Few NHL teams are more exciting than the Edmonton Oilers.

The pure thrill of watching Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl has turned the squad into required viewing.

When getting ready to watch the next Oilers game, you may be looking to bet on the team but don't know how to do so. Don't sweat — we have you covered.

How to bet on the Oilers

There's no shortage of options when it comes to betting on the Oilers. That's especially true with McDavid and Draisaitl in the fold, as they make Edmonton a threat to go off every time they take the ice.

But there are a number of different factors you should focus on that may ultimately influence what you decide to bet on. Those include the opponent, location, trends, injuries and the odds.

We'll explore some of the most popular betting markets and offer advice on how to place the best wagers.

Moneyline

If you like Edmonton's chances of winning its upcoming game, then a moneyline (ML) bet may be for you.

A moneyline wager involves backing the team that you think will win the hockey game. Regardless of the score or whether it goes to overtime or shootout, the team that wins the game wins the moneyline bet.

The team deemed as the underdog will be presented with a plus (+) symbol in front of its odds. You will see a minus (-) symbol for the favourite.

Edmonton's status for any game will typically depend on its opponent and the location of the contest. The Oilers would likely be a heavy favourite in a home game against the Ottawa Senators and a smaller favourite when hosting the Calgary Flames, for example.

In a road game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, however, the Oilers will find themselves labelled as an underdog.

The odds for each of these contests would look something like this:

Senators (+240) vs. Oilers (-300)
Flames (+100) vs. Oilers (-120)
Oilers (+155) vs. Maple Leafs (-175)

Those odds tell us a few things, including who the favourite and underdog is. It also tells us what our sportsbook believes each of those teams' chances of winning is in addition to how much you could profit on a successful bet.

In the first example, it likely isn't wise to place a moneyline wager on the Oilers. Although the implied win probability sits at 75%, a $300 wager only returns $100.

This game would be a better opportunity to bet on the Oilers puck line, which we'll explain in our next section.

It wouldn't be a bad idea, however, to place a moneyline bet on Edmonton in the second and third examples. Against the Flames, it only requires a $120 wager to return $100.

As for the Leafs game, you would get a nice ROI if Edmonton pulled off the upset.

Puck line

Let's start off with Senators example and outline why the puck line is a better bet than the moneyline for this game. It all comes down to value.

Unlike a moneyline bet, a puck line will have a designated point spread accompanied by the selection. Puck lines are typically set at 1.5 goals, though the lines can occasionally be 2.5 goals or more. As a result, the odds will be different from the moneyline.

Here's how the puck line odds could look for the games we listed above:

Senators +1.5 (+105) vs. Oilers -1.5 (-125)
Flames +1.5 (-220) vs. Oilers -1.5 (+190)
Oilers +1.5 (-160) vs. Maple Leafs -1.5 (+140)

For the first listings, the -1.5 next to Edmonton signifies that the team is being stripped of a goal and a half. Against the Senators and Flames, the Oilers would have to win by two goals or more to cover the puck line.

In other words: If you backed Edmonton to win on the puck line and they were only victorious by one goal, you would lose the bet.

The +1.5 next to Edmonton, on the other hand, means the Oilers are getting a goal and a half. That means Edmonton could lose the game by a goal or win outright and it would cover the puck line.

The payout structures for a bet on the Oilers from those examples would look like this:

The Senators game presents the best opportunity to wager on the puck line over the moneyline. Although the implied win probability drops from 75% to 55.56%, the amount wagered drops from $300 to $125 in order to win $100.

Finding that difference in value is important when placing bets.

In the second example, however, we'd recommend a bet on the moneyline. Considering it is much more difficult to win a game by two goals than one (especially against a team nearly equal to Edmonton in skill like Calgary), the moneyline presents a higher implied win probability and a solid return.

In the Maple Leafs example, the puck line isn't a terrible option considering a $160 bet nets $100 in winnings.

How to bet on Oilers totals

There are ways to bet on an Oilers game without wagering on the final result. You can bet on game totals, which involves wagering on the number of goals scored in a game.

Game total lines are typically set at 5.5 or 6.5 goals. You can bet on whether the two teams will combine for more or fewer goals than the specified total.

Let's use the Oilers and Maple Leafs game as an example. If the total is set at 6.5 goals and you believe the two sides will combine for seven goals or more, you'd place a bet on the over.

You'd bet the under if you believed the squads were more likely to combine for six goals or fewer.

Totals can also be presented as over/under or O/U, but they all refer to the same market.

Team totals are another option available to bet on. Rather than betting on the combined total of goals, team totals involve wagering on just one side's goal total.

These lines are usually set at 2.5 or 3.5 goals, and you'd have the option to select the over or under on how many goals you believe the Oilers will score.

How to bet on Oilers props

Similar to game totals, props offer another way to bet on a game that doesn't directly involve the final score. Prop bets can vary from betting on which team will win more periods to which team will score the first goal.

Prop bets also involve player performance, which is what we'll explore here.

Popular player props include whether or not a player will record a goal or assist, as well as the number of shots they will take in a game.

For instance, you may believe McDavid is a good bet to score a goal in an upcoming Oilers game. When going to place your bet on McDavid to score a goal, typically there'll be three options to choose from: first, last and anytime.

First refers to McDavid scoring the first goal of the game, last represents the last goal of the game and anytime means you are betting on him to score at any point during the contest.

The implied probability of McDavid scoring the first or last goal of the game is obviously lower as there is only one first and last goal, therefore the odds reflect that. The implied probability of him scoring at any point during the game is much higher, and that's priced into his odds.

Here's how McDavid's goal odds could look:

+1,100 to score the first goal (8.33% implied win probability): A $100 bet would win $1,100.
+1,100 to score the last goal (8.33% implied win probability): A $100 bet would win $1,100.
+135 to score anytime (42.55% implied win probability): A $100 bet would win $135.

Parlays and more

When you make multiple bets on one ticket, that's known as a parlay.

Your chances of winning drop significantly with each event added to the ticket. If one leg (another name for event) loses, the entire ticket is toast.

Going back to the Oilers and Maple Leafs game as an example, you may believe that Edmonton will cover the puck line, McDavid will score a goal and the contest will go over 6.5 goals. You could decide to bet on each event individually or you may be offered a pre-built special that combines the three.

You may also be able to build your own same-game parlay.

Here's what it would look like to bet those three examples individually:

Oilers +1.5 (-125)
McDavid anytime goalscorer (+110)
Over 6.5 total goals (-110)

This is how it would change if you combined the three events:

Oilers +1.5, McDavid anytime goalscorer, over 6.5 total goals (+621).

The listed odds for this parlay example are +621, while the odds for each individual bet sit at a much lower number. A successful $100 bet on this parlay would generate a profit of $621.

That's nearly six times greater than all of those individual events at the same $100 stake. Again, that's because correctly predicting multiple events on the same ticket is more difficult than getting just one right and, as a result, lowers the win probability.

There are more ways to get in on Oilers action through live betting and the futures market, where you can pick Edmonton to win the Cup or McDavid to win the Hart Trophy.

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