Monday from Caesars Sportsbook.

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The most popular wager on the NHL is the moneyline bet. That's essentially betting on a team's odds to win the game outright. Let's say you like the Minnesota Wild to defeat the St. Louis Blues in Game 1 of their series, and the Wild are a -140 favorite to win that game. Bet $20 and the payout is just over $34. But on the other hand, let's say you like the underdog Blues here and they're +115 to win the game. Your $20 will net you $43 if they win.

The next most popular bet is the «puck line.» (Some people call it the «goal line,» but that's a little confusing given there's an actual «goal line» on the ice in hockey.) This is essentially «betting the spread» for hockey, where you get odds based on a team winning or losing by a certain number of goals. Given the number of