At the Ice Hockey World Championship, the most exciting matches have arrived. The quarterfinals passed without major surprises. The Swedish national team was tipped as favorites even before the tournament began, given the influx of NHL players joining the squad. Sweden did not drop a single point in the group stage, convincingly defeating all three other quarterfinal participants. They routed Germany and Slovakia by identical 6-1 scores. Their toughest game came against another favorite, the United States. The teams met at the very start, and Tre Kronor managed a 5-2 victory. Results against underdogs may have seemed less convincing, but head coach Sam Hallam’s team was not playing at full strength. One concern was that Sweden conceded goals in every match, which nearly backfired in the quarterfinal against Finland. For two periods, the Swedes dominated, outshooting Finland’s Emil Larmi 24-8. The deadlock was broken five minutes before the final buzzer. However, Finland seized the initiative, pulled their goalie, and equalized. In overtime, a penalty on Konsta Helenius allowed Joel Eriksson Ek to deflect Viktor Hedman’s shot into the net.
The Czech Republic is competing on home ice and is determined to win the tournament. The packed Prague arena provides fervent support at every match. Some experts had predicted a crisis for the World Championship, but it did not materialize. On the contrary, games have been fiercely contested, and attendance has set an all-time record. In the group stage, the hosts performed reasonably well. They had no trouble against teams finishing fifth to eighth, but against stronger opponents, everything was decided in extra time or shootouts. On the first day, they played to a 0-0 draw after 65 minutes against Finland and won in a shootout. Then came a shootout loss to Switzerland. On the final day of the group stage, the Czechs lost in overtime to Canada. But that game featured a different Czech lineup. After their NHL clubs were eliminated in the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Martin Nečas (Carolina Hurricanes), David Pastrňák, and Pavel Zacha (Boston Bruins) immediately flew to Prague. This reinforcement leveled the playing field, and in the quarterfinal against the United States, the chances were considered 50-50. Ultimately, a single goal decided the game. David Špaček’s shot hit a defender’s stick, deflected to Pavel Zacha in the slot, and slowly rolled into the net.
Sweden remains the favorite, but not overwhelmingly so. Bookmaker odds:
– Sweden victory: from 2.14 (BetBoom) to 2.24 (Betsiti)
– Czech Republic victory: from 2.85 (Betsiti) to 2.97 (BetBoom)
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Published by: Maxim Sidorov
Source: Match Center
Tags: Sweden national ice hockey team, Czech Republic national ice hockey team, Ice Hockey World Championship, Sports betting, Hockey betting
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