Best Betting Platforms for NHL Arbitrage in 2026: Fees, Coverage and the Regulation-Time Trap

The quick answer

Cheapest NHL leg before puck drop: Novig. No fee for maker or taker on pre-game straight trades.

Visible depth: Kalshi. Its public order books show spread and size before you trade.

Best if you post rather than take: Polymarket US. Makers collect a rebate.

Closest to a sportsbook on player props: ProphetX. A skater with no ice time is voided and collateral returned.

What breaks NHL arbs: a 60-minute three-way line paired with a moneyline that counts overtime and the shootout, shootout goals that count for teams but not players, and goalie props that settle differently when the starter sits.

On a $200 pre-game position with a 3% edge, Novig keeps all $6.02, where a Kalshi or Polymarket US taker gives up more than half of it.

What NHL arbitrage is

You back both sides of a hockey market on two venues at prices that together guarantee a return whichever team wins. Most US positions pair a sportsbook moneyline or puck line with a prediction-market contract on the other side.

In hockey the same game can produce three different results depending on whether a market counts 60 minutes, overtime or the shootout, so two legs with the same team names may be settling on different scores.

How we checked

This covers venues a US bettor can open and trade NHL markets on. Fees and settlement rules come from each platform's own fee page, contract filings or house rules, and depth comes from Kalshi's public market data.

Kalshi's fee comes from its fee schedule effective 7 July 2026, checked 7 October. Everything else below was opened again on 7 October. The NHL regular season opened on 29 September 2026 and runs 84 games per team this year.

The platforms, ranked for NHL arbitrage

Ranked by what the prediction-market leg costs before puck drop. On visible depth, Kalshi would rank first, and on prop settlement against a sportsbook, ProphetX.

1. Novig: the cheapest pre-game leg

Ludlow Exchange, the CFTC-designated contract market Novig runs on, certified its NHL Winner, Spread, Total and Prop contracts on 22 September 2026. Novig's help center lists professional hockey, with single-game winner, spread, total and player props on goals and assists. Check the app for which games are open before you plan a leg there.

Pre-game straight trades carry no fee for either side. In-game, takers pay 0.03 x price x (1 - price) per contract, 75c per 100 contracts at even money, and makers pay nothing on any trade type. A maker filled in-game earns a cash credit of 50% of the taker fee collected from the other side.

We found no public depth data for Novig's NHL menu, so test a fill at your size first.

Best for: the prediction-market leg of a pre-game arb on sides and totals.

2. Kalshi: depth you can check

Kalshi lists NHL game winners, spreads and total goals, and its order books are public. Next-day games tended to show tighter spreads and more size than games further out.

Kalshi's standard taker fee is $1.75 per 100 contracts at 50c. Its NHL game series also charges the resting side, while its NHL spread and total series don't.

Best for: filling size the day before and on game day.

3. Polymarket US: paid to post

Polymarket US charges takers on a 0.0695 coefficient, $1.74 per 100 contracts at 50c, and pays makers $0.31 per 100 at the same price. Its sports FAQ counts overtime and the shootout in NHL winner, spread and total markets. Check the app for which NHL markets it has open. Polymarket US changed some fees again on 7 October 2026, so check its current schedule before relying on these figures.

Best for: the resting side of an arb.

4. ProphetX: props that settle like DraftKings

ProphetX takes 2% of net gains per market on straight trades, so a position held to settlement pays only on the winning leg. Its hockey rules, updated 6 October 2026, settle full-game contracts on regulation, overtime and any shootout. A player who gets no ice time is voided with collateral returned. DraftKings voids a skater who doesn't dress, so the two line up on a pre-game scratch.

Best for: skater props paired with a sportsbook.

The sportsbook leg, and venues you can't use

FanDuel, DraftKings or BetMGM can supply the other leg, with the vig already inside the price your scanner shows. DraftKings' house rules count overtime in every hockey market unless the header says "Excl OT", "Regulation Time" or "60 minutes", and they add one goal to the shootout winner's score and the game total.

Several offshore books and exchanges aren't open to US bettors.

What an NHL arb keeps after fees

A pre-game arb on one game: Team A's moneyline at a sportsbook at decimal 2.08 (+108), and Team B on a prediction market at 49c. Stake $99.04 at the book and buy 206 contracts for $100.94. Total outlay is $199.98, either result pays $206.00, and the profit before fees is $6.02.

Both legs in this example count overtime and the shootout.

