Italy vs Slovakia Preview & Prediction | 2026 Winter Olympics | Men’s Ice Hockey | Preliminary Round

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Italy and Slovakia have had contrasting starts to their respective Men’s Ice Hockey Olympic campaigns ahead of their clash here.

Kick-off date/time:

How to watch on TV: UK – TNT Sports (some events will also be televised on the BBC / TNT Sports / Not Televised / USA – NBC, USA Network, CNBC & NBCSN

How to watch online: UK – discovery+ (some events can be streamed live on the BBC’s digital platforms / USA – Peacock & nbcolympics.com

Italy vs Slovakia prediction

An outstanding third period saw Slovakia blow away Finland, scoring three times without reply to seal a 4-1 win, opening their account in Group B just the way they would’ve wanted. You would expect a team of their quality to only get better across the ice as they spend more time together playing as a unit both in practice and in game situations. For Italy though, it was a losing start as they fell by five points to two against a strong Swedish side.

From a defensive standpoint, it was never likely that Italy would be able to keep Sweden out for the long and the same scenario is probably in play here when considering the skill and speed of these Slovakian forward players. Confidence and momentum is high among the camp of Slovakia and they are well worth backing to comprehensively defeat the host nation.

Italy vs Slovakia tip: Slovakia to win with -3.5 handicap