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ST. PAUL, Minn. – There will be a new champion crowned at the world juniors.
Team USA, which won the past two tournaments, lost 4-3 in overtime to Finland in the quarterfinal on Friday.
In what was a rematch of last year's championship final, Arttu Valila scored at 2:11 of the extra frame as Finland upset the home team and advanced to the semifinal.
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This was a wild, back-and-forth game that could have gone either way. After a scoreless first period, the U.S. took a 1-0 lead on a goal from Cole Hutson. Finland and the U.S. then traded goals as the Americans entered the third period ahead 2-1. With less than 10 minutes remaining in the third period, Finland rallied from behind and took a 3-2 lead on goals from Leo Tuuva and Joona Saarelainen.
But with 1:33 remaining, Ryker Lee sent the game to overtime.
Alas, the Americans fell short of the comeback, as Valila scored the OT-winner on a snapshot that beat Nick Kempf high stick-side.
The win ruined what had been Cole Hutson's miraculous return to the tournament. Days after being knocked out cold by a shot to the back of the head, it sure didn't take long for Hutson to heat up again. The U.S. defenseman, who missed two games from a scary incident on Dec. 27, had a goal and an assist.
Cole Hutson returned for the Americans after suffering an injury on Dec. 27. (Matt Krohn-Imagn Images)
Hutson finished the game with two points. In the process, the Washington Capitals prospect became Team USA's all-time leading scorer among defensemen at the world juniors with 15 points. Even more remarkable was that he did it in a tournament where it looked like he was going home after two games.
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It was only a week ago when Hutson was lying on the ice following a freak accident, where a shot from the point connected with the back of his head. Hutson had to be stretchered off the ice, and it was not immediately clear whether he would return.
"I just got knocked out cold and woke up and, for a few minutes, I couldn't move anything on my body," Hutson told reporters days after the incident. "It's never a good feeling when you wake up after you get knocked out, so I was obviously terrified and just praying that I was healthy again."
Hutson missed Team USA's following two games, which included a 6-5 win against Slovakia and a 6-3 loss to Sweden.
Against Finland, Hutson could only do so much as Finland orchestrated the biggest upset so far of the tournament.
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More to come.
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