The Finnish Team Shocks Back-to-Back Defending Champions US in U20 World Championship Quarterfinal Round.

Finland's Arttu Välilä scored the decisive goal at 2:11 of extra time as Finland engineered a remarkable 4-3 win 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," remarked Finland's leader A. Kiviharju. "That's a fantastic squad, loaded with great players and a well coached team. But I mentioned we were seeking that revenge from last year, and I think we truly deserved it this evening."

In the semi-finals Sunday, the Finns will take on the Swedish team, while the Canadians will play the Czech Republic. Sweden defeated Latvia six to three, Canada produced a first-period five-goal outburst in a seven to one rout over the Slovakian team, and Czechia topped the Swiss by a 6-2 score.

Dramatic Third Period and Overtime

The Michigan State Spartan L. Ryker knotted the score for the United States with 1:33 left in the third period and the Notre Dame netminder N. Kempf off for an extra attacker.

Lee Tuuva and Joona Saarelainen found the net in a 55-second burst in the third to give their team a two to one advantage. He leveled the score at two-all with seven minutes and seventeen seconds left, then assisted on Saarelainen’s game-leading goal with 6:22 on the clock. Saarelainen also assisted on the first goal.

Notable Performances and Reactions

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

"I thought we executed well for a lot of the game," Hutson commented. "But the little bounces that they got, a lot of their high-quality opportunities resulted from our mistakes."

His BU teammate C. Eiserman gave the United States a 2-1 edge on a man advantage with 9:45 left in the second period. He took a feed from Hutson and beat the Finnish goaltender with a quick shot from the right side.

Hutson tallied on a rush 35 seconds into the second period. H. Ruohonen tied it at four minutes and forty-six seconds on a snap shot from the left wing.

Between the Pipes Stats

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

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

"It has been an privilege to coach this group," stated the team's coach. "They played a terrific game today and came up just short. All credit to the Finns. It's an hollow emotion right now, but our players gave it all they had."

Other Playoff Action

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

Cole Reschny, Tij Iginla, M. Misa, S. O'Reilly and Brady Martin scored in the first period, and P. Martone and Cole Beaudoin scored in the second. J. Ivankovic made 21 saves.

"This demonstrates how powerful we are," Martin said. "Going up 5-0 advantage, it kind of kills their confidence."

In the opening playoff game, Anton Frondell scored twice for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman L. Sahlin Wallenius had a goal and two helpers to aid the Swedish side remain perfect in their five outings.

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

Relegation Game Outcome

Germany triumphed in the consolation match, defeating the Danes eight to four. Manuel Schams scored twice to ensure Germany keep its spot for the following season in the top division. The Danish side was relegated to Division I-A.