🔗 Share this article

Finland's Arttu Välilä netted the winner at 2:11 of overtime as the Finnish squad engineered a remarkable four to three win 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 Finnish captain Aron Kiviharju. "They are a fantastic squad, loaded with exceptional individuals and a superbly organized team. But I said we were seeking that revenge from the previous final, and I believe we truly deserved it tonight."

In the semifinal matches on Sunday, the Finns will take on the Swedish team, while the Canadians will meet Czechia. Sweden beat Latvia six to three, Canada had a first-period five-goal outburst in a 7-1 rout over Slovakia, and the Czechs overcame Switzerland by a 6-2 score.

Dramatic Third Period and Extra Session

Michigan State’s Lee Ryker tied it for the U.S. team with one minute and thirty-three seconds remaining in the third period and the Notre Dame netminder N. Kempf off for an extra attacker.

L. Tuuva and J. Saarelainen found the net in a fifty-five-second span in the third to hand Finland a 2-1 advantage. Tuuva tied it at 2 with seven minutes and seventeen seconds to go, then set up Saarelainen’s go-ahead goal with 6:22 on the clock. Saarelainen also earned a helper on the first goal.

Notable Performances and Post-Game Comments

The BU defenseman C. Hutson recorded a goal and a helper for the Americans after being struck in the head versus the Swiss and sitting out two games.

"In my opinion we made good plays for a lot of the game," the defenseman said. "But the small details that they got, many of their high-quality opportunities came from our mistakes."

His BU teammate Cole Eiserman gave the U.S. a 2-1 lead on a man advantage with 9:45 remaining in the middle frame. He took a feed from Hutson and fooled the Finnish goaltender with a quick shot from the right circle.

C. Hutson tallied on a fast break 35 seconds into the second period. Heikki Ruohonen tied it at 4:46 on a quick shot from the left side.

Goaltending Summary

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

The U.S. squad lost their final two games – losing 6-3 to Sweden on Wednesday in the final preliminary game – after winning their initial three matches.

"It was an privilege to coach this group," said the team's coach. "They played a great game today and came up just short. Give the Finns. It's an empty emotion at the moment, but our players left everything on the ice."

Other Playoff Action

In the second match in Minneapolis, the Canadians overwhelmed Slovakia with the aforementioned first-period explosion.

Cole Reschny, Tij Iginla, Michael Misa, Sam O’Reilly and B. Martin tallied in the opening twenty minutes, and P. Martone and C. Beaudoin scored in the following period. J. Ivankovic made twenty-one shots.

"Just goes to show how dominant we can be," B. Martin said. "Taking a five-nothing advantage, it kind of kills their morale."

In the opening playoff game, Anton Frondell scored twice for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman Leo Sahlin Wallenius had a goal and two assists to aid the Swedes remain undefeated in five games.

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

Consolation Game Result

Germany triumphed in the relegation game, beating the Danes eight to four. M. Schams had two goals to ensure his nation keep its spot for the following season in the top division. Denmark was relegated to Division I-A.