Finland and Sweden will decide the fate of the second final place in the under-20 World Cup.
The most interesting game of the day
Finland’s Under-20 World Ice Hockey Championship gets its due in the semi-finals when the Young Lions meet Sweden late on Saturday night.
So far, Finland’s sky in the games has been fluctuating, and Thursday’s quarter-final win over Slovakia should not be too lulled. The flow and nature of the game took on a unique path after Slovakia’s second keeper scored Alan Lendak too. When the rest of the Slovakian team was completely asleep at the beginning of the game, Finland practically got a 3-0 lead for free. At the same time, the tension hindering the game disappeared from Finland.
In terms of the game, Slovakia gained more control than it would have had in a more even match. Despite their victory, Finland lost the shots of the match 18–36.
Along with coaching question marks, the biggest concern of the Young Lions is currently the number one attack chain Benjamin Rautiainen–Konsta Helenius–Topias Hynninen game not clicking. So far, Vitja has scored only one goal in these games. For comparison, the runner-up who played well all the time Jesse Kiiskinen–Heikki Ruohonen–Jesse Nurmi has already scored six goals and collected a total of 6+6 goals.
In this match too, Finland’s biggest advantage over the opponent can be found at the goal. Although Petteri Rimpinen went three goals behind against Slovakia, continues the Kirkonnumme resident as the number one goalkeeper in the entire tournament. Rimpinen’s save percentage is 94.1 and the average number of goals conceded is 2.00.
Sweden’s number one goalkeeper Melker Thelin is clearly behind with 88.4 and 2.75. The tournament’s clearly best goalkeeper, in addition to his saves, also always gives his team self-confidence and “game reserve”.
Swedish Axel Sandin-Pellikka (4+5) is undoubtedly the best player in the tournament and for his part is contributing to the fact that Sweden’s dominance game has been in a class of its own in the tournament (36.36 percent). For comparison, Finland’s superiority percentage is only 11.75.
When the top level in Sweden is wider than in Finland anyway, the prerequisites for the success of the Young Lions are the game of the first chain falling into place and finding the strengths. If Helenius and his chains find the grain of the goal, Sweden’s favorite position will suddenly narrow.
Finland and Sweden did not meet in last year’s tournament. The balance of this season’s training matches is 2–1 in favor of Sweden (10–5 goals). In terms of the balance of power, Sweden should be regarded as a fairly large, roughly 60 percent, favorite to qualify for the next round. However, due to the improvement potential of Finland’s number one chain, there is more room for maneuver in the direction of Finland.
In terms of betting, the odds are a little too much in Sweden’s direction, and for example, the 1.86 offered for the win in the actual playing time is of little interest. The match may be low-scoring. The best bet is the 1.81 offered for less than 5.5 goals in regular time.
Finland–Sweden starts at 22:30.
Saturday’s best betting tip
Saturday’s best betting idea can be found in the Crystal Palace-Chelsea match in the Premier League.
From this game, I expect a more generous encounter than the odds setting. It took a long time for Crystal Palace to catch up with the same rhythm of play in the fall that it decided on last spring. In recent matches, however, the team’s game has started to roll clearly better. Crystal Palace has lost only one of their five previous series games.
The attacking play in particular is completely new compared to the beginning of autumn. Of course, it has also been seen somewhat in the large number of goals conceded. In terms of the over-idea in the goal bet, it’s only a good thing. In Palace’s three previous home matches, a total of 13 goals have been scored and more than the expected 10 goals have been created.
Chelsea is, by its very nature, an attacking winning team. From the picture of the game against it, you can justifiably expect lively and abundant goals.
Chelsea’s recent matches have not been particularly goal-scoring, but it is worth noting that the team has missed a huge number of scoring opportunities. In Chelsea’s four previous Premier League matches, “only” 8 goals have been scored, but the expectation has been created by 12.5 goals. If and when Chelsea continue with their own style of play, with time the expectations will surely materialize on the scoreboard as well.
I consider Palace to be a suitable opponent for goal fraud. The 1.73 offered for more than 2.75 goals is, in my estimation, a 60 percent odds. Crystal Palace–Chelsea kicks off at 5:00 p.m.
The other possible search of the Premier League is under 3.0 goals for the Southampton-Brentford match with a coefficient of 1.79. This also starts at 17:00.
There are three possible applications from the championship side. Stoke–Plymouth under 3.0 goals with a coefficient of 1.89 (starts at 2:30 p.m.), Norwich’s victory over Coventry with a coefficient of 2.54 and Sheffield U+0 against Watford with a coefficient of 1.73 are at least borderline cases. The latter two start at 17:00.
The best case in ice hockey is RoKi–KeuPa HT over 5.0 goals with a coefficient of 1.86. RoKi–KeuPa HT starts at 17:00.
Sunday’s best betting tip
Sunday’s best bet search can be found in the Premier League.
Veikkaus offers a surprisingly high 1.83 odds for Liverpool’s win by more than one goal (-1.5 handicap) against Manchester United. The teams are in the opposite mood. Liverpool last lost in September and in its three previous series games against West Ham, Leicester and Tottenham, it has scored a combined goal difference of 14-4.
Manchester United’s new manager Ruben Amorim has, in turn, had to face the simple fact that United’s material is nowhere near the top of the Premier League. There is nothing inherently wrong with gaming, and players are trying their best. The level of play is just what it is.
United have lost their last three matches to Newcastle, Wolves and Bournemouth, by 0-7 on aggregate. It’s quite reasonable to expect that it won’t be even on the home field of the Premier League’s best team for less.
Liverpool and Manchester United have such a strong traditional enmity that the home team cannot be expected to slack off. My assessment of Liverpool’s victory by more than one goal is no less than 59 percent. Liverpool–Manchester United starts at 18:30.
Games of the day: Crystal Palace-Chelsea over 2.75 goals (coefficient 1.73), Southampton-Brentford under 3.0 goals (coefficient 1.79), Norwich-Coventry 1 (coefficient 2.54), Watford-SheffU+0 2 (coefficient 1.73), RoKi–KeuPa HT over 5.0 goals (coefficient 1.86) and Liverpool-1.5–Manchester United 1 (factor 1.83).
The total balance of the day’s games: 1/1/196%
Every day Iltalehti chooses the most interesting game of the day and the best game destination of the day. You can always find them in the Betting and Ravit section.