Olympic Men, Quarterfinals on Wednesday, 18.02.2026, 18:10
Now it’s almost about the medals! And this great game would be at least “bronze-worthy” in any case.
In my Finland Switzerland prediction, I decided on the odds of about 2.45 available on every good sports betting app. Because that’s what you’ll get if my pick victory Finland with HC -1 should actually come true!
In any case, the chances are good. Because the opening defeat against Slovakia was exactly the shot across the bow that this NHL dream team needed.
Switzerland, on the other hand, was only in action yesterday and without NHL superstar Kevin Fiala, it must be treated as a clear underdog, especially in such a big match.
The Finns started their Italian Olympic adventure with the biggest surprise at this tournament so far – a 4-1 defeat to Slovakia, which was also necessary!
This almost complete NHL roster quickly realized that there is simply not much time to settle in! And already afterwards first-class performances were shown against Sweden (4:1) and especially Italy (11:0).
My basic conviction is that – if the Scandinavians build on these performances – it would even be conceivable to win Finland with HC -2.5 in the quarter-finals. Because having regenerated a day longer than Switzerland also makes a lot of difference in my eyes.
Mikael Granlund to score, meanwhile, is my preferred player bet in this quarter-final.
The Finns should score at least three to six goals – and hardly any of you should be surprised if the double goalscorer from the Italy game scores again!
Against a somewhat thinly staffed third and fourth line of Switzerland, the man from the Anaheim Ducks could get plenty of ice time to cause a lot of disorder in front of goalie Genoni’s goal.
What I also like is the bet 1st period: Finland win. The Scandinavians will use their freshness advantages to want to make their mark right at the start of the game.
They have the necessary quality for a dream start anyway with Tolvanen, Ritz and Rantanen in the front row. In addition, they were already 3-0 ahead against Italy at the first period break.
Of course, the Swiss are cut from a different cloth than the hosts in terms of personnel. But if this squad interspersed with NHL superstars sets its sights on it – and it looks like it will – an early breakthrough within a few minutes is absolutely conceivable.
The fact that Switzerland has not lost any of the last seven direct duels within regular time is something I acknowledge with a smile.
This is because most of these are matches at “smaller tournaments” such as the Beijer Hockey Games or the Czech Hockey Games.
The significance of this record is therefore zero with regard to the quarterfinals, as the Finns have not fielded so much NHL potential at once against their ice comrades for many years!
Conclusion: Before the tournament started, I would have claimed that the Finns would prevail by a narrow margin – but now my Finland Switzerland prediction is even more optimistic in this respect!
Because Switzerland are missing Kevin Fiala, while yesterday’s performance against Italy brought additional strain that could have devastating consequences against such a motivated opponent.
Finland also gained a lot of confidence in the 11-0 win on the last day of the preliminary round – especially the double goalscorers Kakko and Granlund – which is why I ultimately think that the 2022 Olympic champions will emerge victorious from this game.
