NHL: HOCKEY LINES: WHAT OPTIONS ARE THERE? WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO USE THESE  OPTIONS? Ben Burns shares his insight on puck lines TYPES OF LINES When wagering on the NHL one must decide which type of line offers the best value. It is important to understand what these lines consist of, in order to determine when the proper times to use them are. The two main choices are the 'Canadian-Line' and the 'Money-line'. Most of you are familiar with the money-line, as money-lines are often  offered, in addition to point-spread wagering, for both basketball and  football. They are also the standard line used for betting on baseball.  Generally, hockey money-lines are based on a '20-cent' line. This means that there is a difference of twenty cents between the line on the favorite, and the line on the underdog. For example, if the favorite is listed at -$1.40, then the dog will automatically be listed at +$1.20. As in other sports, in games that involve large favorites, most books will increase the difference between the two lines; (ie -220 and +180) The Canadian Line, commonly (mistakenly) referred to as the 'Puck-Line' is a combination of a goal spread and a money-line. The favorite will most often be giving up a half a goal, while the dog will be getting that extra 'half a puck'. Depending on the size of the favorite, the corresponding money-line can either be 'plus money' or on bigger favorites, 'minus money'. As with the straight money-line bets, this is generally based on a twenty-cent line. A typical example of a Canadian Line is: Favorite -0.5 -140 // Dog +0.5 +120. On games that odds-makers determine to be closer to 'pick-ems' the line will look something like: Favorite -0.5 +125 // Dog +0.5 +125. On games  like this, one will often find one sports-book listing one team at -0.5 and another book listing the other side at -0.5. Obviously, there are no 'half-goals' in hockey. However, with the large number of games that end in ties, this type of line ensures that there is always a winner and a loser on every wager. (unlike the money-line, where a tie is a 'push') There is actually even a third type of hockey line that one can wager on. It is called the 'American Line' or 'Split Line'. On the American Line, the bettor pays no juice (+100) on either side of his bet. The catch is that the 'house' gains an extra half a goal on each wager. Examples of this line include: Favorite -0.5 // Dog: even; Favorite -1 // Dog +0.5; Favorite -1.5//Dog +1. You get the idea. In the past, this used to be the most common form of hockey line. However, as sports-wagering has evolved, and as sports-gamblers have become more intelligent, this line has largely fallen out of favor; as for the most part, bettors get much better value on either of the other two lines. Occasionally, there are exceptions though, where the American Line actually has the best value of the three. On games where the odds-makers cannot  determine a true favorite, one can sometimes find a dog at pick +100 that is listed at pick -110, or so, on the money-line. Sports-books are sharp though. To guard against being taken advantage of, in cases such as these, the books that still offer the American Line, usually make their clients choose only Canadian and Money-Line OR American Line before wagering begins. Once an account is setup for Canadian and/or Money-line betting, they rarely allow American Line wagers from the same account. One has to be careful though, as some books will, knowing that they gain a big advantage, over the  long-term, automatically set up the account for American Linewagering until they are asked about to change it. Now that you know what your hockey wagering options are, it is time to  determine when is the best time to play into the different lines. CANADIAN LINE vs. MONEYLINE Deciding whether to play on the Canadian line or the Money-line is no easy task. There are so many variables to consider, that one could write an entire novel or a masters' thesis on the subject. Unfortunately, time constraints do not currently allow me to do this massive subject justice. I do plan on a much more in-depth study during the long, hockey-less, summer months this year though. I know of NHL handicappers that play all their games on the money-line and  others that play all of them on the Canadian. Some prefer to bet all their underdogs at +0.5 and all their favorites at pick, thus giving them the highest winning percentage. Still, others swear by doing the exact opposite; saving juice by playing all fav's at -0.5; and earning a much higher payback, by playing all their dogs on the money-line. Both of those schools of thought will outperform one another during certain times of the year, but, obviously, the important question; is which will be the most profitable over the long-term. While I often tend to lean to the latter, it is my strong opinion that each game (and team) needs to be looked at on an individual basis; and that one needs to make use of both types of lines to maximize profits. Some, of the many, factors to consider are: 1. The frequency of ties in the league 2. The particular team and their coach's tendencies (how often do their  games end in ties, do they generally go all out in OT to pick up that extra point? etc etc) 3. Are the teams in the same conference? If so, do they tend to play more conservatively, so as not to give up a point to a rival, then they would if they were playing a non-conference opponent? 4. How capable are the teams of scoring? Are they loaded with snipers that can finish when they get the chance? Or, are they more of a defensively oriented team? 5. How good are the goalies, and what are their lifetime OT records like? 6. What is the price difference between the two lines? (sometimes there may only be a 30 cent advantage to playing a dog on the ML, while other times the price might be 80 cents different) Frequency of Ties With the NHL seemingly implementing new changes to their rules every year, we can't really look at the frequency of ties from too far back, as the new rules have totally changed things. Last year 298 of a total of 2460 games ended in ties. That was just over 12%. This year, with the league (again) cracking down on obstruction, early indications looked like the number of ties this season would be way down. During the opening week, only 3 of 46 games ended in draws. That's only 6.5%. However, in the ten days since, (up to and including the games from  Oct. 27th) we have seen 17 out of 77 games finish tied. That's over 22% Overall, that brings the total to 20/123 or 16.2%. This is definitely an increase over last year's numbers. I am going to wait a couple more weeks or so, before deciding that we will see more ties this season though, as 123 games is still far too small a sample to make such conclusions. I am also going to wait a little while longer before looking at team  tendencies from this year, as these can also change greatly from year to year. Take Nashville, for example. Last year they were the only team in the entire league that didn't suffer an overtime loss. This year, they lead the league (tied with Flames) with two overtime losses in just eight games overall. On the other hand, Minnesota and Boston, who tied for the lead in most overtime losses last year, are both undefeated in extra time this season. Here is a chart that you may find useful. It goes back to the 2000/2001  season, and is current, as of today (Oct 29, 2002). I have ranked teams according to how many ties they have played, and compared it to their number of overtime losses. The first number is 'ties' the second 'overtime losses': Team Ties OT Losses Calgary 29 9 Minnesota 27 19 Edmonton 26 7 LA 26 7 Carolina 26 9 Phoenix 26 9 Florida 24 16 Nashville 23 5 Philly 23 6 Atlanta 23 8 Dallas 23 7 Toronto 22 9 Montreal 22 9 Chicago 22 6 Washington 22 6 Colorado 21 6 Vancouver 21 10 St Louis 21 9 Anaheim 21 8 NewJersey 21 7 SanJose 20 6 Detroit 20 8 Tampa 19 9 Ottawa 19 11 Pitt 19 8 Columbus 18 11 Buffalo 17 2 Isles 16 7 Bruins 16 17 Rangers 11 5 Here are a few things that stand out from that data: Boston is the only team with more overtime losses then they have ties. With only two losses, the Sabres almost never lose once the game has reached OT With 29 ties, given the choice, one is probably better off taking the Flames at +0.5 then on the ML Until then, good luck! Join Ben Burns daily for his Guaranteed Puck Picks