There are many ways to bet on hockey as it has a long list of markets available for every game. Amongst those is betting on NHL totals as they can bring a lo of profits with the right strategies. Thus, in part 2 of our NHL Totals Betting Strategies, we bring more hockey betting totals tips and strategies.
Also known as the over/under, this is the third line on which you can bet on both individually. Unlike betting on the pointspread or on the moneyline, in Totals betting, it does not matter who wins the game. Instead, the betting odds only show a number where you bet on the total number of goals in a game.
Furthermore, hockey totals are typically set between 5 to 6.5 depending on the teams playing. While it may seem straightforward, there are situations where the final goal will equal the total (if 5 or 6). Thus, in such a situation the wager amount is given back. Therefore, with this in mind, here are more tips and strategies to bet on hockey totals.
Miss the first part of this hockey betting tutorial? >> Read NHL Totals Betting Strategies Part 1
NHL Totals Betting Strategies and Tips to Consider
Staying Away from Certain Temptations
During a hockey season, hockey bettors see it all. Whether betting on international hockey or the NHL, when a game total is 5, bettors want to take the Over. It’s tempting until you realize that in a given season, over 60 percent of games are won by a single goal.
According to sports betting experts, the most common hockey score is 3-2. While 4-2 is next on the list, in third place is 2-1. Fifty-seven percent of games end up with five or fewer goals. Therefore, it means a lot of games end with scores of 3-2 and 2-1.
If a totals betting odds are at 5, there is probably a good reason. It might be a matchup of two good defensive teams that have outstanding goalies. Games that are low-scoring through the first two periods are likely to stay that way. Teams are cautious and will force overtime instead of giving up an easy goal.
The bottom line is to not be tempted to take the Over with a low total. It’s also wise to look into why a total is set at 6.5 before automatically wanting to play the Under.
Home and Away Games
The NHL’s home-ice advantage may be waning, but there will always be teams with a significant home/away disparity. Bettors have to know which teams perform better at home or on the road. Hence, the pressure for the home team to perform well at home is very intense. Therefore, teams that are having trouble meeting expectations may notice a decline in their play at home. Instead of taking chances, they will become overly cautious.
On the other hand, when on the road, the same team might play more carefree and wind up creating more scoring opportunities.
Finding these teams and monitoring their performance is crucial. Before drawing any firm conclusions, gather enough data to have a solid sample size. Nothing is worse than drawing hasty conclusions and seeing your bankroll burn because your handicapping was insufficient.
Look at NHL Totals from the Big Picture
Looking at a team’s scoring averages for the entire season or at a run of games is a common error. This is especially true for most novice hockey bettors. This is because the outliers skew the numbers in one direction masking true trends.
Take the following example. The Pittsburgh Penguins played seven games and the final scores were as follows: 2-1, 3-1, 2-0, 3-2, 2-0, 6-4 and 7-5. That’s a total of 38 goals and if you divide that by seven, you get 5.43.
While the math is correct, it is a false hockey betting assumptions. A newer bettor might interpret this a couple ways. First, the average of 5.43 might make a gambler consider the Under since most totals are 5.5 or higher. The new bettor might also lean to the Over because of what happened in the last two games (6-4 and 7-5).
On the other hand, a veteran gambler would realize that 22 of the 38 goals were made in two games. If you take those games out, the combined average is just 3.3 goals per game. The veteran bettor will also realize that he might need a bigger sample size in order to make a good decision.
In the end, betting on NHL totals takes much more than just looking at recent games and overall scoring averages.
