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Arttu Välilä netted the winner at 2:11 of overtime as Finland engineered a remarkable 4-3 victory over the reigning two-time champion United States on Friday night in the IIHF World Junior Championship quarter-finals.

"We must give full credit to the US," stated Finland's leader A. Kiviharju. "They are a fantastic squad, full of great individuals and a superbly organized team. But I mentioned we wanted that revenge from the previous final, and I think we truly deserved it tonight."

In the semifinal matches Sunday, Finland will face the Swedish team, while the Canadians will meet the Czech Republic. The Swedes beat Latvia six to three, Team Canada produced a five-goal first period in a seven to one romp over the Slovakian team, and Czechia topped Switzerland by a 6-2 score.

Dramatic Third Period and Overtime

Michigan State’s L. Ryker tied it for the U.S. team with one minute and thirty-three seconds remaining in the third period and the University of Notre Dame goalie Nick Kempf off for an extra attacker.

Lee Tuuva and J. Saarelainen found the net in a 55-second burst in the third period to give Finland a two to one lead. Tuuva leveled the score at two-all with seven minutes and seventeen seconds to go, then assisted on Saarelainen’s game-leading goal with six minutes and twenty-two seconds remaining. Saarelainen also assisted on Tuuva’s goal.

Key Performances and Reactions

The BU defenseman Cole Hutson recorded a goal and a helper for the United States after being struck in the back of the head against Switzerland and missing the next two contests.

"I thought we executed well for a lot of the game," the defenseman commented. "But the little bounces that they got, many of their high-quality opportunities resulted from our errors."

His university colleague C. Eiserman handed the United States a 2-1 lead on a power play with 9:45 remaining in the second period. He took a feed from his teammate and beat Petteri Rimpinen with a quick shot from the right circle.

C. Hutson tallied on a rush 35 seconds into the second period. H. Ruohonen equalized at four minutes and forty-six seconds on a quick shot from the left side.

Between the Pipes Stats

• Finland's goalie saved twenty-eight attempts.
• Kempf recorded twenty-one stops.

The U.S. squad fell in their last two games – falling six to three to Sweden on Wednesday in the group finale – after winning their initial three matches.

"It was an honor to coach this team," stated the American bench boss. "They played a terrific game tonight and came up just short. Give Finland. It's an empty emotion at the moment, but our guys gave it all they had."

Additional Playoff Results

In the second match in the host city, the Canadians overwhelmed Slovakia with the five-goal first.

C. Reschny, T. Iginla, M. Misa, Sam O’Reilly and Brady Martin tallied in the opening twenty minutes, and P. Martone and Cole Beaudoin scored in the second. Jack Ivankovic turned aside 21 saves.

"This demonstrates how powerful we are," Martin said. "Going up five-nothing lead, it kind of kills their morale."

In the opening playoff game, A. Frondell scored twice for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman L. Sahlin Wallenius contributed a goal and two helpers to help the Swedes stay undefeated in their five outings.

Meanwhile, in Minneapolis T. Galvas, S. Drancak, A. Jiricek, Petr Sikora, Jiri Klima and Jakub Fibigr scored for the Czechs.

Relegation Match Outcome

Germany triumphed in the relegation game, defeating Denmark eight to four. M. Schams had two goals to ensure Germany retain its place next year in the main event. Denmark was relegated to the second tier.