TAMPERE, Finland - The Canadian men's international hockey team scored three times in the third period to beat Latvia 4-2 in the world championship semifinal.

The win sealed the Canadians' place in the gold medal game, where they will face off against Germany, which beat the U.S. 4-3 in overtime.

Adam Fantilli scored the game-winner roughly nine minutes in to the third period, deking by two players before firing past Latvian netminder Arturs Silovs.

Samuel Blais, Jack Quinn and Scott Laughton also scored for Canada as it made its fourth-straight final.

“We stuck with it and needed some character after they scored the first goal, and I think the boys did a great job. (Jack Quinn) scored a big, big goal for us, and Fantilli's goal will be a highlight for a long time,” said head coach Andre Tourigny. “There was no panic on our bench, and I think the commitment from our team was exceptional today.”

The assist for the game winner came from Milan Lucic, and Fantilli said after the game that it was surreal to get an assist from a player he's watched all his life.

“I was in the middle of a one-on-one and tried to make a move and ended up getting a shooting opportunity and it ended up going in,” Fantilli said. “I'm really happy about it.”

Montreal Canadiens goaltender Samuel Montembeault kept Canada in the game by stopping 20 of 22 Latvian shots.

Latvia's goals came through Dans Locmelis and Rudolfs Balcers.

Germany scored a late equalizer and then upset the United States in overtime Saturday to set up the final.

Frederik Tiffels scored with 2:28 left in overtime to give Germany a 4-3 win over the Americans in the semifinals.

Germany reached the final for the first time since 1992, when the playoff format was introduced at the world championship.

The Germans pulled goaltender Mathias Niederberger when they were down 3-2 late in the third period and Marcel Noebels equalized with a backhand shot with 1:23 remaining to force overtime.

- With files from The Associated Press

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 27, 2023.