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Finland's Arttu Välilä netted the winner at two minutes and eleven seconds of overtime as the Finnish squad pulled off a stunning four to three victory over the reigning two-time 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 fantastic squad, loaded with exceptional individuals and a superbly organized team. But I mentioned we were seeking that revenge from the previous final, and I believe we kind of earned it this evening."

In the semi-finals on Sunday, the Finns will face the Swedish team, while the Canadians will play the Czech Republic. Sweden defeated Latvia six to three, Team Canada had a first-period five-goal outburst in a 7-1 rout over Slovakia, and Czechia overcame Switzerland by a six to two margin.

Thrilling Third Period and Overtime

The Michigan State Spartan L. Ryker tied it for the U.S. team with 1:33 left in the third period and the University of Notre Dame netminder N. Kempf pulled for an additional skater.

L. Tuuva and J. Saarelainen scored in a fifty-five-second burst in the third period to hand their team a 2-1 advantage. He tied it at two-all with 7:17 to go, then set up Saarelainen’s game-leading goal with six minutes and twenty-two seconds on the clock. Saarelainen also assisted on Tuuva’s goal.

Notable Performances and Reactions

The Boston University blueliner C. Hutson recorded a goal and an assist for the Americans after being struck in the head versus the Swiss and missing two games.

"I thought we made good plays 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 mistakes."

His BU teammate C. Eiserman handed the United States a 2-1 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 tallied on a fast break thirty-five seconds into the second period. H. Ruohonen equalized at 4:46 on a snap shot from the left wing.

Between the Pipes Summary

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

The U.S. squad fell in their final two games – losing 6-3 to Sweden on Wednesday in the group finale – after starting with their initial three matches.

"It was an privilege to coach this group," said the team's coach. "Our guys played a terrific game today and came up just short. Give Finland. It's an empty feeling at the moment, but our guys left everything on the ice."

Other Quarter-Final Action

In the late game in the host city, the Canadians routed Slovakia with the aforementioned first-period explosion.

Cole Reschny, Tij Iginla, M. Misa, S. O'Reilly and Brady Martin tallied in the opening twenty minutes, and P. Martone and Cole Beaudoin scored in the following period. J. Ivankovic made 21 saves.

"Just goes to show how dominant we can be," B. Martin said. "Going up five-nothing lead, it really saps their confidence."

In the opening playoff game, A. Frondell netted a pair for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman Leo Sahlin Wallenius contributed a goal and two helpers to aid the Swedish side stay perfect in five games.

Meanwhile, in Minneapolis Tomas Galvas, S. Drancak, A. Jiricek, P. Sikora, Jiri Klima and Jakub Fibigr provided the goals for the Czechs.

Consolation Match Outcome

Germany triumphed in the relegation game, beating Denmark eight to four. Manuel Schams scored twice to ensure Germany keep its spot next year in the top division. Denmark dropped to the second tier.