After finishing their regular season with a scoreboard flip in their last two games with the Battleford North Stars, the Klippers look to stay afloat in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League quarterfinal series with the third-ranked Estevan Bruins.
The regular season ended with a scoreboard exchange between the Stars and the Klippers as the March 6 game ended 5-2 in the Klippers favor. The final season game on the following Thursday, March 8 ended 5-2 in the Stars’ favour. Despite the up-down ending to the regular season, the Tuesday win over the Stars gave the Klippers two more points as they entered the league quarterfinals against the Estevan Bruins last week.
The Bruins rank third in the league standings while the Kindersley Klippers hold sixth, and so far the Bruins are showing to be a formidable foe in the quarterfinals. Friday’s away game found the Klippers a little slow on the mark as the Bruins took the game home in a stiff 3-1 game. Saturday’s game found the Klippers in better form as the Bruins were able to grab at only a 1 point lead for a 3-2 game.
Now the Klippers need a win in to give themselves some breathing room for the next five possible games in the series. This Tuesday and Wednesday the Klippers will host the Estevan Bruins at the West Central Events Centre at 7:30 p.m. on both evenings. If further games are needed, the Klippers will travel to Estevan on Friday, followed by a home game on Sunday, then an away game next Tuesday, March 27.
In the midst of their games, the Klippers took an evening to recognize key players in the Klippers team. The full list of the 2017-2018 Kindersley Klippers award winners are listed as follows:
Coach’s Award: Tanner Thompson and Cole Plotnikoff
Community Involvement Award: Austin Nault and Thomas Bollefer
Fan of the Year: Trevor Preston
Hardest Worker Award: Cam Shorrock
Most Dedicated: Cole Plotnikoff
Most Improved: Tate Page
Most Valuable Player: Justen Close
Plus/Minus Award: Nikolas Malenica
Rookie of the Year Award: Austin Nault and Will van der Sloot
Scholastic Player: Brendon Borbely
Three Stars: 1st – Justen Close, 2nd – Tanner Thompson, 3rd – Curtis Peck
Top Defenceman: Brody Ryberg
Top Scorer: Keillan Olson
Top Hitter Award: Brock Shwaluk
Volunteer of the Year: Anne Hanna
For the latest information and for more updates on everything Kindersley ‘Like’ the Kindersley Social Facebook page below…