Slovenia vs Slovakia Prediction, Odds & Best Bet for 2023 IIHF World Championship Game (Scoring Takes a Backseat)

The 2023 IIHF World Championship continues on Sunday, May 21, featuring a Group B matchup between Slovenia and Slovakia.

Slovenia vs Slovakia Game Info

• Date: Sunday, May 21, 2023
• Time: 9:20 a.m. ET
• Venue: Arena Riga -- Riga, Latvia

Slovenia is coming off its fifth consecutive loss of the tournament, falling 3-2 to Latvia on Friday. On the other side, Slovakia hopes to keep its knockout stage hopes alive following a 4-3 loss overtime loss to Kazakhstan.

Slovenia vs Slovakia Odds & Spread

• All IIHF World Championship betting lines, odds and prop bets are from FanDuel Sportsbook.
• Moneyline: SLO: (+440) | SVK: (-650)
• Spread: SLO: +2.5 (-128) | SVK: -2.5 (+104)
• Total: 5.5 -- Over: (-106) | Under: (-114)

Slovakia enters this contest as the favorite on the moneyline and spread per FanDuel Sportsbook's odds. This 9:20 a.m. ET clash also features an over/under of 5.5 goals with the Under being favored at -114 odds.

Slovenia vs Slovakia Betting Trends

• Slovenia is 0-0-0-5 (W-OTW-OTL-L) in the 2023 IIHF World Championship group stage.
• Slovakia is 1-0-2-2 (W-OTW-OTL-L) in the 2023 IIHF World Championship group stage.
• Slovenia lost to Latvia, 3-2, in its last game on May 19, 2023.
• Slovakia lost to Kazakhstan in overtime, 4-3, in its last game on May 19, 2023.
• Slovakia is 5-2 straight up in its last seven head-to-head matchups against Slovenia.

Slovenia vs Slovakia Prediction & Pick

It's hard to like much of what Slovenia has done thus far in the group stage. The Slovenians have scored only six goals through five games while boasting a minus-3.2 average goal differential — by far the worst in Group B. They're also the only squad in the tournament that's yet to pick up at least one point.

While Slovakia isn't a juggernaut, it still shines in some areas. The Slovakians currently own the fourth-best penalty kill and sixth-best save percentage in the tournament, making it extremely unlikely that Slovenia's goal-scoring issues end here.

Besides, Slovakia is the only country of the two that still has a chance to play in the knockout round. Motivated by that goal alone, I expect a Slovakian victory this weekend.

Final Score Prediction: Slovakia: 3 | Slovenia: 2

Slovenia vs Slovakia Best Bet

If you're a huge fan of high-scoring clashes, this game isn't the one for you. Both Slovenia and Slovakia rank in the bottom half of tournament competitors when it comes to offense, only averaging a combined 3.2 goals per game.

On top of that, each of the last five Slovenia-Slovakia matchups has seen five or fewer goals scored. With both sides lacking high-end offensive talent, the Under on the 5.5-goal total is the best bet here.

Bet: Under 5.5 Total Goals (-114)

Devon Platana is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Devon Platana also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username PepeSilvia0. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.