On their second two game losing streak in their last five games, the Kindersley Jr. Klippers needed to exercise a few demons against the Notre Dame Hounds Friday night. After losing the first three meetings, the Klippers were able to turn things around with a 3-1 win.

Through the first period, the Klippers and and Hounds played in what was a tight checking game through the first half of the period without too much for dangerous chances at either end and keeping pace with one another along the way. about halfway through the period, the shots were 6-5 in favour of Notre Dame before the Klippers got some powerplay opportunities.

After 13 minutes, Landon Peterson earned himself a hooking call to put the Hounds down a man, and the Klippers powerplay started to put on the pressure in a big way. Tylin Hilbig had a great chance during the initial man advantage when a loose puck squirted out towards him on the right of the slot, and he fired a wrist shot with an open look to goaltender Ryland Osland but was stopped.

To finish off the period, Antoine St. Onge also earned a hooking call, and again the Klippers looked good on the man advantage but couldn't score. Logan Linklater had the best chance of the man advantage with a shot coming right from the middle of the blueline.

After 1: Klippers 0 - 0 Hounds, shots 12-6 Klippers

The second period started off a little scrambly with some shakier turnovers from both teams. Five minutes into the period, Brenden Lee got nabbed for a  tripping call, and shortly after that the newest Klipper Nathan Degraves was called on a cross checking penalty to give the Hounds 1:52 of 5-on-3.

On the 5-on-3, Matt Pesenti was tested twice, one with a shot from the slot bumper position off a onetimer in the middle that he got in front of to stop play, and another later in the powerplay where the Hounds got the puck near the right side of the net and tried to jam it in past his pad but he held strong along the post. 

The Hounds had some momentum after the man advantage thanks to a tired Klippers group, but the one minute media timeout came at the right time and they seemed to catch their wind. Less than two minutes later, and the Klippers were off an offensive zone faceoff. Jaxon Georget on the draw won it back to defenceman Brayden Koch who took a shot that was blocked, but Georget picked up the rebound and tucked it home.

With just over three minutes left in the period, the Klippers struck again when the Hounds tried to clear the puck out of the zone but Charles Obobaifo held it at the right side of the blueline and carried it in towards the slot. As he came out the other side, he spun a hard backdoor feed for Andrew Blocker who tipped it in for his first goal as a Klipper and his second point in two games.

In the last two minutes of the period, the puck would get pinned to the wall between the benches and the scrum around it would cause Max Kathol to drop the gloves with Dane Probe, and both men would land some clean shots before being tied up along the boards and separated shortly after.

After 2: Klippers 2 - 0 Hounds, shots 12-7 Hounds in the period, 19-18 Klippers in the game

The first five minutes of the third period felt like a bit of a feeling out process. Not sloppy by any means, but neither team seemed ready to take any risks. Each team earned a penalty, Mathew Morgan first for the Hounds for holding, Chase Friedt-Mohr for the Klippers for tripping, but both powerplays were killed off.

Shortly after the halfway mark, Matt Mazzocchi made a great play to work the puck out the right side of the zone and went down the ice on a 2-on-1 with Aiden Bangs, but the pass hopped over Bangs' stick and the Hounds went the other way. After a faceoff in the Klippers zone, the Hounds cut into the lead when Sam Kroon held the puck in on the right side of the ice, Connor Nolan sent it in front from behind the net, and Eliot Dutil potted the onetimer.

Less than two minutes later, the Klippers got it right back thanks to a bad play from goaltender Osland and a great heads up play by Cash Arntsen. Osland behind the net stopped a dump in attempt and sent it right to the stick of Arntsen, and he didn't hesitate to fire the puck into the open cage.

Shortly after that, Matt Pesenti made a huge save after the first one brought him out of position, and Evan Vanden Heuvel tried a wraparound that was stopped by Pesenti diving across the net to make the save with his stick.

At the end of the period, the Hounds pulled their goaltender with close to two minutes left to try and get back into the game down by two, and Noah Lindsay and Coletyn Boyarski both had great opportunities to try and pot the empty netter but were thwarted by the backchecking Hounds, and a faceoff with 10 seconds left at the Hounds blueline would end the game as the Klippers earn the win.

FINAL: Klippers 3 - 1 Hounds, shots 18-7 Hounds in the period, 36-26 Hounds in the game

After being held pointless in his last outing, Cash Arntsen stayed hot with a goal and now has six points in his last five games.

The Klippers had a rough go in his first game, but Andrew Blocker has been off to a hot start in his first three games with the Klippers. His mix of grit and offensive ability has earned him a goal and an assist in his last two games.

Matt Pesenti had a big bounce back night after a rough outing against the Humboldt Broncos where he started hot stopping 27 of 29 shots in the first two periods before tiring out in the third and allowing five goals on 12 shots. Friday night, he bounced back with 35 of 36, with the lone goal on a onetimer from a pass behind the net.

The poweplay has not been able to score for the Klippers in the last two games, but has looked as good if not better than they have in the last two times they've been able to score. Against Notre Dame, the powerplay was able to set up and work the puck around to keep some offensive pressure, and even had a couple chances with an open look to the net.

With five new additions to the lineup in the last two weeks, this game seemed like one where the chemistry was starting to build. Noah Lindsay returned from dealing with injury while defenemen Josh Pufahl and Josh Morton both still deal with their own.