Manuel Chávez
Dailysports's expert
Finland
Slovenia
On May 15, Finland and Slovenia will face off at the Ice Hockey World Championship. Here’s my well-reasoned prediction for this clash.
Finland
At major hockey tournaments, the Finns are often seen as dark horses—when their game clicks, stopping this team becomes a real challenge. So far, the "Suomi" have been slow off the mark, edging Austria by just 2-1 and only managing to beat France in overtime, 4-3.
In their most recent game, Finland faced a strong Swedish side and fell 1-2. The Swedes dominated much of the play, so the Finns were fortunate not to lose by a wider margin. The team is expected to make it out of the group, but contending for the title will be a real uphill battle.
Slovenia
Slovenia enter this tournament with more modest ambitions; advancing from the group stage is out of reach, so their main goal is to avoid finishing last and secure their spot in the division. So far, the team hasn’t picked up a single point and sits at the bottom of their group standings.
Slovenia opened with a 0-4 defeat to powerhouse Canada, conceding three of those goals while shorthanded. Next, they lost to Slovakia 1-3, never really threatening to take points. Their last outing saw them fall 2-5 to Latvia, with the game decided in the second period as both teams combined for six goals. Even a single victory could be enough for Slovenia to stay in the elite division.
Match facts
- Finland has conceded in every game, averaging just over two goals scored per match.
- Slovenia is allowing an average of four goals per game.
- The odds for the upcoming matchup: Finland win – 1.09, draw – 10.5, Slovenia win – 20.
H2H
The stats show the teams have met at least four times, with Finland winning on every occasion. The last meeting was way back in 2017, so those results don’t carry much weight now.
Prediction
The odds leave no doubt—bookmakers are backing Finland, largely due to Slovenia’s weaknesses. The Scandinavians should have clear control, but the underdogs might just avoid a blowout. I’m taking a risk here and backing Slovenia with a +3.5 goal handicap.
