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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 win over the two-time defending champion American team on Friday night in the IIHF World Junior Championship quarter-finals.

"Got to give credit to the US," stated Finnish captain Aron Kiviharju. "That's a hell of a team, loaded with great individuals and a well coached team. But I mentioned we were seeking that payback from last year, and I believe we kind of earned it this evening."

In the semifinal matches Sunday, Finland will face Sweden, while Canada will play Czechia. Sweden defeated Latvia 6-3, Canada produced a first-period five-goal outburst in a 7-1 romp over Slovakia, and Czechia overcame the Swiss by a 6-2 score.

Dramatic Third Period and Overtime

The Michigan State Spartan Lee Ryker knotted the score for the United States with one minute and thirty-three seconds left in regulation and the University of Notre Dame netminder Nick 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 their team a 2-1 lead. Tuuva tied it at two-all with seven minutes and seventeen seconds to go, then assisted on his teammate's game-leading goal with 6:22 on the clock. Saarelainen also assisted on Tuuva’s goal.

Notable Contributions and Reactions

The Boston University defenseman C. Hutson had a goal and an assist for the Americans after being struck in the back of the head versus Switzerland and missing two games.

"I thought we made good plays for a lot of the game," Hutson said. "But the small details that they got, many of their high-quality opportunities came from our errors."

His BU teammate Cole Eiserman handed the U.S. a two to one lead on a man advantage with nine minutes and forty-five seconds left in the second period. He took a feed from Hutson and beat the Finnish goaltender with a one-timer from the right circle.

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

Goaltending Stats

• Rimpinen stopped twenty-eight attempts.
• The American netminder made twenty-one stops.

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

"It has been an honor to lead this group," stated the American bench boss. "Our guys played a terrific game tonight and fell just a bit short. Give the Finns. It's an hollow emotion right now, but our players gave it all they had."

Additional Playoff Results

In the second match in Minneapolis, the Canadian team overwhelmed Slovakia with the five-goal first.

Cole Reschny, Tij Iginla, M. Misa, Sam O’Reilly and Brady Martin tallied in the first period, and P. Martone and C. Beaudoin connected in the second. Jack Ivankovic turned aside 21 saves.

"Just goes to show how dominant we can be," B. Martin remarked. "Taking a five-nothing lead, it kind of kills their morale."

In the opening playoff game, Anton Frondell scored twice for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman Leo Sahlin Wallenius contributed a goal and two helpers to help the Swedish side stay perfect in their five outings.

Meanwhile, in Minneapolis Tomas Galvas, S. Drancak, A. Jiricek, P. Sikora, J. Klima and J. Fibigr provided the goals for the Czech team.

Consolation Game Result

The German team won the consolation match, beating Denmark 8-4. Manuel Schams had two goals to ensure Germany keep its place next year in the top division. The Danish side dropped to Division I-A.