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Finland's Arttu Välilä netted the winner at two minutes and eleven seconds of overtime as Finland engineered a remarkable four to three victory over the reigning two-time champion United States on Friday night in the IIHF World Junior Championship last eight.

"We must give credit to the US," remarked Finnish captain Aron Kiviharju. "That's a hell of a team, full of great players and a superbly organized team. But I mentioned we were seeking that revenge from the previous final, and I think we kind of earned it tonight."

In the semifinal matches Sunday, the Finns will face Sweden, while Canada will meet the Czech Republic. The Swedes defeated the Latvian side 6-3, Team Canada produced a first-period five-goal outburst in a seven to one romp over Slovakia, and the Czechs overcame Switzerland by a six to two score.

Thrilling Third Period and Overtime

The Michigan State Spartan Lee Ryker tied it for the U.S. team with 1:33 remaining in the third period and the University of Notre Dame netminder Nick Kempf off for an extra attacker.

L. Tuuva and J. Saarelainen scored in a 55-second span in the third period to give Finland a 2-1 advantage. He leveled the score at two-all with 7:17 to go, then set up his teammate's game-leading goal with 6:22 on the clock. Saarelainen also earned a helper on the first goal.

Key Performances and Post-Game Comments

The BU blueliner Cole Hutson recorded a goal and an assist for the United States after taking a shot in the back of the head against the Swiss and sitting out the next two contests.

"In my opinion we made good plays for most of the game," the defenseman said. "But the small details that they got, a lot of their Grade-A chances came from our mistakes."

His BU teammate Cole Eiserman handed the U.S. a two to one lead on a power play with nine minutes and forty-five seconds left in the middle frame. He accepted a pass from his teammate and fooled the Finnish goaltender with a one-timer from the right side.

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

Between the Pipes Stats

• Rimpinen saved twenty-eight attempts.
• Kempf made 21 saves.

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

"It was an honor to lead this team," said the American bench boss. "They played a great game tonight and came up just short. Give Finland. It's an hollow feeling right now, but our guys left everything on the ice."

Additional Quarter-Final Action

In the late game in Minneapolis, the Canadian team overwhelmed Slovakia with the aforementioned first-period explosion.

Cole Reschny, Tij Iginla, M. Misa, Sam O’Reilly and B. Martin scored in the opening twenty minutes, and Porter Martone and Cole Beaudoin connected in the second. J. Ivankovic made twenty-one shots.

"This demonstrates how powerful we are," Martin remarked. "Going up five-nothing lead, it really kills their morale."

In the first quarter-final, Anton Frondell scored twice for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman Leo Sahlin Wallenius had a goal and two helpers to aid the Swedish side stay undefeated in their five outings.

Meanwhile, in Minneapolis Tomas Galvas, Samuel Drancak, A. Jiricek, Petr Sikora, J. Klima and Jakub Fibigr provided the goals for the Czechs.

Consolation Match Result

The German team won the consolation match, beating Denmark 8-4. Manuel Schams had two goals to help his nation keep its place for the following season in the top division. The Danish side dropped to Division I-A.