Hockey. World Championship 2014

Analysts from the betting company Baltbet.com have provided a forecast for the match between the national teams of Russia and the USA in the 2014 Ice Hockey World Championship, which will begin on May 12, 2014, at 21:45 (MSK). Over the past year, the Russian national hockey team has had two dark dates in its calendar: on May 16, 2013, our team lost to the Americans 3:8 at the World Championship in Helsinki, and on February 19, 2014, they lost to the Finns in Sochi 1:3. Both of these defeats occurred in the quarterfinal stage, which is the very Rubicon separating many teams from potential success and a loud failure. The hockey World Championship in Minsk, where a significantly altered Russian team under the guidance of new head coach Oleg Znarok found itself in the same group as Finland and the USA, is viewed, among other things, as a chance for revenge for the last two humiliations from these hockey powers. First in line, according to the schedule, was the Land of a Thousand Lakes. In the second round of the group stage, our geographical neighbors and principled rivals were set to settle scores once again. Just before the world championship, Erkka Westerlund's team dealt the Russians another, sixth consecutive defeat in the final stage of the Eurotour. Additionally, at the start of the Minsk championship, Rinne and company sensationally lost to the Latvian national team (2:3). This means that against Znarok's "Red Machine," the white-blue team had to come out with a special mindset, as did our hockey players. In short, it was a clash of titans. The opponents engaged in a very physical match, with a large number of hard hits. Surprisingly, it did not end in a mass brawl, although from the very first seconds, the Finns provoked the Russian hockey players into penalties, particularly targeting Alexander Ovechkin. However, our captain held back and responded in a hockey manner—by scoring a goal just in the 5th minute, making the score 2:0. In general, the Russians started the match very actively, just like in the game against Switzerland, literally overwhelming the Finns with their pressure. And once again, we managed to score quickly: a minute and a half after the first face-off, Viktor Tikhonov shoved the puck into the net with authority. By the way, the SKA forward is celebrating his 26th birthday today. So Tikhonov's motivation against the Americans should be sky-high. Without recounting the entire match against the Finns, which the Russian national team won 4:2, several important moments can be noted. The coaches' choice to favor the center forward of Avangard, Sergey Kalinin, who replaced Andrei Loktionov, fully justified itself. The Omsk hawk initiated the first scoring attack for the Russians and also scored himself, making it 4:1 after a perfect pass from Zaripov. Goaltender Sergey Bobrovsky played brilliantly again, although, according to Oleg Znarok, "Yulaevets" Andrei Vasilevski will be in goal on Monday. Alexander Ovechkin scored his second goal of the tournament (again with a signature shot from medium distance). It is already evident that Ovi will show his best side at the Minsk championship, and his captaincy is quite justified. The best player of the match among the Russians was recognized as Nikolai Kulemin, who scored the decisive third goal while shorthanded with a shot from his weak side. Several times, the former Toronto forward was provoked into a fight by the Finns, but Kulemin did not fall for these provocations, just like the entire team as a whole. The coaching staff of the Russian national team quickly managed to create a very effective line consisting of Zaripov, Kalinin, and Tikhonov. Overall, it seems that any line could shine at this championship, but there is a clear first leading line of Ovechkin – Shipachyov – Plotnikov. This is important in the context of today’s match against another leader of Group B—the USA national team. Comparing the matches of the Russian national team against the Americans at last year's World Championship and the Olympics would not be entirely correct. In particular, a year ago, Paul Stastny scored four points against the Russians, and he is not in the lineup now. Moreover, even that star-spangled team, not to mention the Sochi call-up, was significantly stronger than the current "youngsters" of Peter Laviolette. The Americans may benefit from an extra day off combined with the energy-consuming match of Znarok's team against Finland. Perhaps the best physical condition will be the main trump card for the Americans. Interestingly, 40-year-old goaltender Tim Thomas and 19-year-old Ufa talent Vasilevski may face each other. At least, the Dallas goaltender played the first two matches for the Americans in the tournament, where they confidently dealt with the Belarusian national team (6:1) and achieved a comeback victory over Switzerland (3:2), although they had to come back twice during the match. As always, you can't deny the star-spangled team's character, but the Russian national team also looks very solid in this regard. Both teams have scored nine goals against their opponents in their two opening matches, but 14 players have registered points for the USA, while only 12 players have done so for our team. However, playing against the Finns is far from the same as against the Belarusians. In our opinion, the Russian national team currently has enough strength to recover by Monday evening and once again showcase bright and reliable hockey. We dare to predict a revenge for Ovechkin and company for last year's significant defeat with a three-goal difference. The final forecast for the World Championship game between the national teams of Russia and the USA from the experts of the Baltbet betting company: a victory for the Russians with a three-goal advantage.