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Arttu Välilä netted the winner at two minutes and eleven seconds 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 world junior hockey quarter-finals.

"Got to give credit to the United States," stated Finnish captain Aron Kiviharju. "They are a hell of a team, loaded with exceptional individuals 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 Sunday, Finland will face Sweden, while the Canadians will meet Czechia. Sweden beat Latvia 6-3, Canada produced a first-period five-goal outburst in a seven to one rout over Slovakia, and Czechia topped Switzerland by a 6-2 margin.

Thrilling Third Period and Extra Session

The Michigan State Spartan Lee Ryker knotted the score for the U.S. team with 1:33 left in regulation and the Notre Dame goalie N. Kempf off for an extra attacker.

L. Tuuva and Joona Saarelainen found the net in a 55-second burst in the third to give Finland a two to one lead. Tuuva leveled the score at 2 with seven minutes and seventeen seconds to go, then set up his teammate's go-ahead goal with 6:22 on the clock. J. Saarelainen also assisted on the first goal.

Notable Performances and Post-Game Comments

The Boston University defenseman C. Hutson had a goal and a helper for the United States after taking a shot in the back of the head versus the Swiss and missing the next two contests.

"I thought we executed well for most of the game," Hutson commented. "But the small details that they got, a lot of their Grade-A opportunities resulted from our mistakes."

His university colleague Cole Eiserman gave the U.S. a two to one edge on a man advantage with nine minutes and forty-five seconds 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 scored on a fast break 35 seconds into the second. Heikki Ruohonen equalized at 4:46 on a quick shot from the left side.

Goaltending Summary

• Rimpinen saved twenty-eight attempts.
• The American netminder recorded twenty-one stops.

The Americans lost their final two games – falling 6-3 to the Swedes on Wednesday night in the group finale – after starting with their first three.

"It has been an honor to lead this team," said the American bench boss. "Our guys played a great game tonight and came up just short. All credit to Finland. It's an empty feeling at the moment, but our players gave it all they had."

Other Quarter-Final Action

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

Cole Reschny, T. Iginla, M. Misa, Sam O’Reilly and B. Martin tallied in the opening twenty minutes, and P. Martone and Cole Beaudoin scored in the second. Jack Ivankovic turned aside 21 saves.

"Just goes to show how powerful we can be," Martin said. "Going up 5-0 advantage, it kind of kills their morale."

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 five games.

In Minneapolis Tomas Galvas, Samuel Drancak, Adam Jiricek, Petr Sikora, J. Klima and J. Fibigr scored for the Czechs.

Consolation Game Result

Germany won the consolation match, beating the Danes 8-4. M. Schams had two goals to ensure Germany keep its place next year in the top division. The Danish side dropped to the second tier.