Canada vs. USA Men’s Olympic Hockey: Gold Medal Game Preview, Odds and Prediction
It’s winner-take-all as Team Canada faces Team USA in the men’s Olympic hockey gold medal game on Sunday morning. Puck drop is scheduled for 8:10 a.m. ET at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena.
This is one of the most heated rivalries in sports and these teams showed it at last year’s 4 Nations Face-Off. Canada and the U.S. split a pair of games in that tournament, but the Canadians won the one that mattered in the final.
Will Canada win a third straight gold medal at an Olympics with NHL participation, or can the U.S. secure double gold in hockey after the American women won a few days ago?
Team Canada is a slim -120 favourite to win, with the total set at an even 5.0. The Americans are listed as short +100 underdogs.
Don’t forget to check out Sports Interaction’s complete list of Olympic hockey game odds, Olympic hockey futures and Olympic hockey specials and props.
Canada vs. USA Men’s Olympic Hockey Betting Odds
These teams both went 3-0 in the preliminary round. Canada secured the top overall seed in the tournament because their plus-17 goal-differential beat out the U.S. at plus-11.
Team Canada’s path was challenging through the knockout round as they trailed in the third period of both the quarterfinals against Czechia and the semifinals against Finland. Canada went on to beat the Czechs 4-3 in overtime before Nathan MacKinnon scored the winning goal against Finland with just 36 seconds left in regulation.
After leading 1-0 most of the game, the Americans also needed extra time in their quarterfinal match against Sweden, but Quinn Hughes managed to salvage the day with the OT winner. It wasn’t nearly as stressful in the semifinals as Team USA crushed Slovakia 6-2.
If you’re looking for some player props, it seems like free money to take Connor McDavid to record two or more assists at +220. McDavid has recorded at least two assists in every game this tournament and his 13 total points (2G, 11A) is record in an Olympics with NHL participation.
Team Canada
There’s no bigger story surrounding Team Canada than the status of captain Sidney Crosby. It’s hard to get a handle on exactly how injured Crosby is because Canada has closed their practices, but he’s believed to be dealing with a knee injury. Crosby reportedly skated at practice on Saturday and he is officially listed as a game-time decision.
Whether Crosby is in the line up or not, the pressure is on McDavid and MacKinnon to lead the charge offensively. That’s exactly what happened in the semifinals, with McDavid setting up MacKinnon’s game-winner. You’ll likely see the pair start the gold medal game on separate lines before head coach Jon Cooper teams them up with Macklin Celebrini to form Canada’s nuclear option.
In other injury news, defenceman Josh Morrissey has officially been ruled out of the tournament after suffering a lower-body injury in the first game against Czechia. Canada has always relied on star talent and depth at these tournaments, so they should be prepared to weather the storm without Morrissey and possibly without Crosby.
Team USA
Team USA cruised through the semifinals against Slovakia, with five different goal scorers and 11 players recording a at least one point. That offence by committee has been a staple for the Americans this tournament as seven players have recorded five or more points and seven have multiple goals.
Quinn Hughes has sparked the offence from the back-end with a team-high seven points (1G, 6A), while Auston Matthews, Jack Hughes, Brady Tkachuk and Tage Thompson each have three goals. I look at Jake Guentzel as an under-the-radar X-factor for the U.S. Although Guentzel only has one goal in the tournament, he’s recorded multiple shots every game and he’s one of only two American players with at least three 40-goal NHL seasons under his belt.
The special teams matchup will be critical in this game and depending on how you look at it, you could argue either Team USA or Team Canada has the edge. While Canada’s power play (43.8 per cent) edges out the U.S. (28.6 per cent), the Americans have a huge advantage with their penalty kill, which hasn’t allowed a goal on 15 kills.
Canada vs. USA Prediction
Canada: 3, USA: 2
Best bet: Canada moneyline (-120). This will be an absolute war. Space will be limited and every inch of ice will be hard-fought to win. I’d be shocked if this isn’t a low scoring, one-goal game.