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Finland's Arttu Välilä netted the winner at two minutes and eleven seconds of overtime as the Finnish squad pulled off a stunning four to three win over the reigning two-time champion American team on Friday evening in the IIHF World Junior Championship last eight.

"Got to give full credit to the US," remarked Finnish captain A. Kiviharju. "That's a fantastic squad, full of exceptional players and a superbly organized team. But I said we wanted that payback from last year, and I believe we truly deserved it this evening."

In the semi-finals Sunday, Finland will take on Sweden, while Canada will play Czechia. Sweden defeated the Latvian side 6-3, Canada produced a first-period five-goal outburst in a 7-1 rout over Slovakia, and the Czechs topped the Swiss by a six to two score.

Thrilling Final Frame and Extra Session

Michigan State’s L. Ryker knotted the score for the U.S. team with 1:33 remaining in the third period and the Notre Dame goalie Nick Kempf pulled for an additional skater.

Lee Tuuva and Joona Saarelainen scored in a fifty-five-second span in the third to give Finland a two to one advantage. He leveled the score at two-all with seven minutes and seventeen seconds to go, then assisted on Saarelainen’s go-ahead goal with six minutes and twenty-two seconds on the clock. Saarelainen also assisted on Tuuva’s goal.

Notable Contributions and Reactions

The Boston University defenseman C. Hutson had a goal and a helper for the United States after taking a shot in the back of the head versus Switzerland and missing two games.

"I thought we made good plays for a lot of the game," the defenseman commented. "But the small details that they got, many of their high-quality opportunities came from our errors."

His BU teammate Cole Eiserman handed the U.S. a two to one edge on a man advantage 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 scored on a rush 35 seconds into the second period. Heikki Ruohonen equalized at four minutes and forty-six seconds on a quick shot from the left wing.

Between the Pipes Summary

• Rimpinen saved twenty-eight attempts.
• Kempf made 21 saves.

The U.S. squad lost their final two games – falling six to three to the Swedes on Wednesday night in the group finale – after winning their initial three matches.

"It has been an privilege to lead this group," stated the team's coach. "They played a great game today and came up just short. Give Finland. It's an empty emotion right now, but our guys left everything on the ice."

Other Playoff Action

In the late game in Minneapolis, the Canadians overwhelmed Slovakia with the aforementioned first-period explosion.

C. Reschny, Tij Iginla, Michael Misa, Sam O’Reilly and Brady Martin scored in the first period, and Porter Martone and Cole Beaudoin connected in the second. J. Ivankovic turned aside twenty-one shots.

"Just goes to show how dominant we can be," B. Martin remarked. "Taking a five-nothing lead, it really kills their confidence."

In the first quarter-final, Anton Frondell scored twice for Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman L. Sahlin Wallenius contributed a goal and two assists to aid the Swedish side remain perfect in five games.

Meanwhile, in Minneapolis Tomas Galvas, Samuel Drancak, A. Jiricek, P. Sikora, Jiri Klima and Jakub Fibigr scored for the Czech team.

Consolation Match Outcome

The German team won the relegation game, defeating the Danes eight to four. M. Schams scored twice to help his nation keep its spot next year in the main event. The Danish side dropped to Division I-A.