Cleveland Monsters Odds & Betting

Cleveland Monsters Odds and Betting

The American Hockey League is the main developmental league for the NHL and is filled with talented young players. In Ohio, the Cleveland Monsters are affiliated with the Columbus Blue Jackets, and tuning into the AHL is a great way to keep tabs on the most exciting players. 

Now that sports betting is legal in Ohio, you can profit from the Monsters’ progress by backing them on your betting slip. Here, we explain everything you need to know as we introduce you to the ideal Cleveland Monsters odds and betting strategy.

How to bet on Cleveland Monsters 

As the main feeder team to the Columbus Blue Jackets, the progress of the Cleveland Monsters is of significant importance to NHL fans in Ohio. And although the Monsters haven’t been doing so well on the ice in recent times, there’s a lot to look forward to with the legalization of sports betting in the Buckeye State. 

You can now place a huge range of bets on the AHL and back the Cleveland Monsters from week to week. There are lots of markets and betting types to get your head around, and you can back the Cleveland Monsters in the following ways: 

The moneyline 

The puck line 

Totals betting (over/under)

Prop betting 

Parlay betting 

Futures betting

The above list might seem a little daunting if you’re not accustomed to sports betting parlance. But in reality, betting on the Cleveland Monsters in the AHL is remarkably straightforward. 

So, let’s look at how AHL odds work before detailing the different ways you can back the Monsters this season.

How do AHL odds work?

The AHL - American Hockey League - serves as the primary developmental league to the NHL. The Cleveland Monsters are the top affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets and have recorded one Calder Cup triumph. 

So, if you’re keen to profit from the achievements of the Cleveland Monsters, you need to understand how AHL odds work fully.

Ice hockey odds are represented in the American, British (fractional), or European (decimal) format. Thankfully, when you use a US sportsbook, you only need to worry about American odds. 

In the American format, the odds are really easy to understand. Here’s an example to show you what we mean: 

Syracuse Crunch (-190) vs. Cleveland Monsters (+180) 

The favorites are always given negative odds, while the underdogs are provided with positive odds. So, in this example, Syracuse are favorites to defeat Cleveland. 

The odds given to the favorite indicate how much you need to bet to win $100, while the odds given to the underdog detail how much a $100 bet will return in profit. 

So, for instance, if you back Syracuse with $190, you will win $100 in profit if they win the fixture. Conversely, if you fancy Cleveland for the upset, a $100 would return $180 if they win the match. 

Once you get the hang of them, American odds are really easy to understand. Now that you know the basics, let’s take a look at how they all work in practice, with some specific examples you can draw upon to build your Cleveland Monsters betting strategy.

Popular Cleveland Monsters Odds and Betting strategies

The moneyline 

The easiest type of bet to place on the AHL is known as the moneyline. In a moneyline bet, your sole objective is to pick the winner of the fixture that is playing out in front of you. 

You don’t need to worry about how many goals are scored or which players score them. Your only concern is which team will leave the ice victorious! 

Here’s what an AHL moneyline involving the Monsters might look like: 

Belleville Senators (-160) vs. Cleveland Monsters (+170) 

In this moneyline bet, the Monsters are the underdogs, and the Senators are the favorites. We know this because the Monsters have positive odds, while the Senators have been given negative odds. 

So, if you agree with the sportsbook and think the Senators will triumph, a $160 bet will return $100 in profit. If you think the Monsters are good for an upset, you could bet $100 in return for a profit of $170. 

Betting the AHL moneyline is smart if you’re new to betting on ice hockey, as it’s the simplest type of bet you can place. However, when you’re ready to move on, you can consider some of the following Cleveland Monsters bet types.

Spread betting (puck line betting) 

Spread betting is popular in all American sports, and ice hockey is no different. However, in ice hockey, the spread is more commonly referred to as puck line betting. 

The premise is simple enough to understand. The sportsbook hands the favorites a handicap while giving the underdogs a head start. It’s essentially a way of leveling the playing field, so to speak, and can be a good way to build value on your betting slip. 

In ice hockey, the puck line is often set at 1.5, but it can vary from fixture to fixture, so it’s important to bear this in mind. Here’s what a puck line bet featuring the Monsters might look like: 

Laval Rocket -1.5 (-140) vs. Cleveland Monsters (+1.5) (+160) 

As you can see, Laval are clear favorites to defeat the Monsters in this example. The sportsbook is giving the Monsters a 1.5-point head start and still thinks Laval will win the fixture. 

