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Finland's Arttu Välilä scored the decisive goal at 2:11 of overtime as the Finnish squad pulled off a stunning 4-3 win over the reigning two-time champion American team on Friday night in the IIHF World Junior Championship last eight.

"Got to give full credit to the US," stated Finland's leader Aron Kiviharju. "That's a hell of a team, full of exceptional individuals and a superbly organized team. But I said we were seeking that payback from the previous final, and I believe we kind of earned it tonight."

In the semifinal matches Sunday, the Finns will face Sweden, while Canada will meet Czechia. Sweden defeated Latvia six to three, Canada produced a first-period five-goal outburst in a 7-1 rout over the Slovakian team, and Czechia overcame Switzerland by a 6-2 score.

Thrilling Third Period and Overtime

The Michigan State Spartan L. Ryker knotted the score for the U.S. team with 1:33 left in regulation and the Notre Dame netminder N. Kempf pulled for an additional skater.

Lee Tuuva and J. Saarelainen found the net in a 55-second burst in the third period to give Finland a 2-1 lead. He tied it at two-all with seven minutes and seventeen seconds to go, then assisted on his teammate's game-leading goal with six minutes and twenty-two seconds remaining. Saarelainen also assisted on the first goal.

Key Performances and Post-Game Comments

The Boston University blueliner Cole Hutson had a goal and an assist for the Americans after being struck in the head against the Swiss and sitting out the next two contests.

"In my opinion we executed well for most of the game," the defenseman said. "But the small details that they got, a lot of their Grade-A chances resulted from our errors."

His BU teammate Cole Eiserman handed the United States a 2-1 edge on a man advantage with 9:45 left in the middle frame. He accepted a pass from Hutson and beat the Finnish goaltender with a one-timer from the right circle.

C. Hutson tallied on a rush thirty-five seconds into the second period. Heikki Ruohonen equalized at four minutes and forty-six seconds on a snap shot from the left side.

Goaltending Summary

• Rimpinen stopped twenty-eight attempts.
• Kempf recorded 21 saves.

The Americans fell in their final two games – losing 6-3 to Sweden on Wednesday in the final preliminary game – after winning their first three.

"It was an honor to lead this team," stated the American bench boss. "They played a great game today and came up just short. All credit to the Finns. It's an empty emotion right now, but our guys gave it all they had."

Other Playoff Results

In the late game in the host city, the Canadians overwhelmed Slovakia with the five-goal first.

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

"This demonstrates how powerful we can be," B. Martin said. "Going up 5-0 advantage, 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 contributed a goal and two assists to help the Swedes stay undefeated in their five outings.

In Minneapolis T. Galvas, S. Drancak, A. Jiricek, Petr Sikora, Jiri Klima and Jakub Fibigr scored for the Czech team.

Relegation Game Result

Germany triumphed in the consolation match, beating the Danes 8-4. M. Schams scored twice to ensure Germany retain its place for the following season in the top division. The Danish side was relegated to the second tier.