NHL spreads, commonly referred to as the puck line, are almost always set at 1.5 goals rather than moving like football or basketball spreads. The favorite must win by two or more goals to cover -1.5, while the underdog covers +1.5 by winning outright or losing by a single goal. Because the line is fixed, sportsbooks adjust the price (juice) on each side rather than shifting the spread itself, which makes comparing vig across books especially important in this market.
The puck line becomes most valuable when bettors identify mismatches that the moneyline doesn't adequately reward — a heavy -300 favorite, for example, may offer better expected value at -1.5 with plus-money odds. Key factors to monitor include goaltender matchups, back-to-back scheduling, and whether a team tends to protect or extend leads in the third period. Vig on NHL spreads typically runs slightly higher than on moneylines or totals because the fixed 1.5-goal line creates lopsided probability distributions, forcing books to build more margin into the pricing. Even small differences in juice — say -110 versus -115 on the same side — compound significantly over a full season's worth of wagers.
Analysis updated September 13, 2026. Odds data above refreshes hourly.
↑ 7-day trend: NHL spreads average vig has worsened by 0.52 percentage points over the past week (from 4.79% to 5.31%). Odds margins are widening, meaning bettors are getting less value per wager.
Cross-Sport spreads Vig Comparison
NHL spreads averages 5.31% vig across 13 sportsbooks. Here's how that compares to other active sports:
Vig Rankings
| # | Sportsbook | Vig | Grade | Events |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | BetUS | 3.91% | B+ | 5 |
| 2 | Bovada | 4.08% | B | 21 |
| 3 | DraftKings | 4.26% | B | 33 |
| 4 | BetMGM | 4.46% | B | 25 |
| 5 | Caesars | 4.77% | B | 20 |
| 6 | Fanatics | 5.06% | C+ | 13 |
| 7 | FanDuel | 5.07% | C+ | 5 |
| 8 | betPARX | 5.44% | C+ | 7 |
| 9 | Bally Bet | 5.44% | C+ | 7 |
| 10 | theScore Bet (ESPN Bet) | 5.57% | C+ | 17 |
| 11 | BetRivers | 5.92% | C+ | 7 |
| 12 | Hard Rock Bet | 6.39% | C | 17 |
| 13 | ReBet | 8.72% | D- | 17 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Which sportsbook has the lowest NHL spreads vig?
BetUS currently has the lowest vig at 3.91%, earning a grade of B+.
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 every hour, on the hour (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 average vig: A+ (under 2%) is exchange-level pricing, A (2–3%) very competitive, B+ (3–4%) above average, B (4–5%) the industry standard, C+ (5–6%) slightly below average, C (6–7%) below average, D (7–8%) high vig, D− (8–10%) very high, F (10%+) predatory.
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, BetAnything). 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 every hour, on the hour (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 exchange-level pricing. A (2–3%) is very competitive. B+ (3–4%) is above average. B (4–5%) is the industry standard — a -110/-110 line is 4.76%. C+ (5–6%) is slightly below average. C (6–7%) is below average. D (7–8%) is high vig. D− (8–10%) is very high vig. F (10%+) is predatory pricing. See the full Vig Index Methodology for formulas, worked examples, and known limitations.
- 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.