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Arttu Välilä netted the winner at two minutes and eleven seconds of extra time as the Finnish squad pulled off a stunning 4-3 win over the two-time defending champion United States on Friday evening in the IIHF World Junior Championship last eight.

"We must give credit to the United States," stated Finland's leader A. Kiviharju. "They are a fantastic squad, full of great individuals and a superbly organized team. But I said we wanted that payback from last year, and I think we truly deserved it this evening."

In the semi-finals Sunday, Finland will face the Swedish team, while the Canadians will play Czechia. Sweden defeated the Latvian side six to three, Team Canada produced a first-period five-goal outburst in a 7-1 romp over the Slovakian team, and Czechia topped the Swiss by a 6-2 score.

Thrilling Final Frame and Extra Session

The Michigan State Spartan L. Ryker tied it for the United States with 1:33 remaining in the third period and the University of Notre Dame netminder Nick Kempf pulled for an additional skater.

L. Tuuva and Joona Saarelainen found the net in a fifty-five-second span 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 assisted on his teammate's game-leading goal with 6:22 remaining. J. Saarelainen also assisted on Tuuva’s goal.

Notable Performances and Reactions

The Boston University defenseman C. Hutson had a goal and an assist for the Americans after taking a shot in the head versus Switzerland and missing two games.

"I thought we executed well for most of the game," Hutson said. "But the small details that they got, many of their high-quality chances resulted from our errors."

His BU teammate C. Eiserman handed the United States a 2-1 lead on a power play with 9:45 left in the second period. He accepted a pass from his teammate and fooled the Finnish goaltender with a quick shot from the right circle.

Hutson scored on a rush thirty-five seconds into the second period. H. Ruohonen tied it at four minutes and forty-six seconds on a quick shot from the left wing.

Between the Pipes Summary

• Finland's goalie stopped 28 shots.
• Kempf recorded 21 saves.

The U.S. squad lost their final two games – falling six to three to Sweden on Wednesday in the final preliminary game – after starting with their initial three matches.

"It was an honor to coach this team," stated the American bench boss. "They played a terrific game today and fell just a bit short. All credit to the Finns. It's an hollow feeling right now, but our guys left everything on the ice."

Other Quarter-Final Action

In the second match in the host city, the Canadians overwhelmed Slovakia with the aforementioned first-period explosion.

C. Reschny, T. Iginla, Michael Misa, Sam O’Reilly and B. Martin scored in the first period, and P. Martone and Cole Beaudoin scored in the second. J. Ivankovic turned aside twenty-one shots.

"This demonstrates how dominant we can be," B. Martin said. "Taking a 5-0 advantage, it really saps their confidence."

In the opening playoff game, A. Frondell scored twice for Sweden against Latvia. The defender Leo Sahlin Wallenius contributed a goal and two helpers to help the Swedish side remain undefeated in five games.

In Minneapolis Tomas Galvas, S. Drancak, Adam Jiricek, Petr Sikora, J. Klima and J. Fibigr scored for the Czech team.

Consolation Game Result

The German team won the consolation match, defeating Denmark eight to four. Manuel Schams had two goals to help Germany retain its place next year in the top division. The Danish side dropped to the second tier.