USA vs Latvia: Men’s Olympic Hockey Odds & Prediction

The 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics are set to begin in just one day, which means the highly anticipated men’s ice hockey tournament is soon to be underway. 

Team USA will play its first preliminary-round matchup on Feb. 12 against Latvia. 

As if the men’s ice hockey tournament wouldn’t have already been a hyped event at the Winter Olympics, this is the first time NHL players have participated since the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics. 

Team USA will be trying to get its first gold medal win in men’s ice hockey since the ‘Miracle on Ice’ win at the 1980 Lake Placid Winter Olympics. 

Here are the odds for their matchup against Latvia as of Feb. 11. 

USA vs Latvia Odds

Currently, Team USA is set as a 4-goal favorite to win its preliminary game against Latvia. The Team USA moneyline is also set quite high, with them being favored at -10000. 

The over/under for the game is set at 6.5. 

USA vs Latvia Prediction

Team USA is a heavy favorite in this game, and it’s for good reason. 

Team Latvia’s roster only has five NHL players: Vancouver forward Teddy Blueger, Tampa forward Zemgus Girgensons, Florida defenseman Uvis Balinskis, Columbus goaltender Elvis Merzlikins, and Pittsburgh goaltender Arturs Silovs. 

On paper, the roster pales in comparison to a team on the USA side that’s comprised entirely of NHL talent. 

Girgensons is probably the biggest ‘problem’ on Latvia’s roster. The 32-year-old center has six goals and seven assists through 47 games played in Tampa this season. Girgensons is a one-time All-Star. 

It’s unlikely that Latvia’s defensemen will be able to keep up with dynamic forwards on the American side of the likes of Jack Eichel, Auston Matthews, or Jack Hughes. 

The last matchup between these two national teams was at the 2024 IIHF World Championships in Prague. Team USA won that preliminary round matchup in a 6-3 rout, in a game that featured two goals from forward Cole Caufield. 

Expect a similar score but with more scoring from Team USA, given the presence of more elite scorers who weren’t available at the 2024 IIHF World Championships. 

I would imagine this game goes over the 6.5 line. 

Penguins’ goaltender Silvos will likely be the starter for Latvia. Silvos has a 2.97 GAA and a .895 save percentage through 25 games started in Pittsburgh this season. 

On the other end, Team USA will most likely turn to Connor Hellebuyck to start in this matchup and throughout the tournament. The three-time Vezina Trophy winner has a 2.79 GAA and a .900 save percentage through 36 games in Winnipeg this season. 

Hellebuyck had a 1.59 GAA in three starts with Team USA in last year’s Four Nations Tournament. 

Team Latvia has a 3-3-18 all-time record in the Winter Olympic Games. Their best finish at the Olympics came at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, where they placed 8th. Latvia finished in 11th place at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. 

Team USA finished in 5th place at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics with a roster comprised of non-NHL players.