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If you aren’t familiar with hockey betting, you probably don’t know what a puck line is. Guess what? That’s okay. We have you covered. The puck line is the spread for a hockey game. Let’s dive in so you can learn more.
Puck Line in Sports Betting
The puck line is another term for the spread in a hockey game. Let’s look at an example from the 4 Nations Face-Off between the United States and Canada. Here are the odds for the game.
| Matchup | Puck Line | Total | Moneyline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | +1.5 (-278) | O 5.5 (+110) | -112 |
| USA | -1.5 (+225) | U 5.5 (-130) | -108 |
As you can see, the United States has a -1.5 puck line. That means they need to win the game by 2 goals or more to cover the puck line. Canada is +1.5. That means they would have to lose by 1 goal or less to cover the puck line. Pay attention to the odds because that’s how much you will be winning. For Canada, it takes a $278 bet on the puck line to win $100. For the United States, a $100 bet on the puck line wins $225.
More: Point spreads for more sports in betting / How to read odds
-1.5 vs +1.5
It is always important to remember the difference between -1.5 and +1.5. The negative puck line represents the team that is favored in the game. They have to win by 2 goals or more. The positive number is for the puck line underdog. They would have to lose by 1 goal or less (or win) the game to cover the puck line.
More: Learn about hockey betting
What About the Odds?
As we said above, it is always important to understand the odds. They can vary on puck line bets and over/under bets too. The odds will be listed in parentheses next to the puck line. For example, -1.5 (+225). The +225 is the odds for the bet. It tells you how much you will be receiving in winnings based on your wager. Positive numbers will make you more money while negative numbers mean you have to bet more to win a decent amount. Here are a couple of examples.
- Negative Odds
- -110 (Bet $110 to win $100)
- -150 (Bet $150 to win $100)
- -250 (Bet $250 to win $100)
For negative odds (American), you can just remember that it will take that much money to win $100 on your bet. Now, for positive odds, you can move the decimal place from the far right over two places. That number will be how many times you would win. Here are some examples.
- Positive Odds
- +100 (Bet $100 to win $100, 1x)
- +200 (Bet $100 to win $200, 2x)
- +550 (Bet $100 to win $550, 5.5x)
- +1500 (Bet $100, to win $1500, 15x)
If you are new to sports betting, don’t worry! We have tons of great betting guides to help you learn more.
Why is the Puck Line Always 1.5?
For hockey games, the puck line is almost always 1.5. Why? This is because the games are low-scoring so sportsbooks aren’t going to have much variability when it comes to the spread. The same goes for baseball where it is called a run line. It’s also always -1.5 or +1.5.
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