The Bombers are on a hot streak, picking up their third straight win and clawing back to .500 hockey with a 3-1 win over Kindersley.
Flin Flon took the lead in the first period and never lost it, getting closer to entering the SJHL playoff hunt and beating back a horrific October for the team.
One of the key presences for Kindersley would be Dawson Karol - the forward spent two years as a Bomber before being traded away, then ending up with the Klippers later in the summer. Karol, moved to finish up open future considerations with a trade last year, would try to be his team's bête noire, a thorn in their side for his new club.
The Bombers drew first blood late in the first period, with Evin Bossel and Rhett Ewen breaking in on goal and Bossel setting Ewen up for his second of the season. Flin Flon led after 20 otherwise uneventful minutes.
Flin Flon risked wrecking their lead in the second with three straight penalties, but the Klippers couldn't solve the Bomber penalty kill or starting goalie Matthew Kieper. The penalty pendulum swung the other way late, with Kindersley taking two penalties on the same play and giving Flin Flon a prime opportunity. Both of the Klippers who got the gate were first-liners - Alex Mack took the first one for hacking Ewen's stick out of his hands, then Karol took a call of his own, shooting the puck into the Bomber net after the whistle, which started a skirmish.
With a two-man advantage and a chance to blow the game open, Flin Flon couldn't convert and the Klippers got through - several big stops by Klipper goalie Brett O'Halloran, the son of former Bomber goalie and Thompson native Chris O'Halloran. Flin Flon couldn't convert and Karol got a breakaway chance to end the powerplay, almost converting on the chance before Kieper shut the door. The Bombers' one-goal lead still stood entering the third.
Flin Flon got another chance with a man up early in the third and took full advantage, with Carter Anderson somehow sneaking away from the defence and ending up wide open. With the nearest defender somewhere around Flaxcombe, Anderson got a pass and scored easily on O'Halloran, who had little chance to make the save. 2-0 Bombers.
Kindersley would claw back some ground late in the third, with Zakery Anderson jumping on a loose puck near a fracas in front of Kieper, but Flin Flon would keep the lead until the final horn. Ryder Ringor popped home an empty-net goal from about 140 feet soon after the Klippers pulled O'Halloran, restoring the two-goal lead and insuring a Bomber victory.
Kieper picked up his second win in as many games, saving 25 of 26 Kindersley shots. O'Halloran fought well, but took the loss after making 34 stops.
With the win, the Bombers have gotten back to playing .500 hockey, with a record of 9-9-1-0. The team now has a three-game winning streak and inches closer to being back in the SJHL playoff hunt - the team sits ninth in the league with 19 points in 19 games. Kindersley sits one spot ahead of Flin Flon in the final playoff spot with 20 points - a regulation win over the Klippers for Flin Flon Saturday night will put the Bombers back in a playoff spot, leapfrogging Kindersley. The Bombers could also enter a tie with seventh-place La Ronge with a win if the Estevan Bruins defeat the Ice Wolves Saturday night.
