On Saturday, 25 May, Canada and Switzerland meet in the semi-finals of the World Ice Hockey Championship. A victory will enable them to reach the final.
Canada’s national ice hockey team
The Canadians are once again favourites for the World Championship. Among their advantages are a large number of pucks and a star-studded roster that can help them win. Goaltender Jordan Binnington has been quite successful so far, with a .870 save percentage in six games. In 57 games for the St. Louis Blues this season, he has posted a solid .913 save percentage. He can also play with confidence against the Swiss.
Canada’s winning streak at this stage of the tournament also includes a 3-2 shootout victory over Switzerland. Binnington saved 20 of 22 shots in that game. All three of Team Canada’s goals were scored with the man advantage, while the Swiss also scored a power play goal.
The Canadians are powerful offensively. It is worth taking into account their highest score in the tournament – 4.75 goals per game. The team especially showed a successful game against Slovakia.
Swiss national ice hockey team
The Swiss national team has several stars who can completely change the course of the game. Defenceman Roman Josi may be the best player of the tournament.
Centre Nico Guicheer and winger Kevin Fiala also play for the Ice Friends (Eisgenossen in German), and together they have scored 12 goals and provided 10 assists. Goaltender Leonardo Genoni is ranked third in the world with a save percentage of 0.926. Defeating Switzerland will not be a cakewalk.
Canada – Switzerland prediction
The Canadians are still the obvious favourites, despite the fact that the Swiss are capable of causing a lot of trouble for their opponents. André Turinha’s team, especially, can show a great game in attack.
Canada to win in regular time at 1.83
It will be recalled that Sweden will play the Czech Republic in the other semi-final of the World Championship of Hockey.
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