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Finland's Arttu Välilä netted the winner at two minutes and eleven seconds of extra time as Finland engineered a remarkable four to three victory over the reigning two-time champion American team on Friday evening in the world junior hockey last eight.

"We must give full credit to the United States," remarked Finland's leader A. Kiviharju. "They are a hell of a team, full of exceptional players and a well coached team. But I mentioned we were seeking that revenge from last year, and I think we truly deserved it tonight."

In the semifinal matches on Sunday, Finland will face Sweden, while Canada will play the Czech Republic. Sweden beat the Latvian side 6-3, Team Canada had a first-period five-goal outburst in a seven to one rout over the Slovakian team, and Czechia topped Switzerland by a 6-2 margin.

Thrilling Final Frame and Extra Session

The Michigan State Spartan Lee Ryker tied it for the U.S. team with 1:33 left in regulation 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 burst in the third to give Finland a two to one advantage. He tied it at two-all with seven minutes and seventeen seconds to go, then assisted on Saarelainen’s game-leading goal with 6:22 on the clock. J. Saarelainen also assisted on Tuuva’s goal.

Notable Contributions and Post-Game Comments

The Boston University blueliner C. Hutson recorded a goal and a helper for the United States after taking a shot in the back of the head against the Swiss and missing two games.

"In my opinion we executed well for a lot of the game," Hutson commented. "But the small details that they got, a lot of their high-quality opportunities resulted from our mistakes."

His university colleague C. Eiserman gave the United States a 2-1 edge on a power play with 9:45 remaining in the middle frame. He took a feed from his teammate and fooled the Finnish goaltender with a quick shot from the right circle.

Hutson tallied on a fast break thirty-five seconds into the second period. H. Ruohonen tied it at 4:46 on a quick shot from the left wing.

Between the Pipes Summary

• Finland's goalie saved twenty-eight attempts.
• Kempf made 21 saves.

The Americans 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 was an honor to coach this team," stated the American bench boss. "They played a terrific game today and came up just short. Give the Finns. It's an hollow emotion right now, but our players left everything on the ice."

Other 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 P. Martone and C. Beaudoin scored in the second. J. Ivankovic turned aside 21 saves.

"This demonstrates how dominant we are," Martin said. "Taking a 5-0 lead, it really kills their morale."

In the first quarter-final, A. Frondell netted a pair for Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman L. Sahlin Wallenius had a goal and two helpers to help the Swedish side remain perfect in five games.

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

Relegation Match Outcome

Germany triumphed in the relegation game, beating the Danes eight to four. Manuel Schams scored twice to help Germany retain its spot for the following season in the main event. Denmark was relegated to Division I-A.