betprepare.com

The Finns were far from brilliant in the group phase but in the end they played well enough. They beat the Russians and they secured the second spot that was later confirmed by the draw against Switzerland. One should mention that their coach Kivi rotated the goalies in order for Saros to be fully ready for the quarter-finals. Also, their important players Lekhonen and Ristolainen have missed the last two games due to injury/illness but they should be ready to play today. They Czechs have many fluctuations in their game and have come here with a relatively young team. For instance, the beat Canada and were later beaten by a poor German team. To reach the semi-finals they will need to play like they did against Canada and hope their opponents have a day off. I think that's not gonna happen today. In addition, the Czechs are missing their defender Marcel due to suspension which is an additional handicap. Details

The Americans are physically superior as a team, and have been together for long, making them a well tuned machine. They seemed superior up to their duel with Canada, but the somewhat unlucky loss to Canada was then followed by a pretty difficult draw. However, the confidence they radiate on the ice and their comments that they don't care who they're up against still put them forward as favorites. The Russians had a great start in this competition vs weaker teams, but then completely fumbled vs even slightly better teams (Finland, Sweden). The Russian coaches have been saying in the media that they see their national team with a 20% chance to win at best, as they see the Americans as a much better, more responsible and tuned in team. They have a lot of criticism for their players, but truth be told, they have not been disproving the criticism so far. I believe that USA have at least a 60% chance of winning within regular time, which gives value to these odds. Details

Today's game will be anything but attractive. A game of North American teams should offer the game with lots of contacts and pushing. The somewhat more free-flowing Canadians are an older team that played last night and won't be forcing a faster-paced game. The Americans are still not doing their best on the wide ice and I don't believe they will risk too much. All group games aside, this is when the real stuff begins. The stakes are high and the motivation was never a question in the games between Canadian and American teams. Rochester usually go under this margin in AHL, that is, they've gone under in 8 out of last 10 games. The Canadians went over against Vitkovice and were much more careful in the second round against Davos so there were only 3 goals until the last 3 minutes (5 goals in total). Rochester got their only over against CSKA with a goal in the last second. Details

Zug's board has officially said goodbye to the play-offs. They've announced it on their official website and said that they will spend the rest of the season creating a team for the next season and avoiding relegation. The latter goal will have to wait for the play-offs while they can start with the first one today. Lugano don't lack any quality or motivation. I believe that in this situation, the home team lead by coach Fischer will be more successful. Details

The home team need the points and Rappi have eight defeats in a row. In their last 12 head-to-heads in this arena, Servette have 10 wins. In the last 3 games here, there were 3 convincing wins with a goal difference of 18-5. The Geneva team could use the break as some of their players have recovered and they even brought a reinforcement. Rappi have been prone to falling apart lately and if things go the wrong way I wouldn't be surprised if they had a new disaster. Details

Three defeats in the last four games in spite, Fribourg are still the best team in the league (next to Zurich), and one of the favorites for winning the title. They've had some problems with absent players and less choices in the roster, but I think the approach was the biggest problem. According to the media, coach Kossmann was not mincing words with his players and I therefore expect a reaction. Zug are not looking good. They are losing on a regular basis lately, and the 11 goals conceded in the last two games only confirm things are not working out as they should. True, their first choice goalie Kilpelaininen was out (he'll be back today), but it's questionable whether he would have made a difference. He's not doing particularly well, and we have to see if he's up to the challenge today after suffering a concussion. Fribourg have to try and get the best possible position ahead of the play off, while Zug aren't fighting for position eight anymore. This game was a derby match the previous seasons, but the teams are now 22 points apart. Details

Lausanne are fighting, but I think that is where they will stay, only fighting. This team has a very humble offensive potential, and are living off their defense. They rarely score more than 2 goals, and in hockey it is hard to go places that way. Lugano, on the other hand, are on the upswing. They have not been defeated in regular time in their last seven away games (five wins). Coach Fischer has practically no injury trouble, and has an excellent foreign rotation. The only advantage I'd give to Lausanne is the goalie position. Huet has been doing great on the goal all season long, while Fischer is rotating two goalies. However, that is not enough of an advantage to nullify all the other advantages Lugano have. This is the only reason why I'm going for the "win no draw" outcome, as the home team do have a slight advantage should it come to penalty shoot-outs. Details

