How a new team in Vegas could affect NHL betting
Craig Custance
ESPN INSIDER
LAS VEGAS -- For a few hours, the NHL took over the MGM Grand for its annual awards show. On the walk from the gaming area to the pool, there were banners hanging overhead representing every single NHL team. The golden MGM lion statue was wearing a black NHL jersey.
Fans in their favorite hockey sweaters were everywhere. The proximity to Los Angeles meant you didn’t have to look far for an Anze Kopitar jersey. The Blackhawks recent Stanley Cup win meant Kane and Toews were everywhere.
In the middle of it all, Las Vegas native Johnathan Waltz and his wife Flower were waiting for the festivities to begin. Waltz, wearing a Patrick Kane jersey, is a diehard Blackhawks fan, while Flower is a fan of the Kings.
Earlier that day, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman had announced the NHL has decided to formalize its expansion process.
Las Vegas is the heavy favorite to land one of the teams and Johnathan and Flower Waltz are exactly the kind of local fans the NHL is betting will embrace the team. They’re already hockey fans. They know the game. They’re also willing to embrace a new, local franchise.
They aren’t part of the 13,000 to put a deposit down for season tickets, but the moment the NHL makes it official, they’re in.
“When it’s approved, we’re definitely going to do it,” Johnathan said, when asked about season tickets.
Until then, they have to get their hockey fix remotely. During the regular season, Johnathan said he finds the Vegas sports books a great place to watch games, with his preferred venues the sports book at Texas Station or Red Rock Casino.
And while they’re there, he’ll occasionally place a wager on the game. At least during the regular season -- come playoff time his focus is squarely on cheering the Blackhawks.
“I don’t bet at all during the playoffs,” he said. “I’m superstitious.”
Bettman was careful to stress that the NHL hasn’t made a decision on expansion but a team in Las Vegas seems inevitable at this point.
When it finally becomes officially official, one of the first questions that will have to be addressed is how concerned the league should be about fans betting on NHL games in Vegas and whether it should be allowed at all. According to the Nevada Gaming Control Board’s Karl Bennison, betting on an NHL team in Las Vegas would be allowed unless the NHL requests that wagers are prohibited and the commission approved that request.
“You’re too far down the road,” Bettman said, when asked if fans could bet on a Las Vegas NHL team. “We haven’t looked at any of those questions.”
NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said the league is well aware of the current rate in which fans bet on NHL games and part of the reason there doesn’t seem to be too much concern about it is because it’s a small fraction of the sports gambling pie.
“Very minimal,” Daly said. “Very minimal betting on hockey.”
Those taking the bets back up the league’s information.
“That is an accurate statement,” said Jeff Stoneback, the sports book manager at MGM. “Hockey is No. 4 among professional sports. There’s not a lot of wagering on hockey. When we get a playoff game, the room will be packed. A lot of those people don’t want to wager on the game. When the game is over, the room empties out. The room is enthusiastic but they’re not betting on it.”
According to Stoneback, hockey represents about two percent of all the wagers on sports at MGM. Jay Kornegay, vice president of race and sports at the Westgate SuperBook, also put hockey at slightly more than two percent.
“As far as the four major sports, it’s dead last,” Kornegay said. “It’s not even close, to tell you the truth.”
Hockey does have its moments.
The betting picks up during the playoffs and this postseason was an especially strong one, with bets trending slightly up. The increase was attributed to exciting games that generated buzz for the sport, including multiple Game 7s in the conference finals as well as major markets like Chicago and New York making long runs. Anaheim fans also tend to represent well in the Vegas sports book, so the Ducks playoff run helped boost the numbers.
There’s also a window early in the regular season before the NBA starts where the NHL has its moment of betting glory.
“Baseball is winding down, a lot of people just need something to bet on,” said Hugh Citron, a Stratosphere odds maker who also is part of group that put down a deposit for NHL season tickets if expansion comes to Vegas. “On your weeknights you have one playoff baseball game or Thursday night football. Hockey has a window there for three weeks; it’s the main game for people to make parlays on during the week. You have more people following hockey in that span, when the NBA starts, it takes a back seat.”
There are a couple theories why hockey isn’t conducive to betting in Las Vegas. For one, it still has niche sport status in the U.S. despite the strong growth over the last decade and increased television ratings.
