By Martin Martinson

North Stars fall in opener despite late surge

Sep 15, 2018 | 12:57 PM

The Battlefords North Stars kicked off their new season Friday at home against the division-rival Kindersley Klippers.

The two teams opening their season with a home-and-home series is a tradition that dates back six years. Recent history has shown the North Stars to have heavily dominated the season-openers, boasting a 3-0 record over the Kilppers in the three years prior. But Friday night was Kindersley’s turn to start the season with a 1-0 record.

And right from the opening faceoff, it was a fast-paced, up-tempo game.

Just when it looked like the first period of the season was going to come to a close without a dent on the scorecard, at the 19:26 mark, Austin Nault, the 19-year-old from Winnipeg, made it 1-0 in favour of the visitors, thanks to a centring feed right on his tape from the left-side corner, courtesy of Klippers forward Nate Keeley.

Despite good energy and high-intensity, the North Stars found themselves down one and outshot 10-5 at the conclusion of the first.

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There was no scoring in the second period, but there were a few minor altercations including one early in the period between North Stars alternate captain, Braydon Buziak and Kindersley forward Josh Fletcher.

The meeting happened behind the play inside the Kindersley zone and ultimately resulted in a minor penalty apiece, two minutes for unsportsmanlike conduct given to Fletcher, and a correlating two minutes for roughing going against the Stars’ hometown hero, Buziak.

The North Stars came out flying in the third, no doubt bound and determined to try and tie the score in front of the hometown crowd. The Stars, who by the end of the second period were trailing in shots by a 12-6 count, wound up closing the gap considerably, throwing everything at the defending Top Goaltender of the Year, Justen Close, outshooting the Klippers 13-7 in the final period.

Despite the onslaught right from the outset of the period, the visitors got on the board at the 9:49 mark of the third to add some insurance and increase their lead to 2-0, thanks to Damon McKenzie’s shot through traffic from the mid-slot.

With time winding down in regulation, Stars fans were getting anxious; desperate for someone on the homeside to break through late and show them there was still hope for the comeback.

At the 18:22 mark of the third, that’s exactly what happened, thanks to one of the two Americans dressed for the black, silver and white, as the California kid, Ryan Gil, snapped a shot under the Klippers’ goaltender’s arm to give the Stars their first goal of the new season and bring them back to within one with just over a minute remaining in the third.

Ultimately, the comeback was not to be for the Stars. Kindersley’s Josh Fletcher cashed in with just seconds remaining on the clock to seal the game for the Klippers 3-1.

Scoring Summary

First Period

1-0, Klippers,19:26 – Austin Nault(1) ASST: Nate Keeley(1), Kyle Bosch(1)

Second Period

No Scoring

Third Period

2-0, Klippers, 9:49 – Damon McKenzie(1) ASST: Caden Benson

2-1, North Stars, 18:22 – Ryan Gil(1) ASST: None

3-1, Klippers, 19:59 – KIN Josh Fletcher(1) ASST: None (EN)

Martin.Martinson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: MartyMartyPxP1