Zurich are a much better team than Ambri. All credit to the guests for what they've accomplished so far but they are not a team that can remain consistent for long. When they get a few games within a shorter period of time, their performances will drop. They were supposed to suffer a convincing win against Davos but they used many defensive weaknesses of their opponent. Zurich don't have such weaknesses and I am pretty sure they will go on with their path of victory. The visitors have lost their first-choice goalieSchaefer to injury and even though their second goalie is solid, it's still a certain handicap. Ambri are known to fall apart when things go bad so I will play this card once again. About a month ago, Zurich beat them here by 4-1. Details

Zadar are an extremely defensive team. Considering the yesterday's tie between Osijek and Dragovoljac, I think the most important thing for them here will be not to lose. If they score first, Milin is a master of destruction, and will definitely set up a strong wall in front of his goal. If they concede the goal first, they don't have the offensive potential to put the pressure on the opponent and turn over the result. The same thing, almost, goes for the guests. Besides, they played the Cup this week, and have another cup game against Zadar again in a few days, so the fatigue will show. There might be rain in Zadar, and the wind is forecasted, which will make the game even harder. The cream on top comes from the list of the games they played against each other. In the last five seasons, and 11 games, only one match had over 2,5 goals. Pamic has been Istra's coach the whole time, while the coaching philosophy hasn't changed for over a decade in Zadar, regardless of who's leading the team. Details

Lugano are a better team than Biel. Both teams have a run of wins, but the home team have left a much better impression. Their new forward Pettersson has fit in the team nicely, and after the number of injured players has decreased Lugano are doing good. Biel used Bern's poor form and Servette's fatigue to get two big wins. I am confident their run ends here. Up front they rely on Ahren Spylo who is not such a great player as his stats from last three games would suggest. Home team, individual quality, squad depth...everything speaks in favour of Lugano. It is true that Biel have won both their head-to-heads this seaosn, but the today's hosts were without some 10 players then and had many problems converting their chances. Today they have two excellent forwards - Micfliker and Pettersson and I expect them to make a difference. The first one has 14 points in 14 games, the other has 6 points in 3 games. Details

To begin with, Fribourg have 12 points more than Servette. The home team have 5 wins in regular time in 13 home games, Fribourg have 3 defeats in 12 away games. A few days ago, Fribourg had settled the game by leading 3-0 before going into the final 20 minutes. They relaxed and Servette used this to stage a miraculous comeback. What's important is that forwards Almond (top scorer) and Picard played a huge role in this comeback. The first scored a goal and had two assists, the second scored 2 goals and had an assist. They are not here today like the reliable defender Kamerzin. It is a huge handicap for Servette and I think it changes the distribution of power on the ice. I was thinking whether to go for home team scoring under 2.5 or win no draw, but Fribourg's recent defensive lapses have talked me out of it. They scored 5-6 goals on several occasions and they concede 2-3 without any worry. I would not recommend the final outcome as the home goalie is very good and I wouldn't like to gamble with these 5 minutes. I see Fribourg's advantage in those 60 minutes and not the 5 minute lottery or the penalty shootout. Details

Considering the game has no competitive tension, I expect it to go in an exhibition tone from both teams with lots of goals. The Argentinian coach announced a completely new back line which should result in a certain insecurity at the back, while the attacking names are Europe's top tier players. A few days ago, Argentina played 0-0 against a tough Ecuadorian team and they would surely hate to be left goalless once again. And Bosnia and Herzegovina are not a team that would park the bus against them. Especially since they do not have the team for it, and especially since this game does not mean much in term of competition. Džeko and co. will want to show what they've got in front of the numerous fans, but I think they can do that only by attacking. Bosnia have been going into over, against all teams that play open football. They struggle against the bunker, but that is certainly not the way Argentina will play. They've gone over in 5 of their last 6 games, Bosnia in 6 out of last 8. Details

Moldova and Lithuania belong to the group of modest European teams and each detail can be important in games between them. The Moldavians certainly have the motivation since their coach is trying to ensure a new contract which is expiring soon. A win would put him one step closer to the goal, and one should expect him to go for the result. If we disregard the away defeat against England, Moldova have a run of good results, especially the convincing win Montenegro. Truth be told, the Montenegrins weren't too motivated but neither will Lithuania be. They are coming very weakened. They are missing lots of players who would compete for the first squad. And when Lithuania are missing 5-6 players it is not exactly like when Brazil miss 5-6 and then even better players jump in. The Lithuanian subs are young and inexperienced player whom I don't trust too much. They've only beaten Lichtenstein in their last 12 away games (a year ago) and they currently have run of 3 defeats (Latvia, Luxembourg, Albania). Perhaps they may grind a draw, but they won't win. Details

