Compare
PuckAPI vs the NHL's public web API
The NHL's web API is free but undocumented, with no published terms or rate limits and no odds. PuckAPI is documented, adds odds, xG and GSAX, and speaks MCP.
Comparison facts checked October 14, 2026. PuckAPI data last refreshed 2026-11-10 20:05 UTC, newest data through 2026-11-10. Changelog
The NHL's own web API (api-web.nhle.com) is free and needs no key, but it has no official documentation, no published terms of use and no published rate limits, and its only odds are the current lines from one betting partner, with no history. PuckAPI is a documented hockey API with odds from eight sportsbooks on every game in 2025-26 and more than 60 on about 300 of them, computed metrics like expected goals and GSAX, and an MCP server for AI assistants.
Most of what the NHL serves is the raw material. PuckAPI is that material cleaned, joined to odds, and put behind a stable set of tools, which is the part that takes weeks to build yourself.
Side by side
| PuckAPI | the NHL's public web API | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | 500 free credits a month, then from $19/mo | Free, no key |
| Documentation | Every tool documented with a live example | None official; community reverse-engineered references |
| Terms and rate limits | Published: 60 requests/min, 10 below 100 credits | No published terms or limits |
| Stability | A fixed tool list, catalogued at /v1/tools | Endpoints have moved before (statsapi was retired for api-web) |
| Betting odds | Moneyline, puck line and totals by sportsbook for every game back to 2019-20 | Current odds from one betting partner; no history seen |
| Computed metrics | Expected goals, GSAX, Corsi and Fenwick returned directly | Raw events; you compute them |
| Play-by-play | Every event since 2010-11, coordinates normalised | Available per game, raw |
| AI assistants | MCP server: one URL in Claude, Cursor or any MCP client | None |
Use the NHL's public web API instead if
- You only need today's scores and standings and would rather pay nothing than have a documented contract.
- You need box scores from before 2010-11; the NHL's own feed goes further back than our play-by-play.
Questions
Is there an official NHL API?
The NHL runs a public web API that its own site uses, but it publishes no documentation or terms for it. Everything known about it comes from developers reverse-engineering it.
Does the NHL API have betting odds?
Only current lines from one betting partner, with no history that we found. PuckAPI adds moneyline, puck line and totals from US sportsbooks for every game back to 2019-20, 8 books a game since 2024-25, and more than 60 books on about 300 games in 2025-26.
Can I get expected goals from the NHL API?
Not directly; it returns raw shot events. PuckAPI returns expected goals and GSAX already computed, calibrated within each season.
Sources
Checked October 14, 2026.
See the data
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