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Finland's Arttu Välilä netted the winner at 2:11 of overtime as Finland pulled off a stunning 4-3 win over the reigning two-time champion American team on Friday night in the world junior hockey quarter-finals.

"We must give credit to the United States," remarked Finnish captain A. Kiviharju. "That's a fantastic squad, loaded with exceptional 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 take on the Swedish team, while Canada will play Czechia. Sweden defeated Latvia 6-3, Team Canada had a first-period five-goal outburst in a 7-1 romp over Slovakia, and Czechia topped the Swiss by a 6-2 margin.

Dramatic Final Frame and Extra Session

The Michigan State Spartan L. Ryker knotted the score for the U.S. team with 1:33 remaining in regulation and the Notre Dame netminder Nick Kempf off for an extra attacker.

L. Tuuva and Joona Saarelainen scored in a 55-second span in the third to give their team a two to one lead. Tuuva tied it at two-all with seven minutes and seventeen seconds left, then set up Saarelainen’s game-leading goal with six minutes and twenty-two seconds on the clock. J. Saarelainen also assisted on Tuuva’s goal.

Key Performances and Reactions

The Boston University defenseman C. Hutson had a goal and a helper for the Americans after being struck in the back of the head against Switzerland and sitting out the next two contests.

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

His BU teammate C. Eiserman handed the U.S. a two to one edge on a man advantage with nine minutes and forty-five seconds remaining in the second period. He accepted a pass from Hutson and beat Petteri Rimpinen with a quick shot from the right side.

Hutson scored on a rush 35 seconds into the second period. H. Ruohonen equalized at 4:46 on a quick shot from the left wing.

Goaltending Summary

• Finland's goalie saved twenty-eight attempts.
• Kempf made twenty-one stops.

The U.S. squad fell in their last two games – losing six to three to Sweden on Wednesday night in the group finale – after winning their initial three matches.

"It was an honor to coach this team," said the American bench boss. "They played a great game tonight and fell just a bit short. All credit to Finland. It's an hollow feeling at the moment, but our guys gave it all they had."

Other Quarter-Final Action

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

C. Reschny, Tij Iginla, Michael Misa, S. O'Reilly and B. Martin scored in the first period, and P. Martone and C. Beaudoin scored in the following period. Jack Ivankovic made twenty-one shots.

"This demonstrates how powerful we are," Martin said. "Taking a five-nothing lead, it kind of saps their morale."

In the opening playoff game, Anton Frondell netted a pair for Sweden against Latvia. The defender Leo Sahlin Wallenius contributed a goal and two helpers to help the Swedes stay undefeated in their five outings.

Meanwhile, in Minneapolis T. Galvas, S. Drancak, Adam Jiricek, Petr Sikora, Jiri Klima and Jakub Fibigr scored for the Czechs.

Relegation Game Outcome

The German team won the consolation match, beating Denmark 8-4. Manuel Schams scored twice to help his nation keep its place for the following season in the main event. Denmark dropped to Division I-A.