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

"Got to give credit to the United States," stated Finnish captain Aron Kiviharju. "They are a hell of a team, full of great individuals and a well coached team. But I said we were seeking that payback from last year, and I believe we kind of earned it this evening."

In the semifinal matches Sunday, the Finns will take on Sweden, while Canada will play Czechia. Sweden defeated Latvia six to three, Team Canada produced a first-period five-goal outburst in a 7-1 rout over Slovakia, and the Czechs topped Switzerland by a 6-2 score.

Dramatic Third Period and Extra Session

The Michigan State Spartan L. Ryker tied it for the United States with one minute and thirty-three seconds remaining in regulation and the University of Notre Dame goalie Nick Kempf off for an extra attacker.

L. Tuuva and Joona Saarelainen scored in a 55-second burst in the third to hand Finland a 2-1 advantage. He leveled the score at two-all with seven minutes and seventeen seconds to go, then set up his teammate's game-leading goal with six minutes and twenty-two seconds on the clock. J. Saarelainen also earned a helper on Tuuva’s goal.

Notable Contributions and Reactions

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

"In my opinion we executed well for most of the game," Hutson said. "But the little bounces that they got, a lot of their Grade-A opportunities came from our errors."

His BU teammate Cole Eiserman handed the U.S. a two to one lead on a power play with 9:45 left in the second period. He took a feed from his teammate and beat the Finnish goaltender with a quick shot from the right side.

C. Hutson scored on a rush 35 seconds into the second. Heikki Ruohonen equalized at 4:46 on a quick shot from the left side.

Goaltending Stats

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

The Americans fell in their final two games – falling six to three to the Swedes on Wednesday in the final preliminary game – after starting with their initial three matches.

"It has been an privilege to coach this team," stated the American bench boss. "Our guys played a terrific game today and fell just a bit short. All credit to Finland. It's an hollow feeling right now, but our guys gave it all they had."

Additional Playoff Results

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

C. Reschny, T. Iginla, M. Misa, Sam O’Reilly and Brady Martin scored in the first period, and Porter Martone and C. Beaudoin connected in the following period. J. Ivankovic turned aside twenty-one shots.

"Just goes to show how dominant we are," B. Martin said. "Taking a 5-0 lead, it kind of kills their morale."

In the opening playoff game, Anton Frondell netted a pair for Sweden against Latvia. The defender L. Sahlin Wallenius had a goal and two assists to aid the Swedish side stay undefeated in their five outings.

In Minneapolis T. Galvas, S. Drancak, Adam Jiricek, Petr Sikora, J. Klima and Jakub Fibigr provided the goals for the Czech team.

Relegation Game Result

Germany won the consolation match, defeating Denmark eight to four. M. Schams scored twice to help Germany retain its spot for the following season in the top division. The Danish side was relegated to Division I-A.