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Arttu Välilä netted the winner at two minutes and eleven seconds of overtime as Finland pulled off a stunning 4-3 victory over the two-time defending champion United States on Friday night in the world junior hockey quarter-finals.

"We must give full credit to the United States," stated Finnish captain A. Kiviharju. "That's a hell of a team, full of great players and a superbly organized team. But I mentioned we wanted that revenge from last year, and I think we truly deserved it tonight."

In the semi-finals Sunday, Finland will face the Swedish team, while Canada will play Czechia. Sweden defeated Latvia 6-3, Team Canada produced a five-goal first period in a seven to one rout over Slovakia, and the Czechs topped the Swiss by a six to two score.

Thrilling Final Frame and Overtime

The Michigan State Spartan L. Ryker knotted the score for the United States with 1:33 left in the third period and the Notre Dame goalie Nick Kempf pulled for an additional skater.

Lee Tuuva and Joona Saarelainen scored in a fifty-five-second burst in the third to give their team a two to one advantage. He leveled the score at two-all with 7:17 to go, then set up Saarelainen’s go-ahead goal with six minutes and twenty-two seconds remaining. J. Saarelainen also earned a helper on the first goal.

Key Performances and Reactions

The BU defenseman Cole Hutson had a goal and an assist for the United States after being struck in the head against the Swiss and sitting out two games.

"I thought we executed well for a lot of the game," Hutson said. "But the small details that they got, many of their Grade-A chances came from our mistakes."

His BU teammate Cole Eiserman handed the U.S. a 2-1 edge on a man advantage with 9:45 left in the second period. He accepted a pass from his teammate and fooled Petteri Rimpinen with a quick shot from the right side.

Hutson tallied on a fast break 35 seconds into the second. H. Ruohonen tied it at four minutes and forty-six seconds on a quick shot from the left side.

Between the Pipes Summary

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

The Americans fell in their final two games – losing 6-3 to Sweden on Wednesday night in the final preliminary game – after winning their initial three matches.

"It was an privilege to lead this group," said the American bench boss. "Our guys played a great game tonight and fell just a bit short. All credit to Finland. It's an empty emotion right now, but our guys left everything on the ice."

Additional Playoff Results

In the late game in Minneapolis, the Canadian team routed Slovakia with the aforementioned first-period explosion.

Cole Reschny, Tij Iginla, M. Misa, Sam O’Reilly and Brady Martin scored in the opening twenty minutes, and P. Martone and Cole Beaudoin scored in the second. Jack Ivankovic made twenty-one shots.

"This demonstrates how dominant we are," B. Martin said. "Taking a five-nothing advantage, it kind of kills their morale."

In the opening playoff game, A. 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 five games.

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

Relegation Match Outcome

The German team triumphed in the consolation match, defeating Denmark eight to four. Manuel Schams had two goals to help his nation retain its spot next year in the main event. Denmark was relegated to the second tier.