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Arttu Välilä scored the decisive goal at two minutes and eleven seconds of extra time as the Finnish squad pulled off a stunning 4-3 victory over the two-time defending champion United States on Friday evening in the IIHF World Junior Championship quarter-finals.

"Got to give credit to the US," stated Finnish captain A. Kiviharju. "That's a fantastic squad, loaded with great players and a well coached team. But I said we were seeking that revenge from last year, and I believe we kind of earned it tonight."

In the semi-finals Sunday, the Finns will take on the Swedish team, while Canada will meet the Czech Republic. Sweden beat the Latvian side 6-3, Canada produced a first-period five-goal outburst in a seven to one romp over Slovakia, and the Czechs overcame the Swiss by a six to two score.

Thrilling Third Period and Extra Session

The Michigan State Spartan Lee Ryker knotted the score for the U.S. team with one minute and thirty-three seconds left in regulation and the University of Notre Dame netminder Nick Kempf pulled for an additional skater.

L. Tuuva and Joona Saarelainen found the net in a 55-second burst in the third to hand their team a two to one lead. Tuuva leveled the score at 2 with seven minutes and seventeen seconds to go, then assisted on his teammate's go-ahead goal with 6:22 remaining. Saarelainen also earned a helper on the first goal.

Key Performances and Reactions

The BU blueliner Cole Hutson recorded a goal and an assist for the Americans after being struck in the head against the Swiss and sitting out the next two contests.

"In my opinion we made good plays for a lot of the game," the defenseman commented. "But the little bounces that they got, a lot of their high-quality opportunities resulted from our errors."

His BU teammate Cole Eiserman gave the United States a 2-1 lead on a power play with nine minutes and forty-five seconds remaining in the second period. He accepted a pass from Hutson and beat Petteri Rimpinen with a one-timer from the right circle.

C. Hutson tallied on a rush 35 seconds into the second period. H. Ruohonen tied it at 4:46 on a snap shot from the left side.

Between the Pipes Summary

• Finland's goalie stopped 28 shots.
• Kempf recorded 21 saves.

The U.S. squad lost their last two games – falling six to three to the Swedes on Wednesday in the group finale – after starting with their first three.

"It was an honor to coach this team," said the American bench boss. "Our guys played a great game today and fell just a bit short. All credit to Finland. It's an empty emotion right now, but our players left everything on the ice."

Other Quarter-Final Action

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

C. Reschny, Tij Iginla, M. Misa, S. O'Reilly and Brady Martin tallied in the first period, and P. Martone and C. Beaudoin scored in the following period. J. Ivankovic turned aside 21 saves.

"Just goes to show how powerful we are," Martin said. "Going up five-nothing advantage, it really saps their morale."

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

Meanwhile, in Minneapolis Tomas Galvas, Samuel Drancak, A. Jiricek, P. Sikora, Jiri Klima and J. Fibigr scored for the Czechs.

Consolation Match Outcome

The German team triumphed in the consolation match, beating Denmark 8-4. Manuel Schams scored twice to ensure Germany retain its place for the following season in the top division. Denmark was relegated to Division I-A.