A wide-ranging partnership

The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation’s (OLG) Proline+ sports betting brand has partnered with the National Hockey League (NHL). The NHL revealed on Wednesday that its multi-year deal with Proline+ represents the league’s first partnership with a sportsbook in Canada.

Both the Proline+ online sportsbook and the Proline retail sports betting product are part of the deal. It means that OLG will be able to use the official NHL logos and cross-promote through the NHL’s social and digital channels.

organizations will hold exclusive joint events and offer special promotions

The two organizations will hold exclusive joint events and offer special promotions through both the online and retail sportsbooks. These co-branded promotions will cover 2021-2022 regular season games, the playoffs, and the Stanley Cup Final, as well as the 2022-2023 season.

Proline+ will also act as the presenting partner for the Proline+ NHL Pre-Game in advance of the 2022 NHL Heritage Classic. The official fan festival takes place before the Toronto Maple Leafs play the Buffalo Sabres in an outdoor game in Ontario on Sunday. It is the first time that the game is taking place in the province.

Welcoming the agreement

OLG chief digital and strategy officer Dave Pridmore believes that the deal is a big win for Proline+ bettors. He is confident that it will complement the existing hockey betting offering available through the Proline offerings.

leading gaming entertainment operator for more than four decades”

NHL’s senior vice president for North American business development Kyle McMann also welcomed the deal, speaking about how OLG is an ideal partner because it is a “leading gaming entertainment operator for more than four decades with an excellent track record in Ontario.”

The NHL has many official sports betting partners in the US, including Betway, FanDuel, and DraftKings. This, though, is its first deal in Canada. OLG signed a similar partnership agreement with the National Football League (NFL) last month.

An exciting time in Ontario

Private sports betting operators are positioning themselves for the April 4 launch of the regulated online market. OLG has a monopoly over the sector up until then, as it is run by the provincial government.

Single-event sports betting became legal last August following the ending of the federal ban. Since then, OLG has been the sole operator in Ontario able to offer this type of betting. It will all change in April, with OLG making numerous improvements to its offerings in advance of the fully regulated market going live.

Many notable sportsbook operators have already gotten a license to launch in the province or have expressed their interest in doing so, including BetMGM, 888 Holdings, theScore Bet, and PointsBet.