The first day of the men’s hockey tournament for Groups B and C went pretty much as planned with Canada, Russia, Finland and Team USA all winning their games against lesser opponents. As for my spread picks from yesterday I went 2-2.
Olympics record: 2-2 for +0.17 units.
Latvia vs Czech Republic
The Czech Republic came on hard in the second half of their game against a very strong Swedish team. Yes, the Latvians surprised us a bit by being able to hang with Switzerland, but the Czechs have much more fire power up front and they will be eager to show they are a threat in this tournament by playing hard for a full game rather than just the second half like they did against the Swedes.
Play: Czech Republic (-2.5) 2.00 (5Dimes)
Switzerland vs Sweden
Sweden let their foot off the pedal against the Czech Republic, but I still feel they are going to win the gold medal. The Swedes beat Switzerland in the finals of the 2013 World Championships by a score of 5-1. I expect a similar type of game. The Swedes can score on command and should be able to win by at least 2 against the Swiss. Hiller is a wild card here, but the Swedes should get enough chances to put in a few goals on him.
Play: Sweden (-1.5) 1.645 (5Dimes)
Canada vs Austria
The Canadians weren’t able to generate a ton of offense against the Norwegians today, but I expect that to change tomorrow. It took Team Canada a while to score their first goal in the game, but in the second half they seemed to start working together better and adjusting to the large ice. Team Austria should be an easier challenge than Norway so I expect Canada to cover the spread in this one. Finland beat Austria 8-4 today, so it shows they are suspect on defense. Team Canada should be able to score a similar number while giving up only 1 or 2.
Play: Canada (-4.5) 1.667 (5Dimes)
Norway vs Finland
Finland did as I expected today and came out with something to prove against the Austrians with an 8-4 win. I’m surprised they allowed so many goals, but they can adjust against the Norwegians. Norway showed they are a decent team with a valiant effort against the Canadians today, but I still think they are on a far lower level than the Finns. Finland should be able to cover the 2.5 goal spread as they showed they have the fire power to put up goals in this tournament.
Play: Finland (-2.5) 1.87 (5Dimes)
Tagged with: Austria • Canada • Czech Republic • Finland • Latvia • Norway • Sweden • Switzerland