The Battlefords North Stars head into 2026 with the Nutrien Division lead (Byron Hildebrand Photography/Facebook)

By Ryan Lambert

North Stars take division lead

North Stars cap off 2025 with a 6-1 win vs the Kindersley Klippers

Jan 1, 2026 | 12:53 AM

A five-goal third period propelled the Battlefords North Stars (16-8-2-2, 1st in Nutrien Division) to a 6-1 victory over the Kindersley Klippers (14-10-2-5, 2nd in Nutrien Division) to take the division lead.

After a near three-week break, the North Stars started off slow but hit their stride in the second half of the game and dominated the third period.

The Klippers took a 1-0 lead in the first period when Ethan Sautner tried to hit Rylan Wieler with a pass. Wieler couldn’t handle the pass, but the puck went right back to Sautner, and he shot it past North Stars goaltender Kaeden Serpa to put the Klippers up 1-0, a lead they took into the second period.

Kindersley held that lead for most of the second period, until Adam Konowalchuk skated the puck up the right side. He side stepped on Luke Ridgway before putting the puck through the five hole of Klippers goalie Brett O’Halloran.

The third period is when the flood gates really opened for the North Stars. Just over five minutes into the frame, Austin Garrett floated a puck on from the point which found it’s way past a screened O’Halloran to put the North Stars up 2-1.

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23 seconds later, Kobe Sawyer found Sam Kirwan on a 2-on-1. Kirwan had an empty net to shoot at and made no mistake, his second goal of the season gave the North Stars a 3-1 advantage.

Just over two minutes after Kirwan’s goal, Linken Fisher intercepted a stretch pass on the left side boards at the red line. He brought it into the zone, went wide on Jacob Dennis before skating across the crease and sliding it past O’Halloran, 4-1 North Stars.

With a few minutes left to go in the third period, the North Stars had another instance of two goals within a minute of each other. Carter Geysen walked in on the powerplay and shot it under O’Halloran’s glove. 39 seconds later, Geysen found Owen Nelson on the breakaway who scored to make it 6-1 North Stars, which it stayed at.

The frustration boiled over for the Klippers late in the period. Cam Perlinger knocked over Finlay Klippenstein and gave him an extra shot while Klippenstein was on the ground. Owen Dyck took exception and immediately dropped the gloves with Perlinger, getting his team and the crowd on their feet.

The North Stars took the 6-1 victory and will head into 2026 with the Nutrien Division lead. They will have the immediate rematch with the Klippers on New Years Day in Kindersley, once again to compete for the division lead. The Ultra Print pregame show begins at 3:30 pm, Napa Auto Parts North Stars hockey at 4:00 on CJNB/CJNS.

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Ryan.Lambert@pattisonmedia.com