Friday's Olympic Hockey
By Judd Hall
We saw a tighter set of games for the most part on the second day of the men’s hockey tournament. Yet all three favorites came away with a victory, but failed to cover the puck line. Groups B and C have the stage on Friday, so let’s see what they have in store for us.
Belarus vs. Sweden – 3:00 p.m. EST
Belarus may have lost 5-1 against Finland on Wednesday, but they showed some promise. The defense wasn’t nearly as bad as the 45 shots on goal for the Finns would indicate. What was bad was the fact that the White Russians fired 12 only shots at Miikka Kiprusoff. And only five of those attempts would qualify as legitimate SOG.
Sweden didn’t look like they were quite ready for primetime against the Germans in its 2-0 win. The Swedes registered their first SOG midway through the first and held only a 25-21 advantage in that category for the game. Henrik Lundqvist had a great outing in stopping all 21 shots Germany threw his way.
Now there is a part of me that wants to believe that Belarus has a chance in this contest. But Sweden’s attack appeared to be stretching its legs in its Olympic opener. The puck line is set at 3 ½, which is reasonable given the talent on hand for the Swedes.
Fearless Selection: Sweden on the puck line (- 3 ½, +100)
Czech Republic vs. Latvia – 7:30 p.m. EST
I know the Czech Republic has the talent to compete for a medal, but they were making some dumb mistakes on the ice against Slovakia. What was the most inexcusable of the 3-1 win for the Czechs? A too many men on the ice penalty they took midway in the second period. Slovakia didn’t score on that advantage, but still not a good penalty to take at all. I would actually go as far to say that the Czech Republic won this tilt due to the fact that the Slovaks were on the penalty kill seven times in this game, effectively ruining any offensive possibilities.
Latvia never had a chance against the Russians on opening night of the tourney. Russia lit the lamp three times on 19 shots in the opening period and never looked back in an 8-2 rout. There isn’t too much in the way of being positive for the Latvians as they took fewer shots per period as the game progressed. But you can say that they did get their two goals on just five shots in the third against Russia.
That Latvian beatdown session will continue in this game as they just don’t have anything to combat the talent of the Czech Republic.
Fearless Selection: Czech Republic on the puck line (-3, -110)
Finland vs. Germany – 11:55 p.m. EST
Finland doesn’t have too much to complain about in its win against Belarus to open group play. Olli Jokinen came away with a goal, while Teemu Selanne picked up an assist to tie for the all-time points lead in Olympic history (36). Not a bad start considering you got a good duel with Belarus.
On the surface, Germany had a close defeat to the Swedes. Before fans of Deutschland get all excited, they must realize that Sweden appeared to be more working on its chemistry than anything. Besides, this team were shorthanded five times in the final 37 minutes against the Swedes. They do that against Finland and they’ll get the taste knocked out of their mouths.
Fearless Selection: Finland on the puck line (-2 ½, -115)
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Friday's Olympic Hockey Picks
Belarus vs. Sweden
For those familiar with Olympic hockey, this matchup brings back memories - and the fondness of those depends on where you come from.
In 2002 in Salt Lake City, Belarus stunned Sweden 4-3 in the quarterfinals after the winning shot from mid-ice bounced off goalie Tommy Salo’s head and trickled in. Sweden was looking like the strong gold medal favorite at the time and the loss still cuts deep in the hockey-mad nation.
So if the Swedes have a chance to run up the score, expect them to.
That might be easier said than done though after they escaped with a 2-0 win over Germany where the far less talented Germans were able to limit their offensive firepower.
Sweden managed just 25 shots and scored two scrappy goals by Mattius Ohlund and Loui Eriksson and are thankful to have that contest behind them.
They hope to shake off the rust against Belarus, but they need a quicker start in order to cover the spread. They weren’t able to muster a shot on net against the Germans until halfway through the first period.
Pick: Under
Finland vs. Germany
Jarkko Ruutu tried to coyly scoop up the puck and put it into his glove after his first Olympic goal on Wednesday against Belarus. But it’s tough to get away with anything on most hockey teams.
Ruutu was chirped by his teammates when he got back to the bench and he had no choice but to force a grin. After all, his goal made it 5-1 in the third period in a game the Fins dominated.
But it says something about this team – they seem to be having fun.
As the pressure mounts on the other favorites like Canada, Russia, Sweden, the Czechs and the US, Finland has managed to fly somewhat under the radar and it looks like they're relishing it.
The pressure never ceased on Belarus as 12 different players picked up points in a game where the Fins won the battle of shots 45-12. They easily covered the spread of 2.5 and 3.5 goals (depending on when you placed your bet) even though the score might not suggest it was a complete blowout.
Germany is a much tougher opponent with seven players on their squad on NHL rosters, but the Fins seem to have started this tournament with solid chemistry along with medals in each of the past three Olympics.
They are looking dangerous early on and should be a solid spread bet early on.
Pick: Finland