During the NHL regular season many games end in ties. To get around the hassle of constantly refunding bettors money due to these ties bookmakers have devised hockey betting lines that reduce this problem. These betting lines are known as the Split Line and the Money Line. Although it is still possible for a hockey ticket to push, it is far less common.

Split Line

Consider the following:

107   New Jersey Devils          +1
108   Detroit Red Wings          -1.5

In this example New Jersey gets one goal and Detroit lays 1.5 goals. No matter what the final score of the game one team is going to fail to cover.  If the score is tied or New Jersey wins outright, the Devils’ bettors win and the Red Wings’ bettors lose.  If Detroit wins by two or more goals the reverse is true. However, if Detroit wins by only one goal (deemed a split) no bettor wins. The people who bet on New Jersey get their money back but the Detroit players lose (and the casinos win big).

This line is called the “Split Line” or the “Puck Line”. All wagers on this type of line are 1-1, meaning a $100 bet wins (or loses) $100. This applies to both the favorite and the dog. Few sportsbooks use this line today. Some people call the split line the puck line.

Money Line

Another example:

107   New Jersey Devils     +1/2  +140
108   Detroit Red Wings     -1/2   -160

What we have here is very similar to a baseball run line. This hockey line is called the money line (although it is not a “pure” money line), or the Canadian line. It works exactly like the aforementioned baseball run line. The Devils are getting half a goal at +140 ($100 to win $140) and the Wings are giving up half a goal at -160 ($160 to win $100).  Using this kind of line eliminates ties completely. Many Las Vegas sportsbooks use this type of line.

In addition to split lines and money lines some sportsbooks use regular moneyline bets (no ½  goals) for the NHL.