Olympic Hockey Betting Previews – Czech Republic vs Latvia

February 19, 2010 in Breaking News, Czech Republic, Dark Horses, Hot Picks & Tips, Lativa by john

Latvians playing for – but unlikely to find – respect

ONE of the recurring themes of the preliminary round in the 2010 Men’s Olympic hockey tournament is lop-sided matches. This one, is unfortunately can’t be said to be much different.

The Czechs, coming off a third place finish in Torino in 2006, are the heavy favorites in this game with bookmakers making their odds at -320.

Sure the Czechs are getting on in years, and the Latvians probably have good chemistry with 15 of their roster playing for Dynamo Riga in the KHL, but just because a little league team has played together for years doesn’t mean their going to beat the Yankees.

The Latvians, to their credit, have two NHLers while the Czechs have an abundance of talent, with both of their top two lines being made up of top liners on their respective NHL teams. Jagr may be 36, but he’s won Stanley Cups and was part of the Czech team that won gold in Nagano in 1998.

He channeled Jagr of old against the Slovaks on Wednesday, lighting them up for the winning goal in the second period and assisting on the clincher in the third. This old dog will be looking to teach the young Latvians some new tricks as they lace them up against a living legend.

The Latvians were unable to cope with Russia in their 8-2 drubbing

Another looming question in this game will be what will be left of the Latvian’s spirits after their opening game against the Russians. The 8-2 pounding that Latvia took at the hands of Ovi and friends was a demoralizing opener, so the team’s resiliency will certainly come into play here.

Unless they plan on pulling off a miracle victory against the Americans, advancing is out of the question for the Latvians. Respectability is all that’s on the line for them, and it may be hard to come by. They did pot 2 tallys against the world’s second ranked hockey team, but the wide-open nature of the Russian attack practically spots the opposition a couple each game in favor of huge scoring totals at the other end of the ice.

In the end, The Czech attach will overwhelm the plucky Latvians and pay off the value-bettors who took the reasonable payoffs being offered at the sites. Pick up some profits here are look to roll it into bigger plays down the road.

The Czech Republic and Latvia will face off at 4.30pm in Canada Hockey Place on Friday, February 19. If you think you can make some cash by predicting the winner, click here.