I can't overlook the fact that Lausanne have 18 out of 20 unders on the 5,5 goals margin, and that Zurich are a tough team by default, mostly thinking about the defense. Add to that the fact that the guests are without two of their important forwards in the rotation, and that the only aggravating circumstance is the first goalie Flueler's absence. But, his substitute Nyfeller made two shotouts in his three performances so far, so that's a sign that he's not only an extra on the goal. Zurich went to over in the last game, but they only scored 3 goals until the 58th minute. Their first match ended 3-1 for Zurich (two goals in the first seven minutes), and the tough Zurich completely dominated the game. Details

Even though Davos won a point more so far, I think Fribourg are a better team. If they didn't have those two unnecessary blunders against weaker teams, they'd definitely be first by now. Bykov's return makes them almost complete, and three away wins against strong teams confirm their good form. I expect their run to continue today, even more so because Davos come really weakened. Noronen is still not a constant on the goal, and I think he's not as good as the injured Genoni. Defenseman Kostinen is troubled with injuries, and he'll almost definitely miss the duel (5 goals and 3 assists), and the convincingly best forward and scorer Paulsson will also be out (16 goals, 4 assists). It's enough to say that the second scorer of the team is Ryser with 7 goals. Details

The Ukrainians have lost a single home game since December 2011. This was against Juventus in the last round of the Champions League group stage when the game didn't mean too much to Shakhtar. Today's game is very much important and they even got the opponent to match. In all fairness, Leverkusen beat them in Germany but the game was different than the end result might suggest. In fact, Shakhtar could have had a better result. They outplayed Man United at home, they have 7 wins and a draw in their league (23-2) goal difference) and I believe they can continue this impressive run today. The away team would take a draw within a heartbeat and probably won't risk too much in case of this result. We can take that as a guarantee for void, although I'm pretty sure the Ukrainians should win. One should go for a more convincing option for a smaller stake. I wouldn't be surprised if they retaliate for what happened in Germany. Details

Suffice to say, Lausanne have 15 unders in 17 games for this margin. They play tough games with low shot counts. They rarely score over 2 but no one gave them a trashing as well. On the other hand, Biel are also a defensive team. They have to offensive potency and they score most of their good results in low-scoring affairs. This game is important in terms of points and I don't expect anyone to risk too much. An aggravating circumstance can lie in the fact that the away team's goalie will be missing. However, his replacement Bays has played very well in the last two games, so the stake is adjusted to these circumstances. If I knew Huet was sure to start (his absence was only announced during the weekend), my stake would be a unit higher. Details

One should waste no words. Zug have never been a defensive super-power, and now they are missing their entire defense and they can hardly defend against anyone. But, a solid attack combine with the injury of Davos's first-team goalie talked me out of going for a home team's win (even though that's not a bad bet). Davose have 6 overs, 1 void and 1 under for the margin of 3 goals. Zug have remained under 3 gaols in only 1 away game, and they conceded 27 goals in 5 away games. A sterile Biel scored a fiver against them a few days ago. Details

It's a big local derby which is not just about points but also about prestige. The home team coach is defensive by nature and he rarely goes for open outplaying. Today he'll be without the important attacker Keller with two returnees after injuries so I think the offense will not look better than before. The defense is generally more than solid. His colleague on the other side also prefers responsible and careful play. If the opponent does not force it, Kloten won't skate around on the ice. What it looks like they have shown in the last three games in which they allowed no goals, but they weren't that efficient themselves either. Both are statistically below 5.5 goals on the average (no matter that Kloten is on paper the most efficient scoring team in the league). Zurich at home has 6-2 on under, just like Kloten in away games. Both have in those games an average of less than 5 goals. If we take out Kloten's fluke match against Zug (7:5), than their average in last eight games is barely above 3 goals per game. I believe that series will continue. Details

Last night we forecasted 5,5 under between these rivals, and the game ended 2-1. Everything that was said for last night is worth for today as well - statistics were enriched with another score that benefited it. Home coach said his team is still not ready for this sped up rhythm, and so they play a bit slower and more defensive. The fact that they're tired from last night only proves it. I see no reason why the bet rate from last night that went so smoothly should be over that today. I don't think Ehlers will let Huet to rest, while both guests defend more than great, so it's not much of a difference. I expect another tactic war on the ice, and Lausanne picking up where they left. Let us remind you, they have 10 under in 11 games. That option gives a rate over 2.00. Whatever the game result is, there's definitely a value. Details