World Championship Ice Hockey Group Stage, Thursday, 16.05.2024
It may not have been quite the “Miracle on Ice” of 1980, but in the Alpine republic the overtime forced by the ÖEHV selection against the defending champions is being celebrated effusively in the media – and rightly so!
The Maple Leafs had problems maintaining the tension over 60 minutes and, according to my Canada Norway tip, could now experience a déjà vu on the DO that takes them back almost exactly one year …
Back then, the Norwegian team managed to cause the biggest preliminary round surprise of the 2023 World Cup
The devil take me! The Austrians actually force the Canadians into overtime after an amazing comeback at 6:6!
And even though they lost the game there after just 15 seconds, nobody can take away their unexpected point win and the joy of having defied the reigning world champions.
My question to the defending champions, on the other hand, is: Quo Vadis Canada? We may be used to weak preliminary rounds with a significant improvement in the knockout phase from the Maple Leafs, but the number of goals conceded is taking on worrying proportions.
The truth is that the Canadians were already disappointing in their opening game against Great Britain (4:2).
Conceding two goals to an up-and-coming team that even took the goalie out towards the end to create overtime because it sensed a real chance to equalize cannot be the Canadians’ claim.
However, the subsequent 5:1 victory over Denmark initially ironed out any doubts that had arisen. But as the embarrassing 7-6 overtime win against Austria has now finally shown, CAN definitely needs to take action.
The Canadians are like a golem made up of outstanding individual players, but they simply don’t really harmonize as a team. The drop in performance whenever their first line is on the bench is worrying
Canada may be able to pin their opponents back and force them to make mistakes during periods of pressure, but every now and then there are downswings in which their opponents can stalk them on the scoreboard.
Unlike the Swedes in this tournament, for example, the Maple Leafs are not capable of 60 minutes of high-performance ice hockey – and this is precisely what you need to take into account when making a Canada Norway betting tip.
Because of several reasons, I sense a real chance for the Norwegians here, which could also help you to make some successful and profitable ice hockey bets with verified providers such as Happybet.
As we all know, cross-comparisons are a limp thing, but if Canada has already had difficulties against Great Britain and Austria, then Norway should pose an even greater challenge for the shaky defense of the Maple Leafs.
And don’t be put off by NOR’s record at this World Championship (1 win, 3 defeats).
The Scandinavians had to face the top teams from Switzerland (2:5), the Czech Republic (3:6) and Finland (1:4) right at the start, before they finally managed a 2:0 victory over Denmark on the last day of the competition and thus a beatable opponent.
Incidentally, not only did the Norwegians score at least one goal against all these top nations, but the game against the Czechs was about to go into overtime before the hosts managed to score two more empty-netters at the end.
The result therefore belies the actual course of the game
Am I trying to convince you to bet on the Norwegians to win? What at first sounds like betting hara-kiri is actually a bet for not-so-fearless sports betting fans.
The NOR win odds are currently 21.00 on the Crazybuzzer app – so far, so good.
Watch out: However, this insight becomes really interesting when we realize that the Norwegians were already able to defeat the Maple Leafs 3:2 in the group stage at last year’s World Championship – albeit only in a nerve-wracking penalty shootout.
But of course you don’t have to take a big risk, you can also use handicap bets instead, which also promise great odds.
Since Canada have only scored once in their last 33 World Cup games, I would recommend that you back the Norwegians to score at least two goals.
Because even if the Maple Leafs take the lead, their inevitable downturns – as they did against Austria – will allow Norway to close the gap on the scoreboard.
Another excellent offer: Both teams will score at least two goals from bookmaker Betano, who currently promise odds of around 2.82.
Conclusion: The Canadians were superior to the Austrians, but completely lost the thread in the final period.
In my opinion, they lacked the will to really want to win the game and not just manage it.
This attitude will be the Canadians’ undoing at the latest in the phase where a highly motivated team like Sweden awaits them.
But even the group stage could still hold one or two unpleasant surprises for the Maple Leafs …
My Canada Norway tip plays it safe: NOR wins with HC +4.5.
