I already made my predictions for the Men’s Hockey gold medal winner at the Sochi Olympics, but I’ve noticed that there aren’t many prediction articles relating to which team will win each of the three groups. Here are the odds for the group winners from Bet365.com, as well as my thoughts on which team is the smartest to bet on.
Group A Odds
- Russia 1.45
- USA 3.00
- Slovakia 11.00
- Slovenia 750.00
I don’t think the USA will win this group as they will take a little longer to adjust to the international ice surface than the Russians or the Slovaks. I also think that people are overlooking the Slovaks a little. They did finish fourth in Vancouver and still have some top end talent that can compete with the best in the world. Halak will likely be the starting goaltender and Chara will play a big part in shutting down the world class players from the other countries. I think Slovakia could surprise and at odds of 11.00 it might be smart to take a flier on them.
Group B Odds
- Canada 1.17
- Finland 4.25
- Norway 60.00
- Austria 500.00
In this group the Canadians are too big of favourites to justify taking them. Team Canada and the Finns will each be 2-0 when they meet in the final game of their group so the winner of that game will ultimately finish atop the group. The Finns have strong goaltending and always play a very strong defensive game so they have a legitimate shot at beating the Canadians in this game. I don’t like either of these bets, but if I had to choose one of the other I’d take the Finns at 4.25 because the return is too small on the Canadians.
Group C Odds
- Sweden 1.50
- Czech Republic 2.85
- Switzerland 11.00
- Latvia 200.00
In this group I like Sweden to finish 3-0 fairly easily. The Swedes will be able to quickly adjust to the international ice surface and their team from top to bottom is simply superior to either the Czechs or Swiss. The Swedes also have a strong history of performing well in the group stage of tournaments even if the games are not particularly meaningful. I also think that the Czechs are susceptible to being defeated by the Swiss which makes taking them at 2.85 very risky.
Click here to visit Bet365.com and place your bets on any of these groups. You will find the odds at the bottom of the ‘hockey’ page under ‘To Win Group’.
Tagged With : Group Winners • Olympic Ice Hockey • Winter Olympics