2022 USA vs. Canada odds, line: Spread pick for Friday's men's hockey game from Olympics expert

The men's hockey teams from the United States and Canada renew their rivalry in the 2022 Beijing Olympics when the two sides collide in a Group A preliminary round game on Friday at the National Indoor Stadium in Beijing. Canada is a -210 money-line favorite (risk $210 to win $100) in the latest USA vs. Canada odds from Caesars Sportsbook, while the Over-Under for total goals is 5.5. The spread is Canada -.5 goals (-142). The opening face-off is set for 11:10 p.m. ET. 

Before locking in any Canada vs. USA picks or Beijing Olympics 2022 predictions, you need to see what SportsLine's Olympics expert, Mike Tierney, has to say. (Head over to SportsLine's 2022 Olympics page for more analysis and updates.)

A national sportswriter whose work appears in The New York Times and Los Angeles Times, Tierney has covered nine Olympic Games in person. For Rio in 2016, Tierney profited big-time. He told readers to bet Over on Team USA's gold medal count (41.5) and Over on Team USA's overall medal count (102.5). The result? 46 golds, 121 medals and two easy cashes.

For the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, Tierney hit two of his three predictions: Germany (+200) to win the most gold medals and the United States winning Under 10.5 gold medals (+110). And at last year's Tokyo Games, he correctly predicted the United States would go Over 111.5 total medals (-110).

The Americans have an elite playmaker in Sean Farrell. A forward from Harvard and a prospect of the Montreal Canadiens, Farrell scored a hat trick and two assists in the tournament-opening win over China. The hat trick was the first for Team USA in the Olympics since Phil Kessel had one in 2014.

The Canadiens have one of the best centers of the last 20 years in Eric Staal. Now 37 and playing with Minnesota's AHL team, Staal serves as captain for the team and brings his almost 1,300 regular-season NHL games and more than 1,000 points with him. In the 2019-20 season he scored 47 points in 66 games with the Wild.

Now, Tierney has analyzed Friday's game. We can tell you that he is leaning Over 5.5 goals, but his stronger play is on one side. He knows a crucial X-factor that makes one side a must-back. You ABSOLUTELY need to see what he has to say before locking in your picks. 

Who wins USA vs. Canada on Friday? And what x-factor makes one side a must-back? Join SportsLine right now to find out whom you should back, all from the expert who has crushed his Olympic picks!

Tierney's pick and analysis: 

Men's hockey, USA vs. Canada
Canada -.5 goals (-142)

Team USA's 8-0 wipeout of China has resulted in a mild overreaction. China is the bottom-dweller in the Olympic field, while Canada opened by downing a much stronger Germany 5-1. The Canadians can weather the absence of NHL players more easily than the United States, as evidenced by their bronze medal in 2018. Team USA's gold-medal odds are about three times that of Canada's, which suggests this perceived gap based on the spread is overly narrow.

Odds: FanDuel

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