Perlinger twins enjoying playing with hometown Kindersley Klippers

The Kindersley Klippers have SJHL teams seeing double this season.

Cam and Cobe Perlinger are identical twins who are suiting up for their first season with their hometown club.

“It’s pretty cool to play, especially with your brother. We kind of got lucky being hometown guys and auto-protected so we can play together but it’s pretty cool, especially playing in your hometown,” said Cam, who is 11 minutes older than his brother.

“It’s really cool for us playing in Kindersley and playing in front of family and friends every night and have a bunch of buddies on the team as well … It’s pretty special.”

Cobe shared those same sentiments about playing in the same place they grew up in.

“I’m pretty sure every kid here in Kindersley growing up, they don’t really know the WHL so all of them want to suit up for a game for the Klippers. That’s who we look up to,” Cobe said.

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The brothers have been contributors in many ways for head coach and general manager Clayton Jardine, who is in his first season with the club.

“There are some plays they make throughout the game and throughout the season that they are the only two guys in the league who could have made those plays,” Jardine said. “Especially penalty-killing – they read off of each other so well and the way they kill penalties together is really aggressive.

“The IQ that goes into it while they are killing those penalties is something special but they also play a prominent role with us five-on-five as well. It is special that they are hometown kids. The whole community and town is proud of those guys, having those guys in our backyard. And it’s an easy recruit to get them to be able to come and play here because they want to be proud and play for their hometown team.

“In terms of getting them to play here, they wanted to play here and we wanted them here so it worked out perfectly.”

Cobe Perlinger (left) and Cam Perlinger. (Shane Clausing/650 CKOM)

Cam has five goals and 15 assists this season, while Cobe has eight goals and eight assists. They are the only 2007-born players playing regularly in the SJHL this season.

“It’s always special when the youngest guys on the team are the hardest-working guys on the team, so it kind of sets a precedent for the rest of the team. They are both very energetic and they love life and they are very thankful to be on this hockey team playing for their hometown team,” Jardine said. “They bring a lot to this group and this organization and this community as well.”

The twins played for Team Saskatchewan at the Canada Winter Games in 2023.

Both Perlingers left to play hockey last season with the Swift Current Legionnaires in the Saskatchewan Male U-18 AAA Hockey League. Cam said it was good to have someone he knew in a new locker room.

“We’ve played on the same line our whole lives,” he said. “Always having your brother with you to any team you go to, you already have chemistry built up with one guy so it’s pretty nice to have him with me everywhere I go because I know I’ll have a linemate that I have already built up chemistry (with) and I’ll have a one-up on some of the guys who are new.”

After one season in Swift Current, the twins are back home to play with the Klippers.

“It’s been great,” Cobe said. “Moving away from Kindersley for a year to play in Swift, it was good and we had great billets and all. But being able to play at home is so special to me and being able to play in front of my friends and family and go to school with my friends, you couldn’t ask for much more than that.”

Jardine admits he had some trouble telling the two apart at the start of the season.

“It was a unique situation with me coming in to try and get to know really every single player and they were just a part of it. I did figure it out slowly but surely,” Jardine said.

“Once they get on the ice, they have a little bit of differences and they do look a little bit different off the ice, but their personalities and how they view life and how they attack life is very similar so it was difficult at the start. But (I’m) very thankful I can tell them apart now.

“That was probably the first month of the year, I was just saying, ‘The left-handed one (Cobe) go out,’ or, ‘The right-handed one (Cam) go out.’ ”

With the twin forwards being a part of a young core, the Klippers have been making strides this season with the future looking brighter. After a 13-34-4-5 record last season, they are now 21-21-4-2 this campaign.

“We’re finding ways to win hockey games and that’s kind of how our season has been going. We’ve been in a lot of one-goal games and a lot of tight games down the stretch here,” Jardine said.

“We’re improving from last year. We are taking it day by day and we are building something special here for the future. Coming here with it being my first year, it has been a lot of hard work but a lot of fun work as well.”