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Arttu Välilä scored the decisive goal at 2:11 of extra time as the Finnish squad pulled off a stunning four to three victory over the two-time defending champion United States on Friday night in the IIHF World Junior Championship last eight.

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

In the semifinal matches on Sunday, the Finns will take on Sweden, while Canada will play the Czech Republic. The Swedes defeated Latvia 6-3, Canada produced a first-period five-goal outburst in a 7-1 rout over the Slovakian team, and Czechia overcame the Swiss by a 6-2 score.

Thrilling Final Frame and Overtime

Michigan State’s L. Ryker knotted the score for the U.S. team with one minute and thirty-three seconds left in regulation and the Notre Dame goalie Nick Kempf pulled for an additional skater.

Lee Tuuva and J. Saarelainen found the net in a 55-second burst in the third period to give their team a 2-1 lead. He tied it at two-all with 7:17 to go, then assisted on Saarelainen’s go-ahead goal with 6:22 on the clock. J. Saarelainen also earned a helper on the first goal.

Notable Performances and Post-Game Comments

The BU defenseman C. Hutson recorded a goal and an assist for the United States after being struck in the head versus the Swiss and missing two games.

"I thought we executed well for a lot of the game," Hutson said. "But the small details that they got, a lot of their high-quality opportunities resulted from our mistakes."

His BU teammate Cole Eiserman handed the United States a 2-1 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 beat the Finnish goaltender with a quick shot from the right circle.

Hutson scored on a rush 35 seconds into the second period. H. Ruohonen tied it at four minutes and forty-six seconds on a snap shot from the left wing.

Goaltending Summary

• Rimpinen saved twenty-eight attempts.
• Kempf made twenty-one stops.

The Americans fell in their final two games – falling six to three to the Swedes on Wednesday night in the group finale – after starting with their initial three matches.

"It has been an privilege to coach this team," said the team's coach. "They played a great game today and came up just short. Give the Finns. It's an hollow emotion right now, but our guys left everything on the ice."

Additional Playoff Action

In the second match in Minneapolis, the Canadian team overwhelmed Slovakia with the five-goal first.

C. Reschny, T. Iginla, Michael Misa, Sam O’Reilly and Brady Martin scored in the first period, and Porter Martone and C. Beaudoin connected in the following period. J. Ivankovic made twenty-one shots.

"Just goes to show how powerful we are," B. Martin remarked. "Taking a 5-0 lead, it really kills their morale."

In the first quarter-final, A. Frondell scored twice for Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman Leo Sahlin Wallenius had a goal and two assists to aid the Swedes remain perfect in their five outings.

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

Relegation Game Outcome

Germany won the relegation game, defeating Denmark eight to four. Manuel Schams scored twice to ensure his nation keep its place for the following season in the main event. The Danish side dropped to the second tier.