USA Stanley Cup Betting Guide

The Stanley Cup

The Stanley Cup Playoffs actually predates the National Hockey League by almost two decades. The Cup was first awarded in 1893, whereas the NHL didn't become a league until 1917. The Stanley Cup is named after Lord Stanley of Preston. He was appointed as governor of Canada by Queen Victoria, and Stanley immediately became infatuated with ice hockey.

Stanley's entire family became involved in the sport, and soon after Lord Stanley purchased a sterling silver bowl and had "Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup" and "From Stanley of Preston" engraved on its sides, to be given as an award for the best hockey team. The Cup also came with a list of rules, most of which are still in effect today.

Any winner of the Cup shall return the Cup in good order before which time another team wins. The winning team can also, if it so chooses, pay to have the Cup engraved. The Cup shall never become property of any one team.

Although the NHL started in 1917, the WHL was still the top dog in Canada until 1926, when it folded and opened up the door for the NHL. Almost immediately the Stanley Cup became the de facto championship trophy awarded for the winning NHL team, and soon after the entire season structure would change to reflect the award itself, with the playoffs renamed the Stanley Cup Playoffs and the finals taking on the colloquial name of simply "Stanley Cup."

With each winning NHL team being able to engrave the names of its players and team and coaches onto the Cup, some wonder how the Cup isn't full yet. Well, along with Stanley's original rules was that each team could add a "ring" to the cup. These rings have built up over the years, allowing the Stanley Cup to hold the names of all involved.

So whenever things begin to get too crowded, another ring will be added at the Cup's base. While hockey isn't the most popular sport, the Stanley Cup has become the most famous championship trophy in the world.

Betting Options for the Stanley Cup

Over/Under

The first type of bet we'll look at here is the over/under bet. In essence, this is just a guess on whether the final score of a match will be over or under any number. For instance, say you have the Ducks and Rangers playing, and the over/under is 4.

This means that anyone taking the under would need the final score to be 3 goals or fewer, whereas anyone taking the over would need the final score to be 5 or more goals. If it lands on 4 even, then the bet is a push and no one wins. This is why it's always smart to avoid the push bet by looking for over/under scores that have a fraction; e.g. 2.5, 3.5, etc.

While hockey is generally a low-scoring sport, be very careful when placing wagers here. Research should help you determine how well a goalkeeper does and what sort of players the team has on offense who would be capable of driving a score up. It's not as simple as choosing the under every time. Some games end up with 6, 7 or more goals, depending on the quality of players on the ice.

Straight Bets

Straight bets in hockey are undoubtedly the easiest to figure out, but you have to find a line that pays well enough to take up your time. For example, let's say that the Blackhawks and Lightning are playing, and the line reads: Blackhawks -220, Lightning +160.

In any sort of betting structure, that minus symbol (-) always indicates a favorite, and for this particular bet that -220 means that the 'Hawks are a pretty big favorite and that you would have to bet $220 to win $100. Conversely, that plus symbol (+) always indicates an underdog.

For this bet, betting $100 on the Lightning would win you $160. If you're the type to bet on favorites, remember to avoid anything that requires too much money on your end. E.g. anything -300 or thereabouts simply requires too much money on your end and will not be worth it.

If you happen to lose that bet by upset, you will lose a lot of money. On the other hand, huge underdogs may be worth a $10 or $20 spot on occasions, given they're +300 or worse.

Props and Futures

The next type of bet we'll discuss here is a proposition bet, or a prop bet. With a prop bet, you're basically dealing with a betting structure that isn't necessarily part of the line or O/U. For instance, let's say that the Capitals are playing the Rangers and you see a prop bet that gives you an over/under on goals from Alex Ovechkin. The number is 1.5.

Now, do you think he will score fewer than a single goal, or perhaps more than 2 goals? You can even find props dealing with how many penalty minutes a player might spend in the box, or how many breakaways will happen in the game, etc. Popular games will have more prop options, and this is especially true once you get into the playoffs and finals.

Futures are basically a way to find great odds on teams that will potentially do well going forward. For example, let's say it's the start of the season and you find that the Chicago Blackhawks are 20:1 to win the Stanley Cup. If you're of the mind to take this sort of action, taking it early is when it's best. Once half the season is played out and the Blackhawks are in first place, that line might drop to 5:1.

Or if they end up winning their division, it might move to something like 5:3. Since these are futures, the odds go back up the closer you get to the final outcome, so they're also lowest, and in your favor, the farther away from the final outcome they are. While they're also riskier, they're a lot more lucrative.

The Legality of Hockey Betting in the USA

So, this betting information is pointless if you're in America and hockey betting is illegal. The good news, without fluff or filler, is that it's perfectly legal for you to bet on hockey. While the USA does have regulations and laws against offering gambling, as in starting your own sportsbooks, there are no laws against betting with a sportsbook.

For the same reason you can buy a lotto ticket or fly out to Vegas whenever you want, you can bet with a sportsbook on hockey. The only catch, if you can even call it that, is that you're probably going to have to find an offshore site. This means finding a site that's located outside of the US and isn't beholden to the laws of America. If you can find one of these sites that allow you to play, you can legally bet on hockey all you want.

While there are some exempt states, like Nevada and New Jersey and Delaware, we still suggest you go with an offshore website. The fact is that America's gambling laws exist in a state of flux, and while a sportsbook may be legal in Nevada today, you never know when the likes of Marco Rubio will make it illegal tomorrow, which will result in frozen accounts and lost money. You can avoid this by simply selecting an offshore site.

Landing in the Right Destination

USA Hockey Betting is here to act as your resource for all your hockey betting. From information about the legality of the sport and the types of bets you can make to pointing you in the direction of a winning sportsbook with which to bet, we hope to be your one-stop shop for all things hockey betting. Stay tuned to this site to read all about some killer hockey betting tips, some great sportsbook reviews, and some fun facts about the great game of hockey.