WHL NOTEBOOK: Experience helps Temple find success

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This article was published 12/11/2024 (508 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Experience is beginning to pay off for Cole Temple.

Now 17 and in his second full Western Hockey League season with the Regina Pats, the five-foot-nine, 166-pound forward is finding his way.

“I definitely feel the game is starting to slow down for me,” Temple said. “Especially with my confidence that I’ve worked on and my skating, I think the game seems to slow down with getting older and getting more confident. The game seems easier.”

Temple, who was the fifth overall pick in 2022, had a sensational draft year in the U15 AAA Winnipeg Hockey League with the Brandon Wheat Kings, piling up 58 goals and 108 points in just 28 games on a line with current Brandon Wheat Kings forward Jaxon Jacobson.

At 15, Temple put up outstanding numbers in his rookie season in the Manitoba U18 AAA Hockey League — 25 goals and 33 assists in just 35 games — so his debut campaign in the WHL was an eye opener when he contributed six goals and 13 assists in 57 games.

Looking back, he said it’s a big change.

“It’s very tough,” Temple said. “You’re playing against guys who are four or five years older. It’s a lot in your head. I lacked confidence last year just having the thought of playing guys a lot bigger and stronger than me and older. That was tough, especially because 16-year-olds usually don’t get a lot of playing time.

“With that playing time, you really have to put in the work, so it is really hard.”

One sign that success is likely on the way came in his rookie season when he played at the 2023 World U17 Hockey Challenge. Temple had two goals and four assists in eight games competing against players his own age.

So far this year in the WHL, he has three goals, six assists and four penalty minutes in 16 games. That means he’s already just 10 points off last year’s pace, and he sits third in team scoring.

“It’s definitely huge for my mindset and my confidence,” said Temple, who has played the most with Jaxsin Vaughan, with other players cycling through the line. “Getting those points and seeing those goals go in will help me in the long run for sure.

“Last year was definitely tough for me going from putting up those crazy numbers at U15 and U18 and coming into the WHL. It’s a lot harder game. It’s a completely different game that you have to get used to, so coming in, in year two, I’m feeling a lot more confident.

“It’s easier for me to manoeuvre with the puck and make plays.”

Unfortunately for the Pats, they’ve gone 0-7-0-1 in their last eight games and are 5-11-1-1 overall, which has them in 10th place in the 11-team Eastern Conference. The good news is they have 50 games to play and are just five points out of the final playoff spot currently held by the Calgary Hitmen.

He thinks they can turn the corner.

“Our group feels a lot closer this year than it did last year,” Temple said. “We seem a lot more upbeat and chatty in the locker room and more positive than it seemed last year. We’re all super tight and good friends. I think our identity is definitely how we can skate with the puck and get pucks in and our work ethic.

“That’s what our coaches push on us, being able to skate with the puck and make plays. We have a great group on and off the ice.”

The Pats will have a chance to make some hay against the Brandon Wheat Kings in something that hasn’t happened since the 2004-05 season, back-to-back games at Westoba Place on Friday and Saturday.

Needless to say, the Pats will have a motivated player in Temple, who is the son of former Wheat Kings forward Jeff and the grandson of former Wheat Kings goalie Ted.

“I’ve had those two dates circled on my calendar since the start of the year,” Temple said. “I think it’s really cool. I’ve never seen it before so I think it’s cool we’ll get back-to-back games in Brandon in my hometown. I’ll have lots of family and friends there so I think it will be really neat.”

That should allow him to have a little longer visit on Friday after the game, and a shorter visit on Saturday before the bus leaves.

Another nice thing for Temple this season is that a lot more of his buddies are in the league, including three he’ll be facing on the weekend.

With six graduates from last year’s U18 team making their way to the WHL — Brandon Wheat Kings forwards Brady Turko, Easton Odut and Jacobson, Everett Silvertips defenceman Kaeson Fisher, Saskatoon Blades forward Colten Worthington and Swift Current Broncos defenceman Josh McGregor — he’s suddenly playing against his friends a lot.

“It’s awesome,” Temple said. “It seems like every game it’s a guy I played with. It’s definitely different playing against them than playing with them but it’s nice to see them. Odut and Turko last night (Friday) was good to see them and chat a little bit. That was a huge year for all those guys to come into the WHL. It’s good to see them on the ice for sure.”

He said it’s also a good indication of how strong Brandon’s U15 and U18 programs have been.

“Unbelievable,” Temple said. “It’s so good. I think we had a really strong age group that came together and helped us win. I think that helped a lot with guys moving on to the next level.”

While Temple is already in major junior, he may also be looking at the next level.

On Oct. 23, the National Hockey League’s Central Scouting released its preliminary players to watch list and Temple’s name was on it. He received a ‘W’ grade, making him a candidate to be picked in the sixth or seventh rounds.

“I didn’t even know until I saw the little post that the WHL made on Instagram,” Temple said. “I was pretty excited about it, I was pretty happy. Obviously I don’t want to take it for granted and I always want more than that. My thought process in seeing was, ‘Oh ya, that’s cool but I want to be rated higher than that.’

“It put a smile on my face but I didn’t really think of it too much. I want to build my way up and be rated higher than that for sure.”

“I want more than that,” he added. “I’m getting a little greedy.”

He has lots of season left to make that impression, and so does the team around him. He’s hopeful it will work out for everyone.

“I want to keep my confidence and just do what I’m doing, just use my skating ability to make those plays and get those chances,” Temple said. “Everything else will come from that. As a team, we need to start scoring more. We get outscored heavily in our games so far this season so I think if we’re just putting the puck in the net we’ll find ourselves in the win column.”

THIS AND THAT

• QUIZ — Here’s the ultimate question you can only guess at, because I fear for you if this random knowledge is rattling around in your head.

Since the WHL began play in the 1966-67, the league champion has won four games in the final series to claim the title in all but one season. There are only four other possible outcomes in a best-of-seven series.

So in the 52 seasons when a final was held and there were no tie games, what’s been the most common outcome, a 4-0 sweep, 4-1, 4-2 or 4-3? What’s least likely?

• WEEKLY AWARDS — The player of the week is 19-year-old Prince George Cougars forward Koehn Ziemmer of Mayerthorpe, Alta., who had seven goals and an assist in three games. The prospect of the Los Angeles Kings turns 20 next month.

The goaltender of the week is 18-year-old Tri-City Americans netminder Nathan Preston of Penticton, B.C., who posted a league-best .959 save percentage by stopping 47 shots in a 7-2 victory over the Red Deer Rebels.

The rookie of the week is 17-year-old Portland Winterhawks netminder Ondrej Stebetak of Jihlava, Czechia, who won his only appearance while posting a 3.00 goals-against average, a .925 save percentage and an assist.

• SIN BIN — There has been no discipline since Nov. 2.

• TRADE FRONT — The Pats acquired 17-year-old forward Zach Pantelakis of North Vancouver, B.C., from the Kamloops Blazers on Monday for a fifth-round pick in 2027 and a fifth-round pick in 2028. In another deal on Monday, the Tri-