Finland Shocks Two-Time Defending Champions US in U20 World Championship Quarter-Finals.

Finland's Arttu Välilä netted the winner at 2:11 of overtime as Finland pulled off a stunning four to three victory over the reigning two-time champion United States on Friday night in the world junior hockey last eight.

"We must give credit to the US," remarked Finnish captain Aron Kiviharju. "That's a fantastic squad, loaded with exceptional players and a well coached team. But I said we wanted that payback from last year, and I believe we kind of earned it this evening."

In the semifinal matches Sunday, the Finns will face Sweden, while Canada will play the Czech Republic. The Swedes beat the Latvian side six to three, Team Canada had a five-goal first period in a 7-1 rout over the Slovakian team, and the Czechs overcame Switzerland by a 6-2 score.

Thrilling Third Period and Extra Session

Michigan State’s L. Ryker knotted the score for the United States with one minute and thirty-three seconds remaining in the third period and the University of Notre Dame goalie N. Kempf pulled for an additional skater.

Lee Tuuva and J. Saarelainen found the net in a 55-second burst in the third to give their team a two to one advantage. Tuuva leveled the score at 2 with 7:17 left, then set up Saarelainen’s game-leading goal with six minutes and twenty-two seconds on the clock. J. Saarelainen also earned a helper on Tuuva’s goal.

Key Performances and Post-Game Comments

The BU blueliner Cole Hutson recorded a goal and an assist for the Americans after taking a shot in the head against Switzerland and sitting out two games.

"In my opinion we executed well for most of the game," the defenseman said. "But the little bounces that they got, many of their Grade-A opportunities resulted from our mistakes."

His university colleague C. Eiserman handed the United States a 2-1 edge on a man advantage with nine minutes and forty-five seconds left in the middle frame. He accepted a pass from Hutson and fooled the Finnish goaltender with a one-timer from the right circle.

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

Goaltending Summary

• Rimpinen saved twenty-eight attempts.
• The American netminder made twenty-one stops.

The U.S. squad fell in their last two games – falling 6-3 to the Swedes on Wednesday in the group finale – after winning their first three.

"It has been an honor to lead this team," stated the team's coach. "They played a great game today and fell just a bit short. All credit to Finland. It's an hollow emotion at the moment, but our guys left everything on the ice."

Additional Playoff Results

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

Cole Reschny, Tij Iginla, Michael Misa, Sam O’Reilly and Brady Martin scored in the opening twenty minutes, and Porter Martone and C. Beaudoin connected in the following period. Jack Ivankovic made 21 saves.

"Just goes to show how dominant we are," Martin said. "Going up 5-0 advantage, it really kills their confidence."

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

Meanwhile, in Minneapolis T. Galvas, S. Drancak, A. Jiricek, Petr Sikora, Jiri Klima and Jakub Fibigr scored for the Czechs.

Relegation Game Result

The German team triumphed in the consolation match, defeating Denmark 8-4. M. Schams had two goals to ensure Germany retain its place for the following season in the top division. The Danish side dropped to the second tier.