But what does this mean in practice? Well, if you agree and think Laval will win, they need to win by at least two points for you to win your bet. So, a 6-2 result in favor of Laval will win your bet.

However, if you fancy the Monsters, they only need to lose the fixture by one point for your bet to win. So, for example, if Laval complete a 5-4 victory on the ice and you bet on the Monsters in the above example, you would still win your bet. 

Puck line betting in ice hockey is a great way to make things a little more interesting and is one of the most popular AHL bets you can place when considering types of Cleveland Monsters odds and betting.

Totals (over/under) betting

An AHL totals bet allows you to place a wager on the total number of goals you think will be scored on the ice. It’s a great option for games that are too close to call, as you don’t need to pick a winner. 

The beauty of a totals bet is that it doesn’t matter which players or teams score the points. Your only concern is whether more or fewer goals than the points total will be scored. The sportsbook is responsible for setting the totals line before the game, and it is influenced by various factors. 

Here’s what a totals bet involving the Cleveland Monsters might look like: 

Rochester Americans vs. Cleveland Monsters - 7.5 

Over +110 

Under -120 

The sportsbook has set the totals line at 7.5, so you must decide whether you will back the over or under. The reason that a half figure has been given is to avoid the push bet, which occurs when the exact number of points is scored. 

What’s more, the sportsbook thinks that the under is more likely in this fixture, as we can see by the odds. 

So, let’s say that you agree and think fewer than 7.5 points will be scored. If the match finishes 4-2 in favor of the Monsters, your bet on the under will be a success. However, if the game is relatively high scoring and ends in a 5-4 victory in favor of Rochester, a bet on the over would win. 

Ultimately, if you’re undecided about which team will win an upcoming fixture, a totals bet is a great alternative to moneyline or puck line betting, as you only need to predict the total number of points that will be scored in the game. 

Prop betting

AHL prop betting allows you to get involved in the action that unfolds out on the ice without worrying about the final outcome. 

As such, prop betting deals with instances on the ice during the game and is typically split into team and individual prop bets. Here are some of the prop bets you could potentially place on the Cleveland Monsters this season: 

Cleveland Monsters team prop bets 

Over/under total team goals scored during regulation time. 

Over/under total of powerplay goals in the match. 

Both teams to score during the first half. 

Total number of shots on goal in the second half.

Cleveland Monsters individual prop bets 

Gaunce Brendan anytime goal scorer. 

Fix-Wolansky Trey to score the first goal of the game. 

Meyer Carson total points (over/under), goals, and assists. 

Greaves Jet clean sheet.

As you can see, you have a chance of winning the above prop bets regardless of the match’s final outcome. They keep things interesting throughout the game and mean you don’t have to rely solely on the final outcome when it comes to placing your wager.

To give your prop bets the best chance of coming in, make sure you research player form and injuries in advance. You should look for guys that have been performing well on the ice in recent game weeks, so it’s important to do your homework before placing a wager. 

Parlay betting

Another exciting way of betting on the AHL is to build a parlay bet. Parlays are sometimes referred to as accumulators and enable you to bring multiple selections into the same betting slip. 

The most common type of AHL parlay is including several moneyline bets in the same selection, which could look something like this if you’re backing the Monsters: 

Cleveland Monsters, Bakersfield Condors, and Manitoba Moose to win (+520) 

The odds that you receive for a parlay bet will be significantly higher than if you were to bet each game as an individual moneyline. However, there is a catch. 

Each of your selections needs to take care of business for your bet to win. If the Monsters concede late in the last after Bakersfield and Manitoba have secured their victories, you will lose your bet. 

You can also build parlays with props and spread bets, but the moneyline is the easiest type of parlay to bring together when you’re just getting started. 

Although parlay bets are fun and daring, they shouldn’t necessarily constitute the crux of your betting strategy. The odds are so attractive because they’re much less likely to come in. So, bear this in mind before putting together an AHL parlay for the upcoming game week.

Futures betting 

Last but not least, you can place a range of futures bets on the Cleveland Monsters. As the name suggests, futures bets look past the current game week and are concerned with events that could happen later in the season. 

So, AHL futures bets that you could place on the Monsters include:

Calder Cup champions

Divisional winners 

Monsters to make the playoffs 

Top divisional goalscorer from the current roster 

Seasonal MVP 

It’s always best to place futures bets at the start of the season before the action gets underway. But you can build some futures bets after the season has started. 

Just be mindful that the odds are likely to change when things get underway on the ice to reflect the current performance of the Monsters.