The Kindersley Klippers finished February nearly as strong as when they started it; they saw two players recognized for their outstanding efforts and now look to end their regular season against the tough Battleford Stars.
After a row of five home-game wins, the Klippers hit the road mid-February in hopes of continuing their winning streak. The first night away dashed that hope as an overtime 3-2 loss to the Melville Millionaires, a team who at that point was just behind the Klippers in the SWJL standings. The saving grace in that game was that goaltender Justen Close stopped 37 of 40 shots to help his club earn a point in the standings for the 6th consecutive game.
The Klippers next game also didn’t go as planned as the Yorkton Terriers carried the ice with a tight 4-3 win on February 16. The Klippers rebounded the next day with a nail-biting, overtime game, again with the Melville Millionaires, 2-1 the Klippers favor.
The Klippers’ fair winds continued to blow as the team went on to take the Notre Dame Hounds in a rousing 6-4 game, Wednesday, February 21. The Klippers returned home to display a 7-0 shutout win for the home fans over the Yorkton Terriers on February 23, the same night Premier Scott Moe dropped the puck at the start of the game.
Unfortunately for Yorkton, the weekend remained in the Klippers’ favor when the next night saw a 6-3 scoreboard. This was the same week Klippers forward Will Van Der Sloot was named the SJHL’s Rookie of the Week.
The Klippers 4 game win streak ended with an away game against the Nipawin Hawks on Tuesday, February 27. The Hawks earned a 4-1 win over the Klippers. February ended better as the next away game against the Melfort Mustangs, ended in a tight 7-6 win for the Klippers.
Right around this time is when Justin Close, goaltender for the Klippers was nominated and earned the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League’s Top Goalie award for the Global Ag Risk Solutions Division. At the time of the nomination, Close had a 2.75 goals-against-average, and a 0.923 save percentage in 41 games played this season. The Klippers can credit him for many of their team points in the standings, as well as a number of shutout games over the season.
March dawned clear for the Klippers as last Thursday’s away game against the La Ronge Ice Wolves ended 6-1 in the Klippers favor. The Klippers now finish off the regular season by facing the Battleford Stars in a home game on Tuesday, followed by a game with the Stars on Thursday.
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