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Arttu Välilä scored the decisive goal at 2:11 of overtime as the Finnish squad pulled off a stunning 4-3 victory over the reigning two-time champion American team on Friday evening in the IIHF World Junior Championship quarter-finals.

"Got to give credit to the US," stated Finland's leader Aron Kiviharju. "That's a hell of a team, full of exceptional individuals and a well coached team. But I mentioned we wanted that revenge from last year, and I believe we kind of earned it tonight."

In the semifinal matches on Sunday, Finland will face Sweden, while the Canadians will play Czechia. Sweden beat Latvia 6-3, Team Canada produced a five-goal first period in a seven to one romp over Slovakia, and Czechia topped Switzerland by a six to two margin.

Dramatic Final Frame and Overtime

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

Lee Tuuva and Joona Saarelainen scored in a fifty-five-second burst in the third to hand Finland a two to one advantage. Tuuva tied it at 2 with 7:17 to go, then assisted on Saarelainen’s game-leading goal with 6:22 on the clock. Saarelainen also assisted on Tuuva’s goal.

Key Performances and Post-Game Comments

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

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

His BU teammate Cole Eiserman handed the United States a 2-1 edge on a power play with 9:45 remaining in the second period. He accepted a pass from Hutson and fooled Petteri Rimpinen with a quick shot from the right side.

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

Between the Pipes Stats

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

The Americans fell in their final two games – falling 6-3 to the Swedes on Wednesday night in the group finale – after winning their initial three matches.

"It has been an honor to lead this group," said the team's coach. "They played a terrific game today and fell just a bit short. Give Finland. It's an hollow feeling right now, but our players left everything on the ice."

Additional Quarter-Final Action

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

C. Reschny, Tij Iginla, M. Misa, S. O'Reilly and B. Martin scored in the opening twenty minutes, and P. Martone and C. Beaudoin scored in the following period. J. Ivankovic made twenty-one shots.

"Just goes to show how dominant we are," Martin remarked. "Going up five-nothing advantage, it kind of kills their confidence."

In the first quarter-final, Anton Frondell netted a pair for Sweden against Latvia. The defender Leo Sahlin Wallenius had a goal and two helpers to help the Swedish side remain perfect in their five outings.

Meanwhile, in Minneapolis T. Galvas, S. Drancak, Adam Jiricek, Petr Sikora, J. Klima and Jakub Fibigr provided the goals for the Czech team.

Relegation Match Outcome

Germany triumphed in the consolation match, defeating the Danes 8-4. M. Schams scored twice to help Germany retain its place next year in the main event. Denmark dropped to the second tier.