Arttu Välilä scored the decisive goal at 2:11 of overtime as Finland pulled off a stunning four to three win over the two-time defending champion United States on Friday evening in the world junior hockey last eight.
"Got to give full credit to the US," remarked Finnish captain A. Kiviharju. "They are a fantastic squad, loaded with great players and a well coached team. But I said we wanted that payback from last year, and I believe we truly deserved it tonight."
In the semifinal matches Sunday, Finland will take on Sweden, while Canada will meet Czechia. Sweden defeated the Latvian side 6-3, Team Canada produced a first-period five-goal outburst in a 7-1 rout over Slovakia, and the Czechs overcame the Swiss by a six to two margin.
Dramatic Final Frame and Overtime
Michigan State’s Lee Ryker knotted the score for the U.S. team with 1:33 remaining in the third period and the Notre Dame goalie N. Kempf pulled for an additional skater.
L. Tuuva and Joona Saarelainen scored in a 55-second span in the third to hand Finland a two to one lead. He leveled the score at two-all with seven minutes and seventeen seconds left, then assisted on his teammate's game-leading goal with six minutes and twenty-two seconds on the clock. J. Saarelainen also earned a helper on the first goal.
Key Contributions and Post-Game Comments
The Boston University defenseman C. Hutson recorded a goal and a helper for the Americans after being struck in the back of the head versus the Swiss and missing two games.
"I thought we made good plays for most of the game," Hutson commented. "But the little bounces that they got, many of their Grade-A opportunities resulted from our errors."
His university colleague C. Eiserman handed the U.S. a two to one lead on a power play with nine minutes and forty-five seconds left in the second period. He took a feed from Hutson and beat the Finnish goaltender with a quick shot from the right circle.
Hutson tallied on a fast break 35 seconds into the second period. H. Ruohonen tied it at 4:46 on a snap shot from the left side.
Between the Pipes Stats
- Finland's goalie saved 28 shots.
- The American netminder made 21 saves.
The Americans lost their final two games – losing 6-3 to the Swedes on Wednesday night in the final preliminary game – after winning their first three.
"It has been an privilege to lead this team," said the American bench boss. "They played a great game tonight and fell just a bit short. Give Finland. It's an empty emotion right now, but our guys gave it all they had."
Other Quarter-Final Results
In the second match in Minneapolis, the Canadians routed Slovakia with the aforementioned first-period explosion.
C. Reschny, T. Iginla, M. Misa, S. O'Reilly and B. Martin scored in the first period, and P. Martone and C. Beaudoin connected in the second. J. Ivankovic made 21 saves.
"Just goes to show how dominant we can be," Martin remarked. "Taking a 5-0 advantage, it kind of saps their morale."
In the first quarter-final, Anton Frondell netted a pair for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defenseman Leo Sahlin Wallenius contributed a goal and two helpers to aid the Swedes stay undefeated in five games.
Meanwhile, in Minneapolis Tomas Galvas, Samuel Drancak, Adam Jiricek, P. Sikora, J. Klima and Jakub Fibigr scored for the Czechs.
Consolation Match Result
Germany won the relegation game, beating the Danes 8-4. M. Schams had two goals to help his nation keep its spot for the following season in the top division. The Danish side was relegated to Division I-A.
