Tip: The Scandinavian neighbors clash!

Tomorrow, I'm setting my sights on a seemingly uninteresting clash between Denmark and Norway, but in fact, it will have a major impact on both countries' continued chances!

SHL-focused squad stood up well

Denmark began the championship by outmaneuvering Austria without much trouble, eventually taking a comfortable 5-1 victory. In the following game, they ran into Canada, where it was the reverse, a 5-1 loss. I personally bet on Denmark +3.5 and was frustratingly robbed of the win when Denmark, with two minutes left on the clock, conceded the 4-1 and 5-1 goals. However, Denmark stood up fairly well against the NHL team from Canada, where Bedard continued to show why he is already a world star despite his young age. In the second period, it was Denmark leading the game, but when they failed to capitalize on any of their power plays, it became too difficult to keep Canada at bay, who won fairly.

Denmark brings a lot of SHL experience to this championship. Among others, we find Nick Olesen, Patrick Russell, Oscar Fisker Molgaard, Joachim Blichfeld, Mikkel Aagaard, Matias Lassen, and SHL-goalie Frederik Dichow. Modo's new acquisition from North America, Alexander True, has looked lively even though he hasn't scored any points yet. Denmark is simply a capable hockey team.

Norway in a tough spot

Norway has started with a very tough schedule and has not been expected to earn points. They began with a 5-2 loss to Switzerland followed by a 6-3 loss to the host nation, the Czech Republic. Two difficult games where Norway was the clear underdog.

Today (May 13th), Norway plays against Finland, a game where they are also not expected to have much chance of earning points. Tomorrow's game (May 14th) against Denmark is the first game where the team could realistically expect to earn points. But it will be tough facing a solid Danish team right after playing a game against Finland, which also plays physically.

Betting tips and conclusion

Ahead of the tournament, Austria and Norway were ranked quite similarly by the betting companies. When Denmark faced Austria a few days ago, the closing odds on the Danes were around -125. Now as they meet Norway, coming off a game and facing a rested Danish team with more quality in the squad, I believe Denmark will come out on top. For Denmark, this match is also very important in the battle to oust one of the higher-ranked teams from a playoff spot.

Denmark FT @ +105 on bet365