Updated 7 October 2024

NHL Picks & Free Hockey Betting Predictions

We share our NHL picks throughout the hockey season here at BetIdeas.

They’re generated using the latest AI technology and we’re going to explain exactly how that works, along with sharing information about betting on the NHL.

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How to Bet on the NHL?

If you take a look at our selection of NHL picks today you may end up wanting to place a bet. Here’s a step-by-step guide to placing hockey bets on the NHL.

Examine Our NHL Betting Predictions

Study our free hockey picks. If you see a tip that you believe is likely to win, then move on to the next step.

Sign Up With a Sportsbook

Now take a look at our recommended online sportsbooks.

Find one that suits your purposes and click through to sign up for an account.

Register your details and set your login information.

Deposit Funds

Once your account is set up, you must deposit some money before you can indulge in some NHL sports betting.

Visit the banking section, choose a deposit method, enter the details, select how much money you want to add and confirm.

Find the Hockey Section

Most sportsbooks have an A-Z list of sports. Find the hockey section and click on it.

As hockey is a sport played across the world, there may be several leagues covered, but the NHL is likely to be prominently displayed.

Click on NHL, find the game that you want and then look through the range of markets to get to your chosen bet.

Place Your NHL Bet

You are now in the position to follow one of our NHL bet tips and place your wager.

Click on the odds, which will add the selection to an online bet slip. Then it’s just a case of choosing your stake and confirming the bet.

How Our NHL Predictions Work

NHL logoAs mentioned in our introduction, our NHL picks and parlays are generated using the latest AI technology.

The process starts with the data. All the relevant information to the hockey game we’re accessing, is quickly sourced by AI.

This includes factors such as team statistics, player stats, form, head-to-head record, the possibility of fatigue, injury history and team news.

With the facts and figures in place, we can run our simulations and this creates the AI sports picks you see on the site.

The algorithms simulate a game thousands of times, so that we can understand the likeliest scenarios that we are likely to see once the action starts.

Once we know how the game is likely to unfold, we can match this information with the best NHL bets around.

We partner with top online sports betting sites, who provide a deep range of hockey lines and the most generous betting odds available in the industry.

The AI picks out the appropriate markets with the best available odds. We are then ready to publish our NHL bet tips on the BetIdeas website.

This is an innovative way to make hockey predictions and we are proud of the results they reap.

To prove it, we have a section where you can check up on how our NHL betting picks fared, so that you can see how profitable following our advice can be.

When Do We Post Our NHL Predictions?

The NHL schedule is a busy one. In total, NHL teams each play 82 regular season games, which adds up to a total of 1,312 games.

This means that teams can play as many as three or four games a week, which has an impact on when we can publish our NHL picks and predictions.

We need to factor in recent results, the amount of ice time for players and any key injuries.

The optimum time to publish our expert hockey picks is one or two days before the game in question.

With so many games taking place, you’ll be able to enjoy NHL predictions today and everyday, throughout the entire hockey season.

So there will never be a time when you’re short of our accurate advice.

How to Use Our NHL Picks and Betting Advice

Anyone in the US can now bet legally online. There are basically two options.

If you live in a state where online gambling has been legalized, you can use one of their licensed sites.

Or, there is the option of using an offshore sportsbook, which is a legal option in many of the states that have legalized online betting, as well as every other state in America.

There is no federal law prohibiting the use of offshore sportsbooks, so unless you live in a state that has made a point of prohibiting their use, you are free to use them.

That gives everyone in the US a legit option to follow our NHL betting tips.

Our recommended offshore sportsbooks all cover NHL betting in great detail, with a huge number of markets available for every single game.

Here are some of the lines that you can expect to find when betting on hockey.

NHL Moneyline Picks

The most straightforward bet type in hockey can be found on the moneyline. You are simply betting on which team will win the game.

With overtime and a shootout deciding games should there be a tie after regular time, there is only the option of backing one of the two teams to win.

Hockey is a low-scoring sport, so the moneyline frequently has odds that reflect that contests can be tight.

Our daily NHL best bets section often includes picks for the moneyline.

NHL Totals Picks (Over/Under)

Sometimes it’s nice to have a bet that’s not dependent on the result. With totals, you are betting on the accumulated total goal score of the two teams.

A total is stated and you have to bet on whether there will be over that number of goals, or under.

To analyze this market, factors have to be considered such as the quality of the respective defences and attacks, along with the number of shots on goals being recorded by the teams.

Our NHL score predictions do this hard work for you.

