Finland Shocks Back-to-Back Defending Champions US in World Junior Quarter-Finals.

Finland's Arttu Välilä scored the decisive goal at 2:11 of overtime as Finland pulled off a stunning 4-3 win over the reigning two-time champion American team on Friday evening in the world junior hockey last eight.

"We must give credit to the United States," remarked Finnish captain Aron Kiviharju. "That's a fantastic squad, loaded with great players and a superbly organized team. But I mentioned we were seeking that payback from last year, and I think we kind of earned it this evening."

In the semifinal matches Sunday, Finland will face the Swedish team, while the Canadians will play the Czech Republic. The Swedes defeated the Latvian side 6-3, Team Canada had a five-goal first period in a 7-1 rout over Slovakia, and the Czechs topped the Swiss 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 one minute and thirty-three seconds left in regulation and the University of Notre Dame netminder N. Kempf off for an extra attacker.

Lee Tuuva and Joona Saarelainen found the net in a fifty-five-second burst in the third to hand their team a two to one lead. He leveled the score at 2 with 7:17 left, then assisted on Saarelainen’s game-leading goal with 6:22 remaining. J. Saarelainen also assisted on Tuuva’s goal.

Notable Contributions and Reactions

The BU defenseman Cole Hutson had a goal and a helper for the Americans after taking a shot in the head against the Swiss and sitting out the next two contests.

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

His university colleague C. Eiserman handed the U.S. a two to one edge on a power play with nine minutes and forty-five seconds remaining in the middle frame. He took a feed from his teammate and beat the Finnish goaltender with a quick shot from the right side.

Hutson scored on a fast break thirty-five seconds into the second period. H. Ruohonen equalized at four minutes and forty-six seconds on a quick shot from the left wing.

Between the Pipes Stats

• Finland's goalie saved twenty-eight attempts.
• The American netminder made 21 saves.

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

"It was an honor to coach this team," stated the team's coach. "Our guys played a terrific game today and came up just short. Give the Finns. It's an hollow feeling at the moment, but our players gave it all they had."

Other Quarter-Final Action

In the second match in the host city, the Canadians overwhelmed Slovakia with the aforementioned first-period explosion.

C. Reschny, Tij Iginla, M. Misa, Sam O’Reilly and B. Martin scored in the first period, and P. Martone and C. Beaudoin scored in the following period. J. Ivankovic made 21 saves.

"This demonstrates how dominant we can be," Martin said. "Going up 5-0 lead, it really saps their confidence."

In the first quarter-final, Anton Frondell scored twice for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defender L. Sahlin Wallenius contributed a goal and two helpers to help the Swedes remain perfect in five games.

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

Relegation Game Outcome

The German team triumphed in the relegation game, beating Denmark 8-4. M. 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.