Where NHL arbs break

Regulation time against the moneyline

A sportsbook's 60-minute line is three-way: Team A, Team B or a tie after regulation. Overtime and the shootout don't count, while a prediction-market winner contract is two-way and counts both. Novig, Kalshi, Polymarket US and ProphetX all settle a full-game winner on the final result after overtime.

Say a book offers Team A to win in regulation at 2.50 and a prediction market sells Team B to win at 45c. Stake $100 at the book and buy 250 contracts for $112.50. A regulation win for Team A pays $250, and so does any Team B win, for $37.50 on $212.50, 17.6% on paper. If Team A wins in overtime, the book ticket loses (regulation ended tied) and so does the Team B contract, and you're out the full $212.50.

Novig's filing defines a regulation segment too, but a tie there pays 50c to each side instead of a third outcome.

Shootout goals

DraftKings, Novig, ProphetX and Polymarket US add one goal to the shootout winner's score, so a shootout win is a one-goal win and the -1.5 puck line loses. Shootout goals don't count toward goalscorer or skater stats at DraftKings, Novig or ProphetX.

Goalie confirmations

Goalie news can land after one leg is placed. Nothing in DraftKings' hockey rules voids a moneyline or puck line over a goalie change, and Novig's goaltender rule applies only to goalie props. On those props, DraftKings voids a goalie who doesn't start and returns the stake. Novig voids a goalie who doesn't play in the first minute and settles the contract at a fair value from the 30 minutes of trading before the news, which can sit above or below your entry.

Empty-net timing

In a one-goal game late in the third, the trailing team pulls its goalie and a -1.5 puck line can turn on a single empty-net goal. Each venue updates its live prices on its own, so a quote can change before your second leg is placed. An in-game arb opened there can leave one leg filled and the other gone, and Novig's in-game fee applies.

What to look for

Fee on the prediction-market leg: check the pre-game fee for both maker and taker. On Novig, straight trades carry none until puck drop.

Market header: confirm both legs count overtime and the shootout, or both exclude them.

Player rules: shootout goals don't count for players, and scratch rules differ by venue.

Depth: test fills where you can't see the book.

Your state: sports contracts are restricted or litigated in several states, and the list changes with court rulings.

NHL arbitrage FAQ

What is the best app for NHL arbitrage betting?

Before puck drop, Novig, because it charges no fee on either side of the trade. Kalshi publishes its order-book depth, and ProphetX returns collateral on a skater who never takes the ice.

Does overtime count in NHL bets?

Full-game moneylines include overtime and the shootout at every venue checked. Markets labeled regulation time, 60 minutes or three-way exclude both.

Can you arb a three-way hockey line against a moneyline?

Not safely. If the team you backed in regulation wins in overtime, both legs lose.

Does the shootout count toward the puck line?

Yes. DraftKings, Novig, ProphetX and Polymarket US add one goal to the shootout winner, so a shootout win covers +1.5 and loses -1.5.

When did the 2026-27 NHL season start?

The regular season opened on 29 September 2026 and ends on 10 April 2027.

Sources

All opened 7 October 2026 except where noted.

Novig fee schedule: support.novig.com/en/articles/16195057-fees-on-novig

Novig Fair Value Settlement: support.novig.com/en/articles/16163706-what-is-fair-value-settlement-fvs

Novig Maker Credit Program: support.novig.com/en/articles/16116780-maker-credit-program

Novig NHL contract certifications and terms: ludlowexchange.com/filings (NHL Winner, Spread, Total and Prop, certified 22 September 2026)

Novig, What sports are available on Novig: support.novig.com/en/articles/10336189

Kalshi NHL series fee types: Kalshi public API (KXNHLGAME, KXNHLSPREAD, KXNHLTOTAL); Kalshi HOCKEYWINNINGINPERIOD contract terms

Kalshi fee schedule: kalshi.com/docs/kalshi-fee-schedule.pdf (effective 7 July 2026)

Polymarket US fee schedule and sports FAQ, NHL section: docs.polymarket.us/fees (effective 1 October 2026); docs.polymarket.us/faqs/sports-faqs

ProphetX Hockey Rules (updated 6 October 2026) and Understanding Fees (updated 19 August 2026): ProphetX help center

DraftKings Sportsbook house rules, ice hockey section: Massachusetts Gaming Commission filing, version 8.18.25

2026-27 NHL schedule: NHL news release, "NHL announces schedule for 2026-27 regular season"