The world of sports betting presents a vast opportunity for sports fans to tap into and earn rewards for their knowledge of sports, but more often; these opportunities are left untapped because of the lack of knowledge in unfamiliar sporting events.
Betting on Ice-Hockey can be a very profitable and rewarding experience if only one takes time to study and understand the game, current trends, and markets available to bet on. In Nigeria, the fact that there are no Ice-Hockey pitches does not completely rule out profiting from the sport as interest in the sport can develop through television viewing and a determined following of the game online.
Here is a roundup of the top 5 Ice-Hockey leagues in the world that bettors can consider for their sports betting investments.
NHL
The NHL (National Hockey League) is regarded as the most prestigious league in the world of Ice-Hockey with quite an array of world class stars. The league consists of 31 teams, 24 in the United States of America, and 7 in Canada. The league season is divided into pre-season, regular season, and post season all of which offers bettors vast opportunities to stake and win good money. The regular season have each team playing a total of 82 games; the teams are divided into Western and Eastern conferences with games being played on home and away basis. While the Montreal Canadiens are the most successful team in the history of the NHL, the current season have teams like St.Louis Blues, Colorado Avalanche, Vegas Golden Knights, and Dallas Stars occupy the top 4 spots in the Western Conference putting them in the placement group while Boston Bruins, Tampa Bay Lightning, Washington Capitals, and Philadelphia Flyers occupy the top spots in the Eastern Conference.
The NWHL which is the women version of the league also present ample opportunities for betting with teams like Boston Pride and Minnesota Whitecaps leading the pack. The lower divisions also offer options can be explored by bettors.
KHL
The Kontinental Ice-Hockey League is an international professional league that comprises member clubs from Belarus, China, Finland, Latvia, Kazakhstan, and Russia. It has a total of 23 teams with 12 in the Eastern Conference and 11 in the Western Conference. Teams like St. Petersburg, CSKA Moscow, and Din. Minsk pulling their weight in the Western Conference, while the Eastern Conference is keenly contested affair so far with teams like Avangard Omsk, Yekaterinburg, Metallurg, Ufa, and Bars Kazan throwing their weight around at the early stages of the league season. Apart from the premier league in the country, there are other lower divisions as well as the women league that also offer attractive opportunities to bettors.
SHL
The 2020/2021 season has kicked off in Sweden where the SHL is the premier league and one of the highly rated Ice-Hockey leagues in the world. After the first round of games, teams like Frolunda, Rogle, and Lulea leads the way in this season’s assault to win the league title. It’s early days, and there is still a long way to go for the 14 teams playing in the top division. Other divisions also offer betting opportunities for bettors wishing to try their hands on the sport.
LIIGA
The Liiga is Finland’s top tier league in Ice-Hockey with 15 teams. The league is also one of the top leagues in the world with teams like Hameenlinna, Karpat Oulu, Tappara, Lukko, Ilves, and Helsinki battling for the league title in recent y seasons. The 2020/21 season is just starting and offers plenty of attractive opportunities for bettors. In the women’s league, the dominant forces so far after 5 games are KalPa and Kiekko-Espoo with 100% win records. Other leagues in the lower divisions also offer great opportunities for betting.
EXTRALIGA
The Extraliga completes the list of top 5 leagues in the world of Ice-Hockey at the moment with 14 teams competing in the Czech Republic premier division. The league is also just starting with Liberec and Mountfield HK on top of the league table. Other teams to look out for in the league include Trinec, Kometa Brno, Slavia Prague, Sparta Prague, and Zlin.
Apart from the league matches, there are also cup games to pick from in the different countries, the Champions League in Europe, and the age grade cups.
The key to successful betting on Ice-Hockey lies in the patient and careful study of the leagues, the strength and weaknesses of the teams, and the ability and form of the players making it possible for any determined bettor to be successful in the sport.