The first Battle of Alberta of the season lands tonight at Rogers Place, and it comes with a great storyline for anyone new to hockey betting. The Edmonton Oilers (8-2-2) are big favorites at roughly -210 on the moneyline, but the Calgary Flames walk in on a four-game win streak. A heavy favorite facing a hot underdog is a perfect spot to learn how a same-game parlay works.

If you have never built one, a same-game parlay (SGP) combines several bets from a single game into one ticket, and every leg has to win for the ticket to cash. Tonight’s three-leg build keeps things simple: the game total, a star’s points, and a star’s goal. Puck drop is 8:30 PM ET with the total set at 6.5. Odds move throughout the day, so always check your own sportsbook for the final price on each leg.

Leg 1: Over 6.5 Total Goals

The total is the easiest leg for a beginner to understand: you are simply betting that the two teams combine for seven or more goals. The number sits at 6.5, with the over priced around -109 at several books. Edmonton is scoring roughly 4.25 goals per game, while Calgary has been giving up about 3.7 per night, so there is a clear path to a high-scoring game.

Calgary has also leaned toward goals lately. The Flames have gone over in four of their last five games after scoring five or more in the previous outing, and they just beat Toronto 5-2. Edmonton has dropped two straight at home and has been getting uneven goaltending. Before locking this leg in, it is smart to compare the 6.5 price across books using live NHL odds.

Leg 2: Connor McDavid Over 1.5 Points

In hockey, a player’s “point” is either a goal or an assist, so this leg wins if McDavid records any two of those. He is about as reliable as it gets. McDavid has 34 points through 12 games this season, with 8 goals and 26 assists, and he has cleared this number in seven of his last ten games. He also runs on Edmonton’s top power-play unit, which is where many of his assists come from.

One thing to know about this leg: the price is steeper than the others, listed around -158. That means you risk more to win less, which is normal for a superstar in a great spot. It is also a good lesson in how parlays work, because a heavy favorite on one leg adds less to your total payout than a longer shot would.

Leg 3: Leon Draisaitl Anytime Goal Scorer

An anytime goal scorer bet is just what it sounds like: the player scores at least once at any point in the game. Draisaitl is a natural choice because he leads Edmonton with 12 goals on 46 shots, with six of those coming on the power play, and he carried a six-game goal streak into this week. He scored twice on four shots in a recent overtime win over Minnesota, so the looks are clearly there.

Edmonton also has some question marks at forward, with Zach Hyman day-to-day after leaving Monday’s game with an upper-body injury. If Hyman cannot go, more of the offensive burden shifts onto Draisaitl and McDavid, and that only helps this leg. Anytime goal scorer prices change quickly once lineups are confirmed, so check your book before betting.

The Full Parlay

Put it together and you have a three-leg SGP: Over 6.5 total goals, Connor McDavid over 1.5 points, and Leon Draisaitl to score anytime. These legs are friendly to each other, because if the game turns into a shootout, Edmonton’s two stars are the most likely to be involved in the scoring. That is the whole idea behind a same-game parlay: the legs tell one story.

Combined odds depend on the book, and each sportsbook prices SGP correlation a little differently, so we are not quoting a single number here. Treat this as a learning example, keep your stake small, and remember that all three legs must hit. If you are still getting comfortable with the math, try the betting calculator to see how stacking legs changes your payout. Please bet responsibly.