NHL betting

The National Hockey League is the top hockey league in the world, with teams across the United States and Canada. Each team plays 82 games in the regular season from October to April, and the best sixteen go on to the Stanley Cup playoffs, four best-of-seven rounds that run into June.

A regular-season game level after 60 minutes goes to five minutes of three-on-three overtime and then a shootout. In the playoffs there is no shootout: teams play full periods until someone scores.

Markets you usually see

• Match result - home, draw or away after regular time.
• Winner including overtime - which team wins, however the game ends.
• Puck line - a handicap, usually a goal and a half.
• Total goals - over or under a line of goals.

Questions people ask

Does overtime count in hockey bets?

The three-way match result is settled on regular time only. A winner market that includes overtime and the shootout says so in its name.

When is the NHL season?

The regular season runs from October to April; the Stanley Cup playoffs follow and end in June.

More leagues: KHL, SHL, Liiga.