NHL Public Betting Trends – Daily Bet and Money Percentages

NHL Public Betting Trends – Saturday, January 31

14 games are on the Saturday slate in the NHL, starting with two afternoon matchups at 1 pm ET. Noteworthy NHL public-betting splits for January 31st include:

• The Islanders are getting crushed on the moneyline against Nashville, pulling 85% of bets and 91% of the money as -130 favorites over the Predators.
• The over is being hammered in the Montreal-Buffalo game, with 93% of bets and 94% of the handle on over 6.5 in what the public expects to be a shootout at KeyBank Center.

Missouri residents should check out online sports betting in Missouri, as sports betting is officially live in The Show-Me State!

How to Read NHL Betting Trends

Every bet that is placed on the NHL odds market at any given online sportsbook is tracked. It’s logged, and they consolidate all that information into the NHL public betting chart you see at the top of the page. This betting info consists of the total number of bets and the total number of money bet on each market in a single game. Those markets are the NHL public betting percentages for moneyline, puckline, and totals.

With that data, you can see the NHL public betting consensus (as well as where the sharp money is) for every game before placing your wager.

Total Handle Percentages

The percentage of the total handle means the amount of money bet on Team X compared to their opponent. If Team X has received 70% of the ATS betting handle, that means $70 out of every $100 wagered on this game has been on Team X to cover the spread. The remaining 30% will have been wagered on the opponent.

The bet percentage refers to how many single wagers have been placed on Team X compared to their opponent.

Total Bet Percentages

Let’s say ten total ATS wagers were made on a game between New York and New Jersey. Three people bet $20 on the Rangers, one person bet $40 on New York, three people bet $30 on New Jersey, and two people bet $100 on New Jersey.

In this case, the bet percentage is split evenly between the two teams (five bets on New York and five bets on New Jersey).

How Important Are NHL Public Betting Trends

NHL betting percentages are quite important to note. There are a few things you can gain from looking at these betting numbers, one being where the sharp money is. Although it’s tougher in hockey since there aren’t big spreads like in the NBA and NFL, it’s still good to take a look at.

Sharp money is indicated by comparing the total handle to the total bets on a certain game. For example, let’s say we are looking at NHL public betting trends for a key Pennsylvania matchup between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers. In this scenario, 40% of the total bets are on the Penguins moneyline, and 60% on Flyers moneyline. However, only 30% of the total handle are on Flyers moneyline, and 70% on Penguins moneyline. This would indicate sharp money.

The reason being sharps usually bet more money since they are pros and usually do it as a profession. That’s why when the total handle outweighs the total bets for a certain side, the industry considers that sharp money. Online sportsbooks usually know which players are experts, so they will note when they bet and start adjusting the line for the NHL betting public.