Plus, to the casual Vegas-visiting gambler, it’s not as easy to grasp as betting on a football game where the concept of covering a point spread is an easy one. The NHL is a 3-2 league, so the best way to bet it is to play the money line. Explaining to a novice that they have to bet $180 to win $100 on the Blackhawks at home against Edmonton is a tough sell.
“The general public has a hard time understanding the money line, which is the main way to wager on hockey,” said Stoneback. “They see a minus-180 and they don’t understand what that means. They might get intimidated.”
So ultimately, in the list of challenges that the NHL will face in Las Vegas, the gambling aspect may not be one that looms large. Locals in Vegas can bet on UNLV and oddsmakers say that has become just another game on the book.
When the Las Vegas Thunder played in the International Hockey League during the 1990s, the Imperial Palace took bets on their games and it barely moved the needle.
“We did it for the gamblers,” Kornegay said. “It really was so minimal, you couldn’t buy a basket full of groceries on it.”
Kornegay’s hope is that when the NHL comes to Las Vegas, nothing changes. He hopes the local team is on the books and is handled just like any other NHL team is right now in the Las Vegas sports books. For one, the volume of betting on the games isn’t enough to do anything differently. And two, it would send the wrong message if there are restrictions, like there is something wrong with the gambling industry in Las Vegas.
<article class="ad-300" style="box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; overflow: hidden; position: relative; z-index: 1000026; margin: 0px 0px 0px 10px; float: right; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 16px;">
</article>His hope is that the league reaches out to the sports book directors in Las Vegas to get an accurate read on what exactly would take place in the books if an NHL franchise is brought to Las Vegas.
There might be a small bump for the book at the Monte Carlo, located right next to the front entrance of the Las Vegas arena as fans place wagers on the way to the game, but the anticipation is that it would be minimal. All of those factors will be weighed in any final decision the league makes on a team in Vegas -- if it ever has to make that call.
“It’d be part of a discussion in terms of what extra parameters we might build into a franchise being granted here than we might in some other market,” Daly said. “But I don’t think it’s a driving concern.”
Craig Custance
ESPN INSIDER
LAS VEGAS -- For a few hours, the NHL took over the MGM Grand for its annual awards show. On the walk from the gaming area to the pool, there were banners hanging overhead representing every single NHL team. The golden MGM lion statue was wearing a black NHL jersey.
Fans in their favorite hockey sweaters were everywhere. The proximity to Los Angeles meant you didn’t have to look far for an Anze Kopitar jersey. The Blackhawks recent Stanley Cup win meant Kane and Toews were everywhere.
In the middle of it all, Las Vegas native Johnathan Waltz and his wife Flower were waiting for the festivities to begin. Waltz, wearing a Patrick Kane jersey, is a diehard Blackhawks fan, while Flower is a fan of the Kings.
Earlier that day, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman had announced the NHL has decided to formalize its expansion process.
Las Vegas is the heavy favorite to land one of the teams and Johnathan and Flower Waltz are exactly the kind of local fans the NHL is betting will embrace the team. They’re already hockey fans. They know the game. They’re also willing to embrace a new, local franchise.
They aren’t part of the 13,000 to put a deposit down for season tickets, but the moment the NHL makes it official, they’re in.
“When it’s approved, we’re definitely going to do it,” Johnathan said, when asked about season tickets.
Until then, they have to get their hockey fix remotely. During the regular season, Johnathan said he finds the Vegas sports books a great place to watch games, with his preferred venues the sports book at Texas Station or Red Rock Casino.
And while they’re there, he’ll occasionally place a wager on the game. At least during the regular season -- come playoff time his focus is squarely on cheering the Blackhawks.
“I don’t bet at all during the playoffs,” he said. “I’m superstitious.”
Bettman was careful to stress that the NHL hasn’t made a decision on expansion but a team in Las Vegas seems inevitable at this point.
When it finally becomes officially official, one of the first questions that will have to be addressed is how concerned the league should be about fans betting on NHL games in Vegas and whether it should be allowed at all. According to the Nevada Gaming Control Board’s Karl Bennison, betting on an NHL team in Las Vegas would be allowed unless the NHL requests that wagers are prohibited and the commission approved that request.
