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Arttu Välilä netted the winner at two minutes and eleven seconds of extra time as Finland pulled off a stunning four to three victory over the reigning two-time champion United States on Friday night in the IIHF World Junior Championship quarter-finals.

"Got to give credit to the US," remarked Finnish captain A. Kiviharju. "They are a hell of a team, full of great individuals and a well coached team. But I said we wanted that payback from last year, and I believe we truly deserved it tonight."

In the semifinal matches on Sunday, Finland will take on Sweden, while Canada will play Czechia. Sweden defeated Latvia 6-3, Team Canada produced a first-period five-goal outburst in a 7-1 rout over the Slovakian team, and the Czechs topped Switzerland by a six to two score.

Dramatic Final Frame and Overtime

Michigan State’s Lee Ryker knotted the score for the United States with one minute and thirty-three seconds left in regulation and the Notre Dame goalie N. Kempf pulled for an additional skater.

L. Tuuva and J. Saarelainen scored in a fifty-five-second span in the third to give their team a 2-1 advantage. Tuuva leveled the score at two-all with seven minutes and seventeen seconds to go, then assisted on his teammate's game-leading goal with 6:22 on the clock. J. Saarelainen also earned a helper on Tuuva’s goal.

Key Performances and Reactions

The Boston University blueliner C. Hutson had a goal and a helper for the United States after being struck in the back of the head versus the Swiss and missing two games.

"I thought we executed well for most of the game," Hutson commented. "But the small details that they got, many of their Grade-A chances came from our mistakes."

His university colleague Cole Eiserman handed the United States a 2-1 edge on a man advantage with nine minutes and forty-five seconds remaining in the second period. He accepted a pass from Hutson and fooled the Finnish goaltender with a quick shot from the right side.

C. Hutson tallied on a rush 35 seconds into the second. H. Ruohonen tied it at 4:46 on a snap shot from the left side.

Between the Pipes Stats

• Rimpinen stopped twenty-eight attempts.
• The American netminder recorded 21 saves.

The U.S. squad fell in their final two games – losing 6-3 to Sweden on Wednesday in the group finale – after winning their first three.

"It has been an privilege to lead this group," said the American bench boss. "Our guys played a great game today and came up just short. Give Finland. It's an hollow emotion at the moment, but our players left everything on the ice."

Additional Quarter-Final Results

In the second match in Minneapolis, the Canadians overwhelmed Slovakia with the aforementioned first-period explosion.

Cole Reschny, Tij Iginla, M. Misa, Sam O’Reilly and B. Martin scored in the opening twenty minutes, and Porter Martone and C. Beaudoin scored in the second. Jack Ivankovic turned aside twenty-one shots.

"This demonstrates how dominant we are," B. Martin remarked. "Taking a five-nothing lead, it really kills their morale."

In the first quarter-final, Anton Frondell netted a pair for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman Leo Sahlin Wallenius had a goal and two assists to help the Swedes stay undefeated in five games.

Meanwhile, in Minneapolis T. Galvas, S. Drancak, A. Jiricek, P. Sikora, Jiri Klima and J. Fibigr provided the goals for the Czechs.

Consolation Match Result

Germany triumphed in the relegation game, defeating Denmark 8-4. M. Schams had two goals to help Germany keep its place for the following season in the top division. Denmark dropped to the second tier.