Canada vs. Czechia Prediction & Expert Picks: Olympic Men's Hockey Preview (Feb. 12)

The only thing better than watching Olympic hockey is taking it in while betting on it, and my Canada vs. Czechia prediction recommend backing the favorite. 

Canada has moved from the -600 to -650 moneyline betting favorite for their opener on Thursday, which starts at 10:40 a.m. ET (CBC, USA Network). I'm expecting Jon Cooper's team to start their Olympic account with a victory by at least three goals. I've also found a doozy of a Nathan MacKinnon player prop you'll want to read more about.  

🏒 Canada vs. Czechia prediction: Olympic men's hockey

Our expert Olympic hockey picks are based on the latest betting odds at the best sports betting sites.

💰 Canada vs. Czechia best bet: Canada -2.5 (-120)

It will be interesting to see how resilient Czechia is against the Olympic hockey odds betting favorite. 

I expect Czechia to keep things tight for about half of the game, allowing Canada to shoot from the outside. That can only work for so long against the team with the world's best forwards, a crew I covered in my one reason each favorite can win gold. 

Czechia won't be able to prevent the three Hart Trophy odds front-runners, Nathan MacKinnon, Connor McDavid and Macklin Celebrini, from winning by three. I'd play this bet at -130 and put a full unit on it.  

Score prediction: Canada 4, Czechia 1 

🔥 Best Canada vs. Czechia prop bet: Nathan MacKinnon Over 0.5 3rd period shots (-140)

The short odds are the only negative aspect of this bet. That said, I'm willing to play it considering how confident I am in Nate Dawg notching at least one shot on goal in the third period. MacKinnon leads the NHL in shots this season, and he finished with the most last season. 

Only Czechia's David Pastrnak has finished with more shots since the start of the 2022-23 season. Canada should outshoot Czechia by a wide margin, and I don't expect them or MacKinnon to let up in the third. I wouldn't play this bet beyond -150. 

🤔 How I'm capping Canada vs. Czechia 

Czechia has a few headliners, including David Pastrnak, Martin Necas, and Thomas Hertl. Beyond those stars, they are a team comprised of hard-working defensively solid players. 

Analyzing Czechia's defense also provides confidence that Canada can win by three or more. Three of their eight blue-liners are NHLers, none of whom are considered among the league's best. I don't believe Radko Gudas, Filip Hronek, and David Spacek are good enough to hold Canada's star-studded lineup at bay. 

As long as Lukas Dostal doesn't steal the show, I'm confident in Canada at -2.5. 

📺 How to watch Canada vs. Czechia 

• Date: Thursday, Feb. 12
• Puck drop: 10:40 a.m. ET
• Location: Santagiulia Arena (Milan, Italy)
• TV: CBC, CBC Gem, USA Network

💡Olympic hockey expert picks

• How to bet the men's Olympic hockey tournament
• Men's Olympic hockey odds & predictions
• One reason each favorite and dark horse can win
• Olympic hockey odds at prediction markets