World Cup of Hockey Betting odds 2016: Canada huge favorite, USA not top three
2016 World Cup of Hockey Odds: Canada is a huge favorite, but the United States is not among the top three.
The consecutive Olympic gold medalists want to add to their collection on home ice.
We’re still a week away from the start of training camps for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, but the bookmakers are already weighing in.
No one will be surprised to learn which team is considered the overwhelming favorite. With back-to-back Olympic gold medals and a deep roster, Canada is regarded as the team with the best chance of winning the World Cup.
Here are the odds for the tournament field:
| Team | Odds |
| Canada | 10-11 |
| Russia | 9-2 |
| Sweden | 5-1 |
| United States | 13-2 |
| Finland | 14-1 |
| Team North America | 16-1 |
| Czech Republic | 22-1 |
| Team Europe | 33-1 |
This is another interesting way of looking at the optimism surrounding Canada’s chances of winning the tournament:
CA’s implied World Cup of Hockey win percentage:
- CAN – 52%
- RUS – 18%
- SWE – 17%
- USA – 13%
- FIN – 7%
- North America – 6%
- CZE – 4%
- Europe – 3%
Canada returns many of the forwards from their 2014 gold medal team and has replaced some of the team’s older members with better, younger players. Even after injuries to Jamie Benn and Duncan Keith, this group’s depth is unrivaled. They have a number of natural centers that will have to be flipped to the wings due to their excellent center depth. Carey Price’s health and readiness are in doubt, but the safety nets of Braden Holtby and Corey Crawford are quite strong. It will be extremely difficult to get past this team as they defend home ice.
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Canada is the overwhelming favorite to win the World Cup of Hockey, and for good reason. USATSI
After such a disappointing finish in Sochi two years ago, Russia was a surprise to see them with the second best odds in the tournament. Their depth at forward is notable, with a plethora of dynamic offensive talents including Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin, Vladimir Tarasenko, Nikita Kucherov, Artemi Panarin, and Pavel Datsyuk, who may be making his final competitive appearance in North America. The blue line, on the other hand, is suspect. This could be this team’s undoing, but there’s no doubt they have the offensive firepower to win in close games.
Meanwhile, Sweden has arguably the deepest blue line in the tournament. They have more than enough offense up front, but Alexander Steen and his two-way ability will be missed greatly. Then there’s Henrik Lundqvist, who could be making his final major appearance for Sweden. You can bet he’ll bring it to this tournament. This team is better than the Swedish team that won silver in Sochi.
The United States squad, which won silver in the 2010 Olympics and fourth in 2014, may be surprising to not be in the top three, but it’s difficult to argue. Despite having the second-largest talent pool among the top hockey nations, the United States’ preference for grit and grind over skill has to be one of the main reasons they aren’t among the top two in terms of winning odds. The key for the Americans in this tournament will be strong goaltending, regardless of who they start.
Team North America was the most intriguing pick at 16-1. If there is one group to be considered a dark horse, this is it. This team’s depth of talent up front, led by Johnny Gaudreau, Connor McDavid, and Jack Eichel, as well as a Stanley Cup-winning goalie in Matt Murray, gives them a chance to surprise some people. They must finish group play as one of the division’s top two teams. Sweden appears to be a foregone conclusion, but Russia and Finland are not without hope. In a single-elimination tournament, once you reach the semi-finals, all bets are off.
The best-of-three final series is the most intriguing aspect of this tournament. In other events, such as the Olympics or World Juniors, you can catch a bad team and pull off an upset. At the World Cup, you have to be at your best for the majority of the tournament and then hope your team is peaking in the final series for those two wins that will secure the title. It will be interesting to see if any of these clubs have what it takes to beat the favorites at home.
