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Arttu Välilä netted the winner at 2:11 of extra time as the Finnish squad engineered a remarkable four to three win over the two-time defending champion United States on Friday night in the IIHF World Junior Championship quarter-finals.

"We must give credit to the US," stated Finnish captain Aron Kiviharju. "They are a hell of a team, loaded with great players and a superbly organized team. But I said we wanted that revenge from last year, and I think we kind of earned it tonight."

In the semi-finals on Sunday, Finland will face Sweden, while the Canadians will play Czechia. The Swedes defeated the Latvian side 6-3, Canada produced a five-goal first period in a seven to one rout over Slovakia, and Czechia topped the Swiss by a 6-2 margin.

Thrilling Third Period and Overtime

Michigan State’s Lee Ryker knotted the score for the United States with one minute and thirty-three seconds remaining in regulation and the Notre Dame goalie Nick Kempf off for an extra attacker.

L. Tuuva and Joona Saarelainen found the net in a 55-second burst in the third to hand their team a 2-1 advantage. Tuuva leveled the score at 2 with seven minutes and seventeen seconds left, then assisted on his teammate's go-ahead goal with six minutes and twenty-two seconds on the clock. J. Saarelainen also assisted on Tuuva’s goal.

Key Performances and Post-Game Comments

The Boston University blueliner C. Hutson had a goal and an assist for the United States after being struck in the back of 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 little bounces that they got, a lot of their Grade-A chances came from our mistakes."

His university colleague C. Eiserman gave the United States a 2-1 edge on a man advantage with 9:45 left in the second period. He accepted a pass from his teammate and fooled Petteri Rimpinen with a one-timer from the right side.

Hutson tallied on a fast break thirty-five seconds into the second period. Heikki Ruohonen tied it at 4:46 on a snap shot from the left wing.

Between the Pipes Stats

• Rimpinen stopped 28 shots.
• Kempf made twenty-one stops.

The Americans fell in their final two games – losing six to three to Sweden on Wednesday night in the group finale – after winning their first three.

"It has been an honor to lead this team," said the team's coach. "They played a terrific game tonight and fell just a bit short. Give the Finns. It's an hollow emotion at the moment, but our guys gave it all they had."

Additional Quarter-Final Results

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

C. Reschny, T. Iginla, Michael Misa, Sam O’Reilly and Brady Martin scored in the opening twenty minutes, and Porter Martone and Cole Beaudoin connected in the second. Jack Ivankovic turned aside twenty-one shots.

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

In the opening playoff game, Anton Frondell scored twice for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman L. Sahlin Wallenius contributed a goal and two assists to help the Swedes stay perfect in five games.

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

Relegation Match Result

The German team triumphed in the relegation game, defeating Denmark 8-4. M. Schams had two goals to ensure Germany retain its place next year in the top division. Denmark was relegated to Division I-A.