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The first round of the always exciting NHL playoffs is ready to commence and there will be several great matchups and likely some upsets. That is how the hockey playoffs roll.
Most spring and earlier summer sports bettors agree that the hockey playoffs, especially the first two rounds, are far more interesting and exciting than their pro basketball counterparts.
While the excitement of playoff hockey can have you on the edge of your seat whether you are betting or not, the game-by-game results are often like the men’s NCAA Tournament, wildly unpredictable.
With this being the case, one can wager on pucks differently at top sportsbooks , particularly in the first round (and sometimes the first four games of the conference semifinals).
Setting Up Wagers For Profits
Most years, at least half the opening-round series reach six or seven games. Very rarely do series get to the point where the home team wins every contest.
In this scenario, we are looking primarily at road underdogs in Game 1. The thinking is many series are tied at 1-1 for starters. Thus, the away team has to win one of the first two battles to have that occur. With this in mind, whatever amount your normal wager is, say, $100 equals one unit, take the road underdog for $50 to $75 to win.
If you are correct in the first game, take satisfaction with the victory and pass on Game 2.
If you did lose, which is the expected outcome based on the NHL odds, you come back with a 2-unit play ($200 in this scenario) looking to achieve that split and showing a more significant profit.
- NHL Game 1 of 1st Round Series – Bet 0.50 to 0.75 unit on a road underdog.
- NHL Game 2 – Bet 2 units on the road underdog if Game 1 loses.
Here are things to consider. You don’t bet on these blindly. A -350 or higher series favorite playing at home can lose, it’s just not likely. It is probably best to pass on that underdog. However, if they ended up outplaying the favorite and possibly lost in overtime, you might consider that pooch for Game 2.
Additionally, if your Game 1 underdog was routed in the series opener and the defense and goalie were awful; passing is not the worst betting method, especially since you lost less than one unit.
Change of Venue and Trying to Build Bankroll
For Game 3, the series shifts as the visitor is now playing before its rowdy fans. In this case, you have to understand the circumstances.
If the home team is down 0-2, they are desperate for a victory, knowing another setback means the series is all but over. For betting purposes, you are down almost three units and would make a wager of 3-units having to back the favorite. If correct, you now show a profit for the series. Game 4 would go back to traditional handicapping.
- NHL Game 3– Bet 3 units on the home favorite if you lost the first two games of the series.
If the series is 1-1, you would repeat what you did to start the series, taking the underdog for Game 3, but up your wager to 1.5 units, seeking a bit more profit. If you win that matchup, pass on Game 4. If you lose Game 3, you come back with a 2-unit play on Game 4 that more than offsets your loss and you have won over 1.5 units with a .500 record.
- NHL Game 3 of 1st Round Series (Tied 1-1) – Bet 1.50 units on a road underdog.
- NHL Game 4 – Bet 2 units on the road underdog if Game 3 loses.
Understand What You are Doing
Is this method foolproof? Absolutely not. With all sports betting, there is risk involved and you still have to know the teams to make smart decisions using this technique.
Nonetheless, the potential edge is you are betting on the situation, not teams, and using strict money management principles to maximize profits.
You also need to know, this becomes less effective the deeper you go into the playoffs (other than the start of Round 2 as mentioned above) for a variety of reasons. If you are unsure about trying this, we don’t blame you, check the results for these playoffs, and on the presumption this was profitable, you can still use the following season.
