NHL moneyline betting is straightforward: pick the team that will win the game outright in regulation, overtime, or a shootout. Unlike puck line wagers, which attach a 1.5-goal spread, moneyline bets remove the margin question entirely. This simplicity makes the moneyline the most popular NHL bet type, but it also means oddsmakers price these markets carefully. Because hockey is a low-scoring, high-variance sport, underdogs win frequently — roughly 40-45% of games in a typical season — which creates consistent opportunities for bettors who can identify mispriced lines.
Strategy-wise, the moneyline market is most valuable when targeting short underdogs in the +110 to +160 range, where public money tends to inflate favorites and compress value on the other side. Bettors should monitor goaltender confirmations, back-to-back scheduling, and travel situations, all of which disproportionately affect outcomes in a sport this tight. Regarding vig, NHL moneylines typically carry slightly higher juice than puck lines because books need to manage exposure on the more heavily bet market. The difference between sportsbooks can be meaningful — even 5-10 cents of line difference on a moneyline compounds significantly over a full season of wagers.
Moneyline Vig Rankings
| # | Sportsbook | Vig | Grade | Events |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | LowVig.ag | 3.09% | B+ | 10 |
| 2 | BetOnline.ag | 3.09% | B+ | 10 |
| 3 | BetAnything | 3.80% | B | 10 |
| 4 | BetUS | 3.91% | B | 10 |
| 5 | betPARX | 4.23% | C+ | 10 |
| 6 | theScore Bet | 4.24% | B | 10 |
| 7 | Bovada | 4.28% | B | 10 |
| 8 | Bally Bet | 4.40% | C+ | 10 |
| 9 | DraftKings | 4.52% | B | 10 |
| 10 | Caesars | 4.54% | B | 10 |
| 11 | BetMGM | 4.67% | B | 10 |
| 12 | Fanatics | 4.70% | B | 10 |
| 13 | FanDuel | 4.70% | C+ | 10 |
| 14 | Hard Rock Bet | 4.91% | C+ | 10 |
| 15 | BetRivers | 4.97% | C+ | 10 |
| 16 | MyBookie.ag | 5.09% | C+ | 10 |
| 17 | Fliff | 5.50% | C | 10 |
| 18 | ReBet | 6.66% | D | 10 |
Upcoming Moneyline Lines
| Matchup | Time | betPARX | BetRivers | Bally Bet | FanDuel | Fanatics |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Bruins @ New Jersey Devils | Mar 16, 11:00 PM | -112 / -107 | -113 / -108 | -112 / -107 | -118 / -102 | -120 / +100 |
| Calgary Flames @ Detroit Red Wings | Mar 16, 11:00 PM | -190 / +160 | -195 / +160 | -190 / +160 | -184 / +152 | -180 / +150 |
| Los Angeles Kings @ New York Rangers | Mar 16, 11:00 PM | +100 / -118 | -103 / -120 | +100 / -118 | +105 / -126 | +105 / -125 |
| Utah Mammoth @ Dallas Stars | Mar 17, 12:00 AM | +143 / -167 | +140 / -175 | +143 / -167 | +130 / -156 | +130 / -160 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins @ Colorado Avalanche | Mar 17, 1:30 AM | +210 / -265 | +210 / -265 | +210 / -265 | +188 / -230 | +185 / -225 |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a moneyline bet?
A moneyline bet is the simplest form of sports wagering — you're picking which team will win the game outright, with no point spread involved. The odds reflect each team's implied probability of winning. Favorites have negative odds (e.g., -150) and underdogs have positive odds (e.g., +130).
Why does moneyline vig vary by matchup?
Moneyline vig is lowest on evenly matched games and highest on lopsided matchups. When a heavy favorite is -500, the book needs a wide margin on the underdog side to balance risk. Close games near pick'em (-110/-110) will always have the tightest vig.
How does NHL vig compare to other major sports?
