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Finland's 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 IIHF World Junior Championship last eight.

"Got to give full credit to the United States," stated Finland's leader Aron Kiviharju. "That's a fantastic squad, loaded with exceptional individuals and a superbly organized team. But I said we were seeking that payback from the previous final, and I believe we kind of earned it tonight."

In the semi-finals Sunday, the Finns will face the Swedish team, while Canada will play the Czech Republic. The Swedes defeated Latvia 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 6-2 score.

Dramatic Third Period and Overtime

The Michigan State Spartan L. Ryker tied it for the United States with one minute and thirty-three seconds remaining in regulation and the Notre Dame netminder N. Kempf off for an extra attacker.

Lee Tuuva and J. Saarelainen found the net in a fifty-five-second burst in the third to hand their team a 2-1 lead. He leveled the score at two-all with 7:17 to go, then assisted on Saarelainen’s go-ahead goal with 6:22 on the clock. Saarelainen also assisted on the first goal.

Notable Performances and Reactions

The BU defenseman Cole Hutson recorded a goal and an assist for the Americans after being struck in the head versus the Swiss and missing the next two contests.

"I thought we made good plays for a lot of the game," the defenseman said. "But the little bounces that they got, a lot of their high-quality chances resulted from our mistakes."

His BU teammate Cole Eiserman gave the United States a two to one lead on a power play with nine minutes and forty-five seconds left in the middle frame. He accepted a pass from his teammate and fooled the Finnish goaltender with a quick shot from the right circle.

Hutson tallied on a rush 35 seconds into the second. H. Ruohonen tied it at 4:46 on a quick shot from the left side.

Goaltending Summary

• Rimpinen saved twenty-eight attempts.
• The American netminder made 21 saves.

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

"It was an honor to coach this team," stated the team's coach. "Our guys played a terrific game today and fell just a bit short. Give the Finns. It's an hollow emotion right now, but our guys gave it all they had."

Other Playoff Results

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

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

"Just goes to show how dominant we are," B. Martin remarked. "Going up 5-0 lead, it kind of kills their confidence."

In the first quarter-final, Anton Frondell netted a pair for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman L. Sahlin Wallenius had a goal and two helpers to help the Swedes remain undefeated in their five outings.

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

Consolation Game Outcome

The German team triumphed in the consolation match, beating the Danes eight to four. M. Schams scored twice to ensure Germany keep its place next year in the top division. Denmark was relegated to the second tier.