In this type of betting, the NHL puck line is reversed. What this means is that the puck line of 1.5 is actually subtracted from the underdogs, or added to the favored team. For the underdogs to be the winning bet, they must not only beat the favorites but do so by 2 or more goal difference. The league released a statement on Jan. 19 outlining its decision to recall pucks with embedded tracking-chip technology. This is the first complete season of puck tracking for the NHL, which hopes to supply more data to player performance, such as player skating speed and puck possession time.

Photo: Boston Globe

According to The Boston Globe, a new puck with a tiny battery embedded, a circuit board around the size of half of a dollar, and six-inch-long tubes that let in infrared light at 60 pulses per second, is set to debut in the NHL this season.

Each puck will cost the league $40 to produce. This is part of the NHL unveiling its long-anticipated Puck and Player Tracking technology to get used for enhanced data collection and metrics, and the tidal wave of legalized sports betting that is on the way.

The puck will be six ounces, three inches wide, and one inch thick.

Players have told the Boston Globe that it feels the same on their sticks, fires just like the old version, and pings off the iron and rink boards with honest-to-Boom Boom Geoffrion auditory authenticity.

Because of the truncated season, the NHL logo will be the only one on the center of the pucks. Each team, including the Seattle Kraken who are set to make their debut in 2021-22, will have their logos on the pucks next season.

The critical tech element is the puck’s battery-powered infrared light and the beam necessary to a triangulation system that also has 16-18 cameras inside each arena. Every NHL player will also be outfitted with an infrared tag (which will be the size and shape of a pack of the game) slipped into the backs of their jerseys.

Other than cameras mounted in the top and elsewhere in the arena, all of the light beams and associated PPT technology will not be seen. All of the puck and player movement will be tracked, recorded, and all of the information streamed into a giant data punch bowl.

These pucks are manufactured in three stages across three sits: Soucy Baron (produces raw form puck), SMT, Inc. (puts battery, circuit boards, and light tubes in each puck), and Inglasco, Inc. (uses a silkscreening process to place logos on the center).

The paint applied by Inglasco turns purple when the pucks are chilled to the appropriate temperature for gameplay. If purple fades to a gray tone, it will be pulled from play. During games, pucks will be stored in a tiny freeze box at rinkside, alongside the official scorer’s position.

Once a puck is out of play, the arena tech crew will deactivate it from the PPT system and a new puck, with a unique embedded code, will be activated. The fan who goes home with the souvenir puck will just have a chunk of rubber, which will have a dead battery 4-6 hours later.

By Harrison Brown

Arizona Coyotes defenseman Jakob Chychrun says there was a “noticeable difference” to the feeling of the pucks with embedded tracking technology. (Photo by Kevin Abele/Getty Images)

PHOENIX – The 2020-21 NHL season already has been an unusual one.

A condensed, series-based schedule. Realigned divisional play. And games with limited fan attendance are a few of the twists and turns the league has maneuvered amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now, another wrinkle has been added to the mix.

Just six days into the season, the NHL pulled microchipped pucks players and coaches around the league complained about the way the pucks performed.

Statement from the @NHL regarding tracking pucks. https://t.co/uovJ97eBpkpic.twitter.com/m5D0XXS1CV

— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) January 19, 2021

The league released a statement on Jan. 19 outlining its decision to recall pucks with embedded tracking-chip technology.

This is the first complete season of puck tracking for the NHL, which hopes to supply more data to player performance, such as player skating speed and puck possession time. Last year’s conference finals in the league’s Return to Play plan marked the first time the league adopted puck tracking.

A review discovered that the first batch of 2020-21 pucks did not receive the exact finishing touches during the off-season manufacturing process as those that were used during the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs, according to the NHL.

It came as no surprise to Arizona Coyotes coach Rick Tocchet, who had heard chatter from his players about the microchipped pucks during the team’s first series of the season against the San Jose Sharks at Gila River Arena.

“I heard some puck bouncing and some different feels to that puck,” Tocchet said. “I think it was after Game 2 (vs. San Jose). I heard some whispers from some players talking amongst themselves that said it’s a little different puck feel with the tracking thing. For sure, I heard that.”

Coyotes veteran defenseman Jakob Chychrun immediately noticed the puck was a little off within his first few shifts of the home opener.

“There was a noticeable difference,” Chyrchun said. “I even had a little talk with the refs in our first game of the year at home. I just asked them, ‘What was going on?’ The refs said the pucks were different. It was definitely noticeable, just feeling them and the way they were sliding on the ice.”

Chychrun initially thought the puck’s different feel was due to the new ice surface, which was installed on Dec. 23 with a crescent moon logo to commemorate the Coyotes’ 25th anniversary.

Nevertheless, there was no doubt the puck-tracking technology had some players scratching their heads, leading to discussions on the bench and in the locker room.

“There were a lot of talks about it,” said Chychrun, who has tallied a goal and five points through the first six games of the season. “Guys were complaining. It was definitely noticeable, feeling them and the way they were sliding on the ice. It’s nice to go back to the regular ones.”

Coyotes forward Derick Brassard noticed a slight difference the first game, but noted he was still getting used to the rink atmosphere at Gila River Arena in his first season as a Coyote.

Toronto Maple Leafs star Auston Matthews, who grew up in Scottsdale, said the pucks with the chip technology didn’t seem to slide as well as the regular ones. Matthews and his teammates compared them and found the weight to be uneven, according to Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston.

Another NHL player told ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski that the pucks were “terrible” and “don’t slide.”

“When you see some of the best players bobbling pucks, it’s a problem,” Vegas Golden Knights forward Ryan Reaves told Ryan Wallis of Fox Sports Las Vegas. Amid the transition of regulated pucks, the Coyotes wrapped up a four-game series with the Golden Knights in which Vegas took three of four. The Coyotes now hold a 2-3-1 record, which represents the eighth spot in the Honda West Division.

Nhl Puck Line Odds

The Coyotes knew there would be hurdles during this unusual season. Whether it’s the persistent COVID-19 protocols or the atypical travel and practice schedules or a new batch of pucks, Tocchet has been firm in his belief since the first day of training camp that his team will battle through the challenges.

“We’re going to have to be flexible and agile to whatever comes your way,” Tocchet said. “Sometimes, you’re getting information 12 to 24 hours later and you’re going to have to make adjustments.”

The microchipped pucks won’t be gone for long.

“I view this more of an evolution than a revolution,” NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said in a Q&A session with NHL.com senior writer Dan Rosen on Jan. 21. “I do think we’ll continue to integrate the tracking data into the presentation of our games in various ways and I think that integration will continue to ramp up over time.”

Nhl Puck Line

The NHL expects a new supply of pucks with tracking chips to be available soon and, following adequate quality control testing, will return for the rest of the season.