NHL vig sits between NFL and niche sports. Hockey attracts decent volume, especially during playoffs, but less than football or basketball. Expect NHL vig to be 1–3% higher than NFL on average, with puck lines (spreads) typically carrying more vig than moneylines.
When is NHL season?
The NHL regular season runs from October through mid-April, with the Stanley Cup Playoffs extending through June. The season offers consistent daily games from October to April, making it a steady option for bettors during football's off-season.
Why are NHL puck line vig margins wider?
The puck line (±1.5 goals) is harder for books to price efficiently because hockey is low-scoring. A single goal swings the market dramatically. This uncertainty leads to wider margins. Moneyline bets in NHL tend to offer better vig for that reason.
What is vig (vigorish) in sports betting?
Vig — short for vigorish, also called juice or overround — is the margin a sportsbook builds into its odds. It's the difference between the true probability of an outcome and what the odds imply. Lower vig means you keep more of your winnings on every bet. For example, a standard -110/-110 line has about 4.76% vig.
How often is this data updated?
We pull fresh odds from The Odds API three times per day — at 6:00 AM, 2:00 PM, and 10:00 PM UTC. Each snapshot captures the latest lines from every sportsbook that has posted odds. The timestamp at the top of the page shows the most recent refresh.
How is the vig grade calculated?
Each sportsbook is graded on a letter scale based on average vig: A+ (under 2%) is exceptional, A (2–3%) is excellent, B+ (3–4%) is above average, B (4–5%) is the industry standard, C (5–6%) is below average, and D (above 6%) indicates high-juice markets.
Why does lower vig matter for bettors?
Lower vig directly impacts your long-term returns. A bettor placing $1,000 per week at a book with 4% vig loses roughly $40/week to the house edge. At 2% vig, that drops to $20/week — a $1,040 difference over a year. For serious bettors, shopping for lower vig is one of the most reliable ways to improve profitability.
What sportsbooks do you track?
We track both regulated US sportsbooks (DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, Caesars) and offshore books (Bovada, BetOnline, MyBookie, BetUS, LowVig.ag, BetAnySports). Data comes from The Odds API, which aggregates real-time lines from licensed sources.
How We Calculate These Numbers
- Data Source
- All odds on this page come from The Odds API, which aggregates real-time lines from licensed US and offshore sportsbooks. We track moneyline, spread, and totals markets across every sport with active betting lines.
- Update Frequency
- We pull a fresh snapshot of every tracked market three times per day — at 6:00 AM, 2:00 PM, and 10:00 PM UTC. Each snapshot captures the latest lines from every sportsbook that has posted odds for a given event. The timestamp at the top of each page tells you exactly when the data was last refreshed.
- Vig Calculation
- Vig (short for vigorish, also called juice or overround) measures the margin a sportsbook builds into its odds. We calculate it by converting the odds on each side of a market to implied probabilities, summing those probabilities, and subtracting 100%. For example, a market priced at -110/-110 implies 52.38% on each side — a total of 104.76%, meaning a vig of 4.76%. Lower vig means better value for bettors because you keep more of your winnings.
- Per-Market Breakdown
- We compute vig separately for each market type: moneyline (h2h), point spreads, and totals (over/under). The "average vig" shown for each sportsbook is the mean across all market types weighted by the number of events sampled in each market.
- Grading Scale
- Every sportsbook receives a letter grade based on its average vig: A+ (under 2%) is exceptional and rare — these are typically sharp-friendly books. A (2–3%) is excellent. B+ (3–4%) is above average. B (4–5%) is the industry standard for most recreational sportsbooks. C (5–6%) is below average. D (above 6%) indicates high-juice markets where bettors face a steep cost per wager.
- Trend Tracking
- We store daily snapshots for 30 days, allowing us to show 24-hour and 7-day vig trends. A downward trend (improving) means sportsbooks are tightening their lines — often in response to increased competition or higher betting volume as a season heats up.