The North Stars had to prove themselves all over again Friday night at the Civic Centre. After a year to remember, finishing first in the SJHL in one of the most storied seasons in franchise history, round one of the playoffs was set to begin against their rivals, the Kindersley Klippers. Having clinched home-ice advantage, the Battlefords were looking to take an early series lead in front of their fans and remain perfect against the Klippers this season.
Before puck drop, Layne Young, Igor Leonenko, Connor Sych, Coby Downs, Cody Spagrud and Head Coach Kevin Hasselberg were honoured with their yearly awards.
Once the festivities got underway, it was the North Stars who dominated puck possession, walking away with a 2-1 victory.
The Battlefords were buzzing in the first period, feeding off the large crowd of 1,530, outshooting the Klippers 22-5, but were unable to find the back of the net. A handful of shorthanded chances were stopped by netminder Nathan Hargrave. Rory Davidson had a couple of partial breakaways and Young cut into the slot before being robbed of his first goal of the playoffs. Downs also had a solid opening frame, pick pocketing the Klippers before finding Leonenko in the slot, which led to a hooking penalty.
All of the scoring for the black and white came in bunches in the middle frame. A strange sequence of events led to Young and Levi Kleiboer making a trip to the penalty box on the same play. It was what happened a few minutes later that sent the Civic Centre into a frenzy. After the North Stars were able to kill off the eventual five-on-three, it was Young and Kleiboer going the other way in transition. The defenceman busted down the right wing on a two-on-one with his counterpart. A nice saucer pass from Kleiboer found the stick of Young, who deflected it into the open cage to give the North Stars their first lead of the playoffs.
The reigning Rookie of the Year wasn’t done quite yet. Leonenko intercepted a pass on the left half-wall before finding Young in the slot. Number 9 made a mess of the Klippers defence, finding himself with an open breakaway against Hargrave. His first snipe ricocheted off of the cross-bar, landing on the goal line. The forward picked up his own rebound and deposited it into the back of the net, making it two unanswered goals for the Battlefords.
“He just brings it every night,” Downs said of his linemate, “He’s a phenomenal player and I enjoy playing with him, same with Igor. We work really well together and we just build chemistry. He deserved it this year [Rookie of the Year honours] and he stepped up tonight.”
The black and white kept the pressure on in the third period, but it was Hargrave who was equal to the task. The Kindersley netminder capped off his 43-save performance with a perfect 13 saves in the final frame.
With just over a minute left in the game, the Klippers were able to solve goaltender Tyler Fuhr, bringing themselves within striking distance. Branden Scheidl kept the puck in at the blue line before dumping it deep into the North Stars zone. Josh Hayward picked it up in the corner and drove to the side of the net. Hayward was able to tuck the puck between the post and the pads of the netminder for his first of the playoffs.
Fuhr finished with 21 saves on the night.
The Battlefords held on with just a minute left. A big part of their success was the penalty kill. Shorthanded, the North Stars not only generated offence, but went a perfect seven for seven.
“I think it’s just our speed, we never stop moving our feet. We stop and start, we always get on the puck and we’re always supporting each other.” Downs said after the game.
After the tilt, the forward from California also spoke on the difference between a regular season game and a playoff atmosphere.
“It’s the physicality. It got a little tougher, everybody hits a little more and the speed picked up.”
Baxter Kanter put on a show throughout the tilt, making a couple of highlight reel hits, heating up an already hot rivalry between the Battlefords and the Klippers.
The regular season champs look to take the 2-0 lead tomorrow in Kindersley. Puck drop is 7:30 pm.
News-Optimist THREE STARS
1) Layne Young (2 G)
2) Nathan Hargrave (43 SVs, 2 GA)
3) Baxter Kanter (1 A)
