SKA Saint Petersburg - Severstal Cherepovets predictions and free betting tips [20/09/2023]

The regular KHL championship of the 2023/2024 season presents one of the most intriguing games of the day, mainly because SKA is in action. An odd remark given the predictability of such games in the past, but situations have significantly become unpredictable. The match in Saint Petersburg, where Severstal Cherepovets is a guest, is bound to attract many eyes.

SKA Saint Petersburg

This is due to the fact that currently SKA, after their first seven matches, fails to make the playoffs. They come in the 10th place in the Western conference with a mere total of four points, all of which were earned in the first two matches. The subsequent five matches have been a true nightmare, marking the worst start in SKA's history and one of the worst losing streaks. The question remains as to how long this will continue. Roman Rotenberg shows visible anxiousness as his idea to rotate almost all leaders has not been successful yet. The players are yet to settle with each other and get used to the new team playstyle. The latest match against Sibir, which ended 1:2, is a testament to SKA's dreadful form where Sibir managed to match up for two periods, and SKA, despite taking initiative in the third period, failed to equalise. The sixth match of the series looks rather pessimistic.

Severstal Cherepovets

Unexpectedly, in the face-off against SKA, we are considering its competitor Severstal as the higher-ranked team. It's unusual for Severstal to be in a position such that even if SKA wins the match, they won't overtake Severstal in the league table. Severstal holds the 7th place in the Western conference, tallying seven points. This season, Severstal has shown improvement; the newly appointed Andrey Kozyrev is slowly changing the team to a more attacking and productive gameplay. Despite facing issues, for example, the two losses against Sochi, they have a balanced number of wins and losses out of the six matches. Especially considering that one loss was beyond regulation time, their performance looks promising overall.

Head-to-head Matches

SKA and Severstal have played 53 matches together. SKA boasts 42 victories, while Severstal only has 11 wins to its name.

Prediction

Even after such a streak, SKA is the clear favourite with the betting odds standing at 1.67, whereas Severstal's victory has odds of 4.40. If you are willing to take the risk, you could consider Severstal's victory due to the favourable odds. However, it seems that SKA has already been losing too much.

Total

I however choose to gamble differently and bet on ITO2 (2.5) with odds of 2.32. Severstal has been scoring a lot this season and they could potentially notch up three goals. However, there's a notion that they may concede even more, which has been the case multiple times this season and such a goal score has often been insufficient for the team to win.