Hockey betting may not be as popular as other sports, but it definitely enjoys its share of the spotlight. Being a full-contact sport, hockey is one of the most physically demanding sports out there, making it exciting to bet on. However, considering the hockey betting market is not so popular, newbie bettors may find it difficult to find their way.
In a bid to alleviate this, we have provided an avenue where newbies and existing punters alike can get tips about hockey betting. It doesn’t matter whether you’re betting on hockey futures, moneylines, or even parlay betting, these tips will come in handy to boost your chances of success.
Without further ado, let’s delve right into these important hockey betting tips and strategies.
1. Do Your Research: Pay Attention to Schedules, Rosters, and Lineups
Each team has its strengths and accompanying weaknesses, however small. With this in mind, it’s important to know what you’re dealing with before placing a bet on the team’s win or loss. For instance, a team that focuses on physical play without doing so in the penalty box may not be a great match against a team focusing on a power-play attack.
In addition to this, it’s also important to pay attention to each team’s rosters, schedules, and player substitutions. For most teams, the starting goalie does not play in multiple consecutive matches to avoid injury. As such, when the backup goalie plays, the odds of the NHL rival team winning may increase ever so slightly.
Thus, having all this information will come in handy to increase the bettor’s chances of success.
2. Focus on In-Play Betting
Regardless of how you look at it and what strategy you use, in-play wagering is your best bet at making sure money. This is because it is less risky and more profitable, making it a perfect strategy.
Yes, placing bets before a match is quite easier since the odds are not changing as fast and there’s no risk of a surprise goal awaiting you at the corner. However, as the bettor becomes more experienced, he can then move on to live in-play wagers which will provide more betting opportunities.
3. Don’t Keep Betting After a Losing Streak
The worst thing any punter can do is to have the “Let me keep playing so I can recover my losses” mentality. More often than not, this mentality doesn’t yield a good result because you may end up accruing even more losses. In such instances, you become more focused on sentimental betting rather than betting with a clear plan and strategy.
As a result, once a gambler notices that he has lost a lot of consecutive wagers, it is best to take a step back. It will help you in recalibrating yourself and seeing where you miss it. This system is what thus forms the basis of having a bankroll limit that you cannot exceed.
4. Only Wager What You Can Afford To Lose
Placing stakes of only what you can afford to lose is the key to successful hockey betting. Doing so will help players avoid the issue of emotional wagering and also prevent gambling addiction. In doing this, you also won’t be caught in the web of wanting to recover your losses.
5. Consider Home Advantage
In most ice hockey games, like in the NHL, playing on home ice sometimes gives the home players an advantage. This is because they are in familiar surroundings while enjoying the support from their home crowd. Also, they are not jet-lagged from traveling and the stress that comes with it.
Thus, it’s important to consider all these factors when placing a bet. Look at both the home and away teams’ past wins to see how well they perform on home and away ice respectively.
6. Do Not Bet Only on Favorite Teams or Players
Almost everyone interested in one sport or the other has a favorite team they choose to support. But this shouldn’t mean punters can go ahead to place bets on their favorite teams. This is because your favorite hockey team or player may not be the best out there and even at that, the best team will sometimes lose.
Thus, it’s not advisable to keep placing wagers favoring the better team. Even the longest winning streak may come to an end and it might be the “smallest” team that may beat the so-called best. As such, it’s not worth risking your wins over those little odds.
7. Seek Advice From Professional NHL Bettors
No matter how knowledgeable you think you are about hockey, you always have a chance to learn something new from other professional bettors. From these experienced bettors, you will get expert guidance on how to go about betting and the best hockey teams to bet on. Some may even give daily updates and betting picks/fixtures you can bet on.
However, it’s important to carefully select professional tipsters; opt for those with a profitable and long betting history. But this can prove a little hard seeing as there aren’t many expert tipsters’ worth paying attention to.
Final Score
Hockey betting is a fun pastime activity but it must be done with a clear-cut strategy to have higher chances of success. Therefore, make use of the above-mentioned tips and watch the magic happen right before your eyes. However, in all you do, remember to gamble responsibly.