What is a hockey pool?
A hockey pool (also called fantasy hockey) is a competition between friends, co-workers or family. Each participant builds a team of real NHL players. During the season, every goal, assist and win by your players earns you pool points. The person with the most points at the end wins.
In Canada, the pool has been part of hockey culture for decades: the photocopied sheet at the office, the newspaper's pool pages, a brother-in-law's spreadsheet… Today, most pools are run online, with points calculated automatically during the games.
How it works, step by step
- Form the pool. An organizer (the commissioner) creates the pool, sets the rules and invites everyone. A pool usually has 6 to 16 participants.
- Draft. Before the season, everyone picks players in turn during the draft. Once a player is taken, nobody else can have him.
- Set your lineup. Each team has positions to fill: forwards, defencemen and goalies. Active players earn points; bench players don't.
- Rack up points. Depending on the scoring, each stat is worth a set number of points.
- Manage your team. Trades, free agents, injuries: a good pool player follows his team all season.
- Crown a champion. At the end of the regular season (or the playoffs), the final standings decide the winner.
Types of hockey pools
Cumulative (classic) pool
The most popular. Points add up all season and the standings are based on the total. Easy to understand and perfect for a first pool or a big group.
Head-to-head (H2H) pool
Every week, your team faces another team. You win the matchup on points (highest weekly total) or on categories (goals, assists, shots, wins… each category won is worth 1). You keep a win-loss record, and the best teams make the pool playoffs. More suspense every week.
Playoff pool
A short, intense format in the spring, when the NHL's top 16 teams battle for the Stanley Cup. You either draft from the qualified teams or predict the winner of every series. Everything is in our playoff pool guide.
Office pool
The pool between co-workers, often with lots of participants and very simple rules so everyone joins in. See our office hockey pool guide.
Long-term pools (keeper and dynasty)
In a keeper pool, you keep a few players from one season to the next; in a dynasty pool, you keep your whole team. The draft becomes a game of patience: you bet on young prospects.
What if you want to be the GM?
Some poolies want even more: running the lines, contracts, salary cap and budget of a whole club. That's what a general manager game is about. On Yetii Pool, GM Mode is a free hockey GM game: build your team with real NHL players, take on your friends in your own league and watch your simulated games broadcast live in 3D.
Scoring: how much is a goal worth?
Scoring is the most important rule in your pool: it decides which players are valuable. The two main families:
| Stat | Classic scoring | Detailed scoring (example) |
|---|---|---|
| Goal | 1 | 2 |
| Assist | 1 | 1 |
| Plus/minus | — | 0.5 |
| Power-play point | — | 0.5 |
| Shot on goal / hit | — | 0.1 |
| Goalie win | 2 | 2 |
| Shutout | 2 | 3 |
| Save / goal against | — | 0.1 / -0.5 |
With classic scoring, scorers dominate. With detailed scoring, a defenceman who blocks shots and throws hits can be worth as much as a forward. Before your draft, read your pool's scoring carefully: that's where the bargains hide.
Start your pool in 4 steps
On Yetii Pool, you choose the format, scoring and lineup, invite your friends with a code, and points are calculated automatically during the games. It's free.
The lineup: forwards, defencemen, goalies
A typical lineup has 12 forwards, 6 defencemen and 2 goalies active, plus a few bench spots and an injured reserve. Some pools split forwards into centres, left wingers and right wingers to make the draft harder.
Only active players earn points. Good pool players adjust their lineup: an injured player goes to IR, a hot player replaces one who's slumping.
During the season: trades, free agents and waivers
- Trades: two teams swap players. The commissioner can have a veto to block a lopsided trade.
- Free agents: players nobody drafted. You can add them (often with a weekly limit) by dropping a player.
- Waivers: a dropped player goes through a short period where other teams can claim him before he becomes free again. It prevents abuse.
- Salary cap: an optional rule that forces you to stay under a real-world payroll. More strategy, more headaches.
How to win your pool
- Prepare your draft with lists by position and projections, not just big names.
- Know your scoring inside out: it sets every player's value.
- Watch injuries and starting goalies every morning.
- Stay active on the free-agent market: every season, surprise players break out.
- Trade smart: sell a player at his peak value, buy the one coming back from injury.
To go further, read our 12 draft tips, check the top 200 players and use the free draft kit (more than 1,300 projected players).
Online or on paper?
Paper and spreadsheets are charming… until someone has to add up the points of 200 players every Monday. An online pool site does it all for you: live scoring, automatic standings, a timed draft, trades and history. On Yetii Pool, it's free, in English and French, and the platform never handles money.
Frequently asked questions
What is a hockey pool?
A competition between friends where each participant drafts real NHL players. Their stats (goals, assists, wins…) earn pool points, and the person with the most points wins.
How many players are on a hockey pool team?
Often 12 forwards, 6 defencemen and 2 goalies active, plus a bench of 2 to 4 players and an injured reserve. The commissioner can adjust these numbers.
What scoring should a hockey pool use?
For a first pool, classic scoring (goal 1, assist 1, win 2, shutout 2) is the simplest. Experienced players like detailed scoring with plus/minus, shots, hits and saves.
Can an online hockey pool be free?
Yes. Yetii Pool is free: pool creation, live draft, live scoring, trades and standings. The platform never handles bets or payments.