NHL Puck Line Picks (Point Spreads)

Another of the most popular markets for the NHL is the puck line, which is the hockey term for the spread.

The underdog is given a points advantage and the favorite is handed a points handicap that they must overcome.

Generally this is set at +1.5 and -1.5 goals, but alternate puck lines are also available, with NHL spread picks available.

Given that the bettor must not just consider the eventual result, but also the margin of victory, this can be a tough wager to predict.

For that reason, our NHL picks against the spread attract a lot of attention.

Our AI technology is able to evaluate a lot more data far quicker than a person could, before simulating the result of the game, making our NHL ATS picks extremely reliable.

NHL Prop Picks

Hockey is a sport that enables sportsbooks to create plenty of props.

With a prop bet, a proposition is made and bettors have to decide as to whether it will happen or not.

Props are often based around statistics, which creates the opportunity for bookies to provide both team prop bets and player props.

So, for example, you can bet on how many shots at goal a particular team will have, or if an individual player will score the first goal.

NHL Parlay Picks

NHL fans love to throw a number of hockey picks together into a parlay.

With a parlay, you group a number of individual bets together and they must all win for the overall bet to be a winner.

Depending on how many selections that you choose and the odds, there can be some big payouts.

That said, many shrewd bettors see parlays as a way to find some value from a number of short-priced favorites.

Our NHL expert tips tend to contain many such locks, which are perfect for parlays.

National Hockey League Schedule

The NHL regular season runs between October and April. This is then followed by the playoffs, which builds to the Stanley Cup, concluding in June.

Throughout this period we serve up a regular flow of free NHL picks. Let’s take a more detailed look at how the entire 2024-25 NHL season breaks down.

Event Date
Regular Season Starts October 4
Regular Season Ends April 12
Playoffs Begins April 15
Conference Finals May 28-June 9
Stanley Cup Finals June 12-June 25

NHL Teams

There are 32 teams that compete to lift the Stanley Cup. Between them, they provide the many games that allow us to bring you the NHL best bets today and throughout the entire season.

The 32 NHL teams pair off into two conferences, the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference. Each conference is then further split into two separate divisions.

NHL’s playoff qualifying format sees the top three teams from each division qualify, along with two open wild card sports from each conference.

Let’s show you how the teams are split, starting with the Eastern Conference and its Atlantic Division and Metropolitan Division.

Atlantic Division

  • Boston Bruins
  • Buffalo Sabres
  • Detroit Red Wings
  • Florida Panthers
  • Montreal Canadiens
  • Ottawa Senators
  • Tampa Bay Lightning
  • Toronto Maple Leafs

Metropolitan Division

  • Carolina Hurricanes
  • Columbus Blue Jackets
  • New Jersey Devils
  • New York Islanders
  • New York Rangers
  • Philadelphia Flyers
  • Pittsburgh Penguins
  • Washington Capitals

Now take a look at the Western Conference, split into the Pacific Division and the Central Division.

Pacific Division

  • Anaheim Ducks
  • Calgary Flames
  • Edmonton Oilers
  • Los Angeles Kings
  • San Jose Sharks
  • Seattle Kraken
  • Vancouver Canucks
  • Vegas Golden Knights

Central Division

  • Chicago Blackhawks
  • Colorado Avalanche
  • Dallas Stars
  • Minnesota Wild
  • Nashville Predators
  • St Louis Blues
  • Utah Hockey Club
  • Winnipeg Jets

FAQs

What is the best option to bet on ice hockey?

We wouldn’t say that there is a particular type of bet that is best for hockey. There’s a deep range of markets available for NHL games and it’s all about finding a bet where the odds represent good value, in relation to the chances of that bet winning.

Is it better to bet over or under in NHL?

When it comes to predicting goals totals, it’s best to go for over when the attackers are likely to be stronger and unders when the defences could be on top. The available odds also play a part. BetIdeas brings you NHL over under picks every day.

Is ice hockey easy to predict?

Hockey is not necessarily an easy sport to predict, which is why many fans base their bets on the NHL consensus stats, or use hockey betting tips from handicappers. Our NHL computer picks are AI-generated, with a large number of simulations run to find likely winning bets.

How to watch the NHL?

If a pick has taken a fancy amongst our NHL predictions tonight, then it’s likely that you’re going to want to place a bet on it and then watch the game. TV coverage in the US splits between the ESPN family of networks and TNT Sports.

betwhale-logo-no-bg (1)Though new to our rankings, BetWhale is no rookie. Launched in 2023, it offers betting on over 20 sports, including major American leagues.

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