The United States are trying to repeat winning the gold medal in the 2022 Winter Olympics, but the field is a lot better this time around as teams like Canada and Japan are playing well and looking for some retribution.
Check this article to know more about Women’s Ice Hockey Olympics Betting Analysis.
How Have the United States Done So Far?
The preliminary games are officially over for the 2022 Winter Olympics Women’s Ice Hockey, and the United States are in a unique position.
They finished the prelims with a 3-1 record with a 5-2 win against Finland, 5-0 win over the Russian Olympic Committee, 8-0 win over Switzerland, and a 4-2 loss against Canada. The quarterfinal kicks off on Friday against Czechia and needs to step up if they want to survive to the Gold Medal Game.
The four quarterfinals matchups have been officially set as it will be Canada vs Sweden, Russian Olympic Committee vs Switzerland, United States vs Czech Republic, and Finland vs Japan.
The semifinals will be on Monday, February 14, the Bronze Medal Game will be on Wednesday, February 16, and the Gold Medal Game will be on Thursday, February 17. Only three wins separate a team from the gold medal in this Olympic battle.
Who Are the Lead Stars for the United States?
Before we dive into the individual statistics, let’s look into the team numbers. The United States team has scored 20 goals within their four games and are only behind Canada, who has scored 33 goals thus far.
Defensively, they are also second with six goals allowed, but three of them have been on the power play that the Americans were unable to kill.
Their biggest issue seems to be their save percentage, as the goalies have combined for a 90.48 save percentage during The Games as it is tied for fifth during the preliminary round.
Leading the individual players for the United States forward Amanda Kessel as she has recorded six points (two goals, four assists) this season and is tied for seventh in the Olympics so far.
However, the other six players ahead of Kessel, including the person she is tied with, are all playing for the Canadian team. It is going to be difficult for the United States to step up as they will be without center Brianna Decker after she suffered a broken leg in the first preliminary game of the Olympics against Finland.
She has decided to stay in Beijing instead of heading back to America to rehab as she has remained with the team to provide some leadership during the remainder of the Olympic Games for her team.
What Are the Odds?
This can vary depending on Women’s Ice Hockey Olympics Betting Analysis and where you are looking at it, but the consensus seems to be the US Women’s team is one of the best in the tournament.
They are sitting at +140 to win the gold medal with only Canada (-175) ahead of them. Outside of that, Finland is third (+2500), so it seems like just the North American teams have a legitimate shot at squaring off in the Gold Medal Game.
What Will the United States Be Able To Do Here?
In the It is pretty simple to expect a Canada vs United States matchup for the gold, but I do not see the Canadian women losing as they have eight of the top nine scoring players in the Olympics.
This should be a great matchup but expect the United States to pick up the silver medal in Women’s Hockey as they are talented but not the most talented team in this Olympics.
Canada just seems to have an offensive juggernaut this time around, and the United States were handed their only loss against this Canada team 4-2. The United States were able to get up shots against them as they were able to have 53 shots against Canada but only scored two goals.
They struggled to keep a 2-1 lead as Canada scored three goals in less than five and a half minutes after losing the lead. If a team can miraculously upset Canada, then America should win the gold, but otherwise, I do not see the United States bringing home the gold medal after The Games concludes.
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