ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) \u2014 Tomas Poletin scored on a deflection off his skate with 1:14 left and Czechia beat Canada 6-4 on Sunday night to advance to face Sweden in the first all-European world junior hockey final since 2016.<\/p>\n
Earlier, Anton Frondell scored in the eighth round of a shootout to give Sweden a 4-3 victory over Finland. The final is Monday night.<\/p>\n
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In the last all-European final, Finland beat Russia 4-3 in overtime in Helsinki in 2016. Czechia and Sweden are each trying to win their third title. Czechia won in 2000 and 2001, and Sweden in 1981 and 2012.<\/p>\n
Poletin scored 1:27 after Porter Martone tied it for 20-time champion Canada.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously we wanted this win, because you heard them in the media,\u201d said Vaclav Nestrasil, a Chicago first-rounder who plays at the University of Massachusetts. \u201cThey were chirping. … We wanted to keep their ego down, and we did that. I think we were better.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Czechia eliminated Canada for the third straight year. The Czechs beat the Canadians in the quarterfinals the previous two years.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the same feeling,\u201d said Canadian star Gavin McKenna of Penn State, one of six returnees from last year. \u201cLetting your country down sucks.\u201d<\/p>\n
Vojtech Cihar scored twice for Czechia, and Maxmilian Curran, Adam Titlbach and Adam Benak also scored. Michal Orsulak made 20 saves.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were a little more hungry,\u201d Czechia coach Patrik Augusta said. \u201cThe guys just showed that they are a team. They showed a lot of character and a lot of will.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Tij Iginla, Zayne Parekh and Cole Reschny added goals for Canada, and Jack Ivankovic stopped 31 shots.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re down,\u201d Canadian coach Dale Hunter said. \u201cThat\u2019s hockey. Be a pro about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Canada\u2019s Michael Hage failed on a penalty shot with 1:56 left in second period after getting a second chance when Orsulak tripped him on the first try. The University of Michigan player \u2014 who earlier fired three shots off posts \u2014 tried the same move and lost control as he tried to move the puck to the right.<\/p>\n
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\u201cI had an empty net, and he tripped me,\u201d Hage said. \u201cI just thought he bit so hard I\u2019d try the same thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sweden avenged a 4-3 overtime loss to Finland in the semifinals last year in Ottawa, Ontario.<\/p>\n
Frondell \u2014 drafted third overall by Chicago last summer \u2014 put a wrist shot through Petteri Rimpinen’s pads after failing on his first two attempts in the tiebreaker. His first attempt hit both posts.<\/p>\n
\u201cI blacked out,\u201d Frondell said. \u201cIt was an amazing feeling \u2026 happy the last one went in.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Sweden survived a power play in the 10-minute, 3-on-3 overtime after Viggo Bjork \u2014 who missed on three OT breakaways \u2014 was called for slashing with 2:03 left.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis game, it was crazy, long game, tight, overtime, everything. Just one goal and then it\u2019s over,” Frondell said. “You love to play those games.\u201d<\/p>\n
Linus Eriksson, Ivar Stenberg and Eddie Genborg scored for Sweden in regulation, and Love Harenstam stopped 33 shots. Atte Joki, Japser Kuhta and and Joona Saarelainen countered for Finland. Rimpinen made 29 saves.<\/p>\n
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Saarelainen tied it at 3 from close range with 5:59 left in the third.<\/p>\n
Finland and Canada will meet in the third-place game.<\/p>\n
\u201cVery tough, but doing it for Canada,\u201d McKenna said about playing for bronze. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to regroup to be ready.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Friday night in the quarterfinals, Finland beat the two-time defending champion United States 4-3 in overtime.<\/p>\n
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