🔗 Share this article

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

"We must give credit to the US," stated Finland's leader Aron Kiviharju. "That's a fantastic squad, full of great individuals and a well coached team. But I said we were seeking that payback from the previous final, and I believe we truly deserved it this evening."

In the semifinal matches Sunday, the Finns will face Sweden, while Canada will play Czechia. Sweden defeated Latvia 6-3, Team Canada had a first-period five-goal outburst in a seven to one romp over Slovakia, and Czechia overcame Switzerland by a 6-2 score.

Thrilling Third Period and Overtime

Michigan State’s Lee Ryker tied it for the United States with 1:33 left in regulation and the Notre Dame netminder Nick Kempf off for an extra attacker.

L. Tuuva and Joona Saarelainen found the net in a fifty-five-second burst in the third to hand their team a 2-1 lead. Tuuva leveled the score at two-all with 7:17 left, then set up Saarelainen’s go-ahead goal with six minutes and twenty-two seconds on the clock. Saarelainen also earned a helper on Tuuva’s goal.

Notable Performances and Reactions

The Boston University blueliner C. Hutson recorded a goal and a helper for the United States after being struck in the head against the Swiss and sitting out two games.

"I thought we made good plays for most of the game," Hutson commented. "But the small details that they got, many of their Grade-A opportunities resulted from our errors."

His university colleague C. Eiserman gave the U.S. a 2-1 edge on a man advantage with nine minutes and forty-five seconds remaining in the second period. He took a feed from Hutson and fooled Petteri Rimpinen with a quick shot from the right side.

C. Hutson tallied on a rush thirty-five seconds into the second period. H. Ruohonen equalized at 4:46 on a snap shot from the left wing.

Between the Pipes Stats

• Rimpinen stopped 28 shots.
• Kempf recorded 21 saves.

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

"It has been an honor to lead this team," stated the American bench boss. "Our guys played a terrific game today and fell just a bit short. All credit to Finland. It's an hollow emotion at the moment, but our guys gave it all they had."

Other Playoff Action

In the late game in the host city, the Canadians routed Slovakia with the five-goal first.

Cole Reschny, Tij Iginla, Michael Misa, S. O'Reilly and Brady Martin tallied in the opening twenty minutes, and Porter Martone and Cole Beaudoin scored in the second. Jack Ivankovic made twenty-one shots.

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

In the first quarter-final, Anton Frondell netted a pair for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman L. Sahlin Wallenius contributed a goal and two assists to help the Swedish side stay undefeated in five games.

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

Relegation Match Result

The German team won the relegation game, defeating Denmark 8-4. M. Schams had two goals to ensure his nation keep its place for the following season in the top division. The Danish side was relegated to the second tier.