Arttu Välilä scored the decisive goal at two minutes and eleven seconds of overtime as Finland pulled off a stunning 4-3 win over the two-time defending champion American team on Friday night in the IIHF World Junior Championship last eight.
"Got to give credit to the United States," remarked Finnish captain A. Kiviharju. "That's a hell of a team, full of great individuals and a well coached team. But I mentioned we were seeking that payback from the previous final, and I think we kind of earned it this evening."
In the semi-finals Sunday, the Finns will take on the Swedish team, while the Canadians will play the Czech Republic. The Swedes beat Latvia 6-3, Team Canada had a first-period five-goal outburst in a seven to one romp over the Slovakian team, and the Czechs topped Switzerland by a 6-2 margin.
Thrilling Third Period and Overtime
Michigan State’s L. Ryker tied it for the U.S. team with one minute and thirty-three seconds remaining in the third period and the Notre Dame goalie N. Kempf off for an extra attacker.
Lee Tuuva and J. Saarelainen found the net in a 55-second span in the third to give their team a two to one advantage. He leveled the score at two-all with 7:17 left, then assisted on Saarelainen’s go-ahead goal with 6:22 on the clock. Saarelainen also earned a helper on Tuuva’s goal.
Key Performances and Post-Game Comments
The Boston University defenseman Cole Hutson had a goal and an assist for the United States after taking a shot in the back of the head against the Swiss and sitting out the next two contests.
"I thought we executed well for a lot of the game," the defenseman commented. "But the small details that they got, a lot of their Grade-A opportunities resulted from our errors."
His BU teammate C. Eiserman gave the United States a two to one edge on a power play with nine minutes and forty-five seconds left in the second period. 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. H. Ruohonen equalized at 4:46 on a quick shot from the left wing.
Between the Pipes Stats
- Rimpinen saved twenty-eight attempts.
- The American netminder made twenty-one stops.
The Americans fell in their last two games – losing six to three to Sweden on Wednesday night in the group finale – after winning their initial three matches.
"It was an privilege to coach this group," said the American bench boss. "They played a great game today and came up just short. All credit to Finland. It's an empty emotion at the moment, but our guys left everything on the ice."
Other Quarter-Final Results
In the late game in Minneapolis, the Canadian team overwhelmed Slovakia with the aforementioned first-period explosion.
Cole Reschny, T. Iginla, Michael Misa, Sam O’Reilly and B. Martin scored in the opening twenty minutes, and Porter Martone and C. Beaudoin scored in the second. Jack Ivankovic made twenty-one shots.
"This demonstrates how powerful we are," B. Martin said. "Taking a 5-0 lead, it really kills their confidence."
In the opening playoff game, Anton Frondell scored twice for Team Sweden against Latvia. The defender Leo Sahlin Wallenius contributed a goal and two helpers to aid the Swedish side remain undefeated in their five outings.
In Minneapolis Tomas Galvas, Samuel Drancak, A. Jiricek, P. Sikora, Jiri Klima and J. Fibigr provided the goals for the Czechs.
Consolation Match Outcome
Germany won the consolation match, defeating Denmark 8-4. M. Schams scored twice to ensure Germany retain its spot next year in the top division. The Danish side dropped to Division I-A.
