SJHL pre-season schedule set for Klippers
By Jordan Parker
It was a difficult season for the SJHL Iron Horse Kindersley Klippers, but new GM & Head Coach Clayton Jardine hopes to change the team's fortunes.
Jardine was hired in April 2023 following the parting of ways between coach Ken Plaquin and the organization. He spent four seasons with the AJHL's Camrose Kodiaks and was also named SJHL Coach of the Year when he last helmed the Klippers in 2018-2019, propelling them to a 36-16 record.
The Kindersley Klippers will be looking for a bounce back season. Photo by Kate Winquist
After a last-place finish in 2022-2023, Jardine is ready to hit the ground running, starting with the pre-season tilts.
"I'm excited to play three games in three days and figure out what this team has. Then we have one game at the end to finish up. We want to finish strong and keep the momentum heading into the season," he said.
"That last pre-season game against Battleford will be fun to watch, and people can see what we're made of this season."
The Klippers start pre-season on September 8th and will play the Humboldt Broncos twice and then Battlefords on Sunday, September 10th, 2023. They finish up on the 13th before the regular season begins on September 22nd.
Jardine is looking at the draft class, and his current players, and the pre-season will allow him to take a close look at the talent.
"We need to find a balance of younger players during the pre-season as well. We want young guys to play and get a taste. In the SJHL model, you have plenty of younger guys," he said.
"You might get guys who start with us at 15-or-16-years-old and really learn the ropes. So we need to show them what this team is all about but also get our veterans some reps in."
While the Klippers could bring back nearly 2/3 of their team next year, Jardine is going to do what's best for the club to allow them to compete.
"We'll see how things shape up at the start of the season. We need to see who will be good for the club and who should be on the roster," he said.
"We're in a boat where if we need to do tweaking to make the team stronger, we'll make adjustments. We want to make sure the group will be successful on-and-off the ice."
He hopes that the younger players can push the veterans to work hard and that there'll be an air of healthy competition.
"We hope young guys will push for a spot and challenge the older guys. It's about seeing who wants it more, and that's a good thing," he said.
Jardine will move his family up to Kindersley in August, and he's excited to get settled. He hasn't made big decisions on captaincies next year, but he knows there are leaders in the room.
"There are people I've leaned on for information over the last few months, and this is a really important decision. We'll leave it until later on – Maybe even a month into the actual season," he said.
"We don't want to throw someone into the role for the sake of it. I'm excited about this team and can't wait to do something great here as a group next season.”