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Finland's Arttu Välilä netted the winner at 2:11 of extra time as the Finnish squad engineered a remarkable 4-3 victory over the two-time defending champion American team on Friday night in the IIHF World Junior Championship quarter-finals.

"Got to give full credit to the US," remarked Finland's leader Aron Kiviharju. "They are a hell of a team, loaded with exceptional individuals and a well coached team. But I mentioned we were seeking that payback from the previous final, and I think we kind of earned it tonight."

In the semi-finals Sunday, Finland will take on the Swedish team, while the Canadians will play the Czech Republic. The Swedes defeated the Latvian side six to three, Canada had a five-goal first period in a seven to one romp over the Slovakian team, and Czechia overcame Switzerland by a 6-2 margin.

Dramatic Third Period and Overtime

The Michigan State Spartan Lee Ryker tied it for the United States with one minute and thirty-three seconds remaining in the third period and the Notre Dame netminder Nick Kempf off for an extra attacker.

Lee Tuuva and J. Saarelainen found the net in a 55-second span in the third period to give their team a 2-1 advantage. He tied it at two-all with 7:17 to go, then set up Saarelainen’s go-ahead goal with six minutes and twenty-two seconds on the clock. Saarelainen also earned a helper on Tuuva’s goal.

Notable Performances and Post-Game Comments

The BU defenseman C. Hutson had a goal and an assist for the United States after taking a shot in the head against Switzerland and sitting out two games.

"In my opinion we made good plays for most of the game," Hutson said. "But the small details that they got, a lot of their high-quality opportunities resulted from our mistakes."

His BU teammate Cole Eiserman gave the United States a 2-1 lead on a power play with nine minutes and forty-five seconds left in the middle frame. He accepted a pass from his teammate and fooled Petteri Rimpinen with a one-timer from the right side.

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

Between the Pipes Stats

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

The Americans fell in their final two games – falling six to three to the Swedes on Wednesday night in the final preliminary game – after winning their first three.

"It was an privilege to coach this team," said the team's coach. "They played a great game tonight and came up just short. All credit to Finland. It's an empty feeling right now, but our guys left everything on the ice."

Other Quarter-Final Action

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

Cole Reschny, Tij Iginla, M. Misa, S. O'Reilly and Brady Martin scored in the first period, and P. Martone and Cole Beaudoin connected in the second. Jack Ivankovic turned aside twenty-one shots.

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

In the opening playoff game, A. Frondell scored twice for Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman L. Sahlin Wallenius contributed a goal and two helpers to aid the Swedes remain perfect in five games.

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

Consolation Game Result

Germany won the consolation match, beating the Danes 8-4. M. Schams had two goals to ensure Germany keep its place for the following season in the main event. The Danish side dropped to the second tier.