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

"Got to give full credit to the US," remarked Finland's leader Aron Kiviharju. "They are a fantastic squad, full of exceptional individuals and a well coached team. But I mentioned we were seeking that payback from the previous final, and I believe we truly deserved it this evening."

In the semifinal matches on Sunday, the Finns will take on Sweden, while Canada will meet Czechia. The Swedes beat Latvia six to three, Team Canada produced a first-period five-goal outburst in a seven to one rout over Slovakia, and the Czechs topped the Swiss by a six to two score.

Dramatic Final Frame and Overtime

Michigan State’s Lee Ryker knotted the score for the United States with 1:33 left in regulation and the Notre Dame goalie N. Kempf pulled for an additional skater.

Lee Tuuva and J. Saarelainen found the net in a 55-second span in the third period to give Finland a 2-1 lead. He leveled the score at two-all with seven minutes and seventeen seconds to go, then assisted on Saarelainen’s go-ahead goal with 6:22 remaining. Saarelainen also earned a helper on the first goal.

Key Contributions and Reactions

The BU defenseman Cole Hutson recorded a goal and a helper for the United States after being struck in the head versus Switzerland and sitting out two games.

"I thought we made good plays for most of the game," the defenseman said. "But the little bounces that they got, many of their Grade-A opportunities resulted from our errors."

His BU teammate Cole Eiserman gave the United States a two to one edge on a man advantage with nine minutes and forty-five seconds left in the middle frame. He took a feed from Hutson and fooled Petteri Rimpinen with a quick shot from the right side.

C. Hutson scored on a fast break 35 seconds into the second. H. Ruohonen equalized at four minutes and forty-six seconds on a snap shot from the left wing.

Goaltending Summary

• Finland's goalie stopped 28 shots.
• The American netminder made 21 saves.

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

"It was an honor to coach this group," said the team's coach. "They played a terrific game today and came up just short. All credit to Finland. It's an empty feeling at the moment, but our guys left everything on the ice."

Additional Playoff Action

In the late game in Minneapolis, the Canadian team routed Slovakia with the five-goal first.

Cole Reschny, T. Iginla, Michael Misa, Sam O’Reilly and B. Martin tallied in the opening twenty minutes, and P. Martone and C. Beaudoin connected in the second. J. Ivankovic made twenty-one shots.

"Just goes to show how dominant we are," Martin said. "Going up 5-0 lead, it kind of saps their morale."

In the opening playoff game, A. Frondell netted a pair for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman L. Sahlin Wallenius had a goal and two helpers to help the Swedish side remain undefeated in their five outings.

In Minneapolis Tomas Galvas, Samuel Drancak, A. Jiricek, P. Sikora, J. Klima and J. Fibigr scored for the Czech team.

Relegation Match Result

Germany triumphed in the consolation match, beating Denmark eight to four. Manuel Schams had two goals to ensure Germany keep its spot for the following season in the main event. The Danish side dropped to Division I-A.