The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Jeff LaPointe's overtime goal on Saturday night helped the Flin Flon Bombers split the weekend series with the Dodge Conference leading Kindersley Klippers. The Bombers came up short on Friday night, losing 4-3, but rebounded with a 3-2 overtime win on Saturday night. Fans in Flin Flon got their first look at newcomers Anatoli Moshkovsky and Trevor Olynick. Moshkovsky's work ethic was contagious, and Olynick lived up to his billing as a solid, stay-at-home defenceman. An early power-play gave Kindersley the lead at 1:44 of the first period on Friday. Mark Kelts beat goaltender Troy Ciernia with a nice shot from the slot. Derek Blais evened the score for Flin Flon at 9:22, tipping a shot from Kyle Holmes into the back of the net. Stewart Sjoberg picked up the other assist. Sjoberg netted his fifth of the season at 18:44 on a power play, with Derek Gallagher and Troy Ciernia assisting. The Bombers out shot the Klippers 15-9 in the first period, but it was all Kindersley in the second period. Steve Matic's goal at 1:11 tied the game, and Jason Fleck made it 3-2 at 6:29, as the Klippers out shot the Bombers 15-6. The teams exchanged goals in the third period. Jade Boklaschuk scored at 11:39 to make it 4-2 for Kindersley. The Bombers applied pressure in the dying minutes, and with the goaltender pulled, Simon McCusker put the puck past goaltender Steve Houghton at 19:13. Stewart Sjoberg and Kyle Holmes assisted on the goal, that made it 4-3 with time left on the clock. Flin Flon couldn't get the equalizer, and tempers flared when Derek Blais and Kindersley's Taylor Emmerson collided at centre ice as time expired, setting the scene for a exciting rematch on Saturday night. The teams played through a scoreless first period, as both Paul Reimer and Steve Houghton were unbeatable in their respective nets. Kindersley's Jason Fleck opened the scoring with a goal at 3:29 of the second period. John Iron pinched in from the point to beat Houghton just 30 seconds later, with Tyler Stinton and Clayton Geiger assisting. With the Bombers on a five-on-three power play, Derek Gallagher scored his seventh goal of the season, assisted by Simon McCusker and Derek Blais at 12:17. At 13:07 of the second period, Curtis Bazylinski received a five-minute major penalty for checking from behind. The Bombers pressured for an insurance marker, but couldn't score. The Bombers got into penalty trouble in the third period, and Jade Boklaschuk tied the game during a two-man advantage for Kindersley at 11:23. The Klippers out shot the Bombers 15-6 in the third period, but Flin Flon held on to take Kindersley into an extra frame. At 1:20 of the overtime period, Taylor Emmerson ran over goaltender Paul Reimer, and was penalized for goaltender interference. The Bombers worked the puck around on the power play, and Jeff LaPointe became an instant hero when his shot cleanly beat Houghton at 2:39, with Stewart Sjoberg and Derek Blais assisting. With the win, the Bombers were able to gain some ground on their competition in the Dodge Conference. Flin Flon's record is now 5-14-8-2, good for 20 points after 29 games. They trail the La Ronge Ice Wolves by five points, with one game in hand. The Bombers will have to put together a string of victories in order to catch up, but the team showed a lot of promise in the games against the Klippers on the weekend. Flin Flon will hit the road for three games this weekend, the first two against Kindersley on Friday and Saturday. They will finish the three game trip in Melfort on Sunday.
