Opening Contest Crucial For Canada Against Switzerland

May 8 2019

The absence of NHL talent has certainly made Men’s ice hockey an interesting subject during the 2018 Olympics.

The last two gold medals have gone to Canada, but the dominating country has a vastly different roster compared to their wins in 2014 and 2010. Switzerland have finished in 9th and 8th place respectively over the past two Olympics, so this is a tournament where they could shine.

※ Current Odds Date & Time: February 14th, 9:00 p.m. (EST)

Online bookmaker Top Bet unsurprisingly has Canada as the favorites at -280. We aren’t sure of Canada or Switzerland’s fire power, which makes the O/U of 5 an interesting bet as well.

Lacking current NHL talent, both countries are filled with former NHLers. Canada is captained by Chris Kelly, who has played over 800 games at the top level. Canada also has the likes of Ben Scrivens, Rene Bourque, Andrew Ebbett, Derek Roy and Mason Raymond. While these names may not jump out at you, all have spent significant time in the NHL.

Switzerland netminder Jonas Hiller will be a huge factor for the Swiss in this tournament. Hiller is a former Anaheim Ducks netminder, who has All-Star appearances and just over 400 NHL games under his belt. Raphael Diaz is another former NHLer representing Switzerland, as he has recorded 201 career NHL games.

Group A consists of Canada, Switzerland, Czech Republic and South Korea. While South Korea may be a long shot to win the group, the other three mentioned countries will certainly be battling for top spot.

Clearly, the lack of NHL players hurt every country at the Olympics in this sport, but it also creates an interesting tournament. Super powers like Canada, USA and Sweden may have to step aside and let a lesser-known hockey country take over this tournament.