Wednesday's Best Olympic Hockey Bet
Switzerland vs. United States
The Swiss earned a 3-2 shootout victory over Belarus on Tuesday as goalkeeper Jonas Hiller denied 20-of-22 shots from the opposition.
Switzerland is in for a tough rematch versus the unbeaten United States team that defeated them 3-1 on Feb. 16 in a preliminary round game.
The American defense was sound in that contest, only allowing the Swiss to only record 15 shots against goalie Ryan Miller.
Switzerland’s only other NHL player besides Hiller, Mark Streit, was lit up a couple of times during the game’s first shift by U.S. captain Jamie Langenbrunner, who clearly wanted to send a message.
"He is going to be out there 30 minutes a game probably and you want to make it as hard on him as possible," Langenbrunner said.
The Swiss defense was not cheese-like in the first meeting between these two teams as the United States only registered 24 shots on goal, including a mere two blasts at the net during the final period of play.
Hiller and Miller will be looking to out-duel one another on Wednesday.
Pick: Under
What Bettors Need To Know: Russia vs. Canada
By ARI BAUM-COHEN
Team Canada (-150) vs. Team Russia (+110, 5.5)
Early meeting
Canada and Russia were the pre-tournament favorites and despite today’s showdown, are still the top two favorites to win gold. Fans were hoping for this showdown, just not in the quarterfinals.
Russia finished in third in the group stage by defeating Latvia, losing to upstart Slovakia in a shootout and defeating the Czech Republic Sunday to win its group.
Canada finished a disappointing sixth overall after defeating Norway, beating the Swiss in a shootout and losing to Team USA Sunday. Canada defeated Germany 8-2 in the qualification playoff Tuesday night.
Over/Under 10.6 Million
Sunday’s showdown between Canada and the United States was the most watched sports program in Canadian history, drawing 10.6 million viewers. Will that record be broken tonight?
Team Canada must deal with playing in front of fans that expect them to bring home gold.
"We always have pressure," Team Canada forward Sidney Crosby told The Sporting News. "Everyone expects to win, so that's pretty much it. There's no real beating around the bush. That's the way it is."
But Canada’s not the only team facing serious pressure to win. Hosting the Olympics in 2014, the Russians have not met expectations, falling well short of their medal goals. A gold medal in men’s hockey would erase most of the disappointment, according to Vladislav Tretiak, general manager of Team Russia.
Stars a-line
Russia’s top line of Alex Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin and Alex Semin played well in Sunday’s win over the Czechs and will likely remain intact.
"A great moment for me (and) for him (Malkin) and for our team, too," Ovechkin told NHL.com.
Russia’s second line is also dangerous, featuring sniper Ilya Kovalchuk, a revitalized Maxim Afinogenov and Pavel Datsyuk - the best two-way player in the world.
Canada may have finally found linemates for Sidney Crosby. Crosby, playing on a line with Eric Staal and Jarome Iginla, combined for three goals and four assists against Germany.
Canada’s most important goal against the Germans may have been its final one. A slumping Rick Nash, former Rocket Richard Trophy winner (most goals), scored his first goal of the tournament. Nash is now playing on a line with the Anaheim Ducks’ Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry.
"They [Nash and Getzlaf] were real dominant on the cycle so that's part of the equation," Team Canada coach Mike Babcock told reporters.
The best defense is a good offensive defenseman?
Other than Sergei Gonchar and Andrei Markov, the Russians lack star-power on the blueline. Fedor Tyutin and Anton Volchenkov are above average NHLers, Denis Grebeshkov is a minus 16 playing for the Edmonton Oilers and the rest of the defensemen are from the Kontinental Hockey League (Russia).
Team Canada was supposed to be led by veterans Scott Niedermayer, Chris Pronger and Dan Boyle. Instead, it is the younger players, Duncan Keith, Shea Weber and 20-year-old Drew Doughty leading the way.
Keith led all Canadian defensemen in ice time against Germany and Doughty was a plus 4. Weber scored on a slap shot that was so hard it went through the net.
“Keith and Doughty skate so well and they're so confident with the puck,” Babcock told reporters. “I think they've both been really good for us in all situations and we're really comfortable with them. They've become a very important pair.”
“Whether we continue to play them (versus Russia) will be match-up driven”
Between the pipes
Evgeni Nabokov will get the start for Team Russia but Ilya Bryzgalov has been just as good. Nabokov has a 2.0 goals against average and .911 save percentage in two games for the Russians.
Nabokov, who plays on the San Jose Sharks, must face an entire line from his NHL team. Canada’s most consistent line so far has been the Sharks line of Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau and sniper Dany Heatley. Could they have an edge playing against their current teammate?
Team Canada’s medal hopes begin and end with Roberto Luongo. Luongo has started against Norway and Germany and, though he has played well, he has not been tested that often.
"You need momentum-changing saves, and we're looking for (Luongo) to do that," Babcock told reporters.