🔗 Share this article

Finland's Arttu Välilä scored the decisive goal at two minutes and eleven seconds of overtime as Finland pulled off a stunning four to three win 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 US," stated Finnish captain Aron Kiviharju. "That's a hell of a team, loaded with exceptional individuals and a superbly organized team. But I mentioned we were seeking that payback from last year, and I think 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. Sweden defeated the Latvian side six to three, Canada had a five-goal first period in a 7-1 rout over the Slovakian team, and Czechia overcame Switzerland by a six to two score.

Dramatic Final Frame and Extra Session

Michigan State’s Lee Ryker tied it for the U.S. team with one minute and thirty-three seconds remaining in regulation and the University of Notre Dame goalie N. Kempf pulled for an additional skater.

Lee Tuuva and J. Saarelainen found the net in a fifty-five-second span in the third period to give their team a two to one lead. He tied it at two-all with 7:17 left, then assisted on Saarelainen’s game-leading goal with six minutes and twenty-two seconds on the clock. J. Saarelainen also earned a helper on the first goal.

Notable Contributions and Post-Game Comments

The BU defenseman Cole Hutson recorded a goal and an assist for the United States after taking a shot in the head against Switzerland and sitting out two games.

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

His BU teammate Cole Eiserman handed the U.S. a two to one lead on a man advantage with nine minutes and forty-five seconds remaining in the second period. He took a feed from his teammate and beat Petteri Rimpinen with a one-timer from the right circle.

Hutson scored on a fast break thirty-five seconds into the second. H. Ruohonen equalized at four minutes and forty-six seconds on a snap shot from the left wing.

Between the Pipes Summary

• Finland's goalie stopped 28 shots.
• The American netminder made twenty-one stops.

The U.S. squad lost their final two games – losing six to three to Sweden on Wednesday in the group finale – after starting with their first three.

"It was an privilege to lead this team," stated the team's coach. "Our guys played a great game today and came up just short. Give Finland. It's an hollow feeling at the moment, but our guys left everything on the ice."

Other Quarter-Final Action

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

C. Reschny, Tij Iginla, M. Misa, Sam O’Reilly and B. Martin scored in the opening twenty minutes, and Porter Martone and C. Beaudoin scored in the following period. J. Ivankovic turned aside twenty-one shots.

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

In the first quarter-final, A. Frondell netted a pair for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defender L. Sahlin Wallenius contributed a goal and two assists to aid the Swedes remain undefeated in five games.

Meanwhile, in Minneapolis T. Galvas, S. Drancak, A. Jiricek, P. Sikora, Jiri Klima and J. Fibigr provided the goals for the Czech team.

Consolation Match Result

The German team won the relegation game, defeating Denmark 8-4. Manuel Schams scored twice to help Germany keep its place for the following season in the main event. Denmark was relegated to the second tier.