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

"We must give credit to the United States," remarked Finland's leader A. Kiviharju. "They are a hell of a team, full of exceptional players and a superbly organized team. But I said we wanted that payback from the previous final, and I think we truly deserved it this evening."

In the semifinal matches on Sunday, the Finns will take on Sweden, while Canada will meet Czechia. The Swedes beat the Latvian side 6-3, Canada had a first-period five-goal outburst in a seven to one rout over the Slovakian team, and the Czechs overcame Switzerland by a six to two score.

Dramatic Third Period and Overtime

The Michigan State Spartan Lee Ryker knotted the score for the U.S. team with one minute and thirty-three seconds left in the third period and the University of Notre Dame goalie N. Kempf off for an extra attacker.

Lee Tuuva and J. Saarelainen scored in a 55-second span in the third period to give Finland a 2-1 advantage. He leveled the score at 2 with 7:17 left, then assisted on Saarelainen’s game-leading goal with six minutes and twenty-two seconds on the clock. J. Saarelainen also assisted on the first goal.

Key Contributions 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 the next two contests.

"I thought we made good plays for most of the game," the defenseman said. "But the small details that they got, many of their Grade-A chances came from our errors."

His university colleague C. Eiserman handed the United States a two to one edge on a man advantage with nine minutes and forty-five seconds remaining in the middle frame. He accepted a pass from Hutson and beat Petteri Rimpinen with a quick shot from the right side.

C. Hutson scored on a rush 35 seconds into the second period. H. Ruohonen equalized at four minutes and forty-six seconds on a quick shot from the left side.

Between the Pipes Stats

• Finland's goalie stopped 28 shots.
• Kempf recorded twenty-one stops.

The Americans fell in their final two games – losing 6-3 to Sweden on Wednesday in the final preliminary game – after starting with their initial three matches.

"It was an honor to coach this group," said the team's coach. "Our guys played a terrific game today and came up just short. All credit to the Finns. It's an hollow emotion at the moment, but our guys gave it all they had."

Other Playoff Action

In the late game in Minneapolis, the Canadian team overwhelmed Slovakia with the five-goal first.

Cole Reschny, Tij Iginla, Michael Misa, Sam O’Reilly and B. Martin tallied in the first period, and P. Martone and Cole Beaudoin scored in the second. Jack Ivankovic made twenty-one shots.

"Just goes to show how powerful we are," Martin said. "Taking a five-nothing lead, it kind of kills their confidence."

In the first quarter-final, Anton Frondell netted a pair for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defender L. Sahlin Wallenius had a goal and two assists to aid the Swedish side remain undefeated in their five outings.

Meanwhile, in Minneapolis T. Galvas, Samuel Drancak, Adam Jiricek, Petr Sikora, Jiri Klima and J. Fibigr scored for the Czechs.

Relegation Match Result

Germany triumphed in the relegation game, defeating Denmark eight to four. M. Schams had two goals to ensure Germany keep its place for the following season in the top division. The Danish side dropped to Division I-A.