“You’re too far down the road,” Bettman said, when asked if fans could bet on a Las Vegas NHL team. “We haven’t looked at any of those questions.”
NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said the league is well aware of the current rate in which fans bet on NHL games and part of the reason there doesn’t seem to be too much concern about it is because it’s a small fraction of the sports gambling pie.
“Very minimal,” Daly said. “Very minimal betting on hockey.”
Those taking the bets back up the league’s information.
“That is an accurate statement,” said Jeff Stoneback, the sports book manager at MGM. “Hockey is No. 4 among professional sports. There’s not a lot of wagering on hockey. When we get a playoff game, the room will be packed. A lot of those people don’t want to wager on the game. When the game is over, the room empties out. The room is enthusiastic but they’re not betting on it.”
According to Stoneback, hockey represents about two percent of all the wagers on sports at MGM. Jay Kornegay, vice president of race and sports at the Westgate SuperBook, also put hockey at slightly more than two percent.
“As far as the four major sports, it’s dead last,” Kornegay said. “It’s not even close, to tell you the truth.”
Hockey does have its moments.
The betting picks up during the playoffs and this postseason was an especially strong one, with bets trending slightly up. The increase was attributed to exciting games that generated buzz for the sport, including multiple Game 7s in the conference finals as well as major markets like Chicago and New York making long runs. Anaheim fans also tend to represent well in the Vegas sports book, so the Ducks playoff run helped boost the numbers.
There’s also a window early in the regular season before the NBA starts where the NHL has its moment of betting glory.
“Baseball is winding down, a lot of people just need something to bet on,” said Hugh Citron, a Stratosphere odds maker who also is part of group that put down a deposit for NHL season tickets if expansion comes to Vegas. “On your weeknights you have one playoff baseball game or Thursday night football. Hockey has a window there for three weeks; it’s the main game for people to make parlays on during the week. You have more people following hockey in that span, when the NBA starts, it takes a back seat.”
There are a couple theories why hockey isn’t conducive to betting in Las Vegas. For one, it still has niche sport status in the U.S. despite the strong growth over the last decade and increased television ratings.
Plus, to the casual Vegas-visiting gambler, it’s not as easy to grasp as betting on a football game where the concept of covering a point spread is an easy one. The NHL is a 3-2 league, so the best way to bet it is to play the money line. Explaining to a novice that they have to bet $180 to win $100 on the Blackhawks at home against Edmonton is a tough sell.
“The general public has a hard time understanding the money line, which is the main way to wager on hockey,” said Stoneback. “They see a minus-180 and they don’t understand what that means. They might get intimidated.”
So ultimately, in the list of challenges that the NHL will face in Las Vegas, the gambling aspect may not be one that looms large. Locals in Vegas can bet on UNLV and oddsmakers say that has become just another game on the book.
When the Las Vegas Thunder played in the International Hockey League during the 1990s, the Imperial Palace took bets on their games and it barely moved the needle.
“We did it for the gamblers,” Kornegay said. “It really was so minimal, you couldn’t buy a basket full of groceries on it.”
Kornegay’s hope is that when the NHL comes to Las Vegas, nothing changes. He hopes the local team is on the books and is handled just like any other NHL team is right now in the Las Vegas sports books. For one, the volume of betting on the games isn’t enough to do anything differently. And two, it would send the wrong message if there are restrictions, like there is something wrong with the gambling industry in Las Vegas.
<article class="ad-300" style="box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; overflow: hidden; position: relative; z-index: 1000026; margin: 0px 0px 0px 10px; float: right; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 16px;">
</article>His hope is that the league reaches out to the sports book directors in Las Vegas to get an accurate read on what exactly would take place in the books if an NHL franchise is brought to Las Vegas.
There might be a small bump for the book at the Monte Carlo, located right next to the front entrance of the Las Vegas arena as fans place wagers on the way to the game, but the anticipation is that it would be minimal. All of those factors will be weighed in any final decision the league makes on a team in Vegas -- if it ever has to make that call.
“It’d be part of a discussion in terms of what extra parameters we might build into a franchise being granted here than we might in some other market,” Daly said. “But I don’t think it’s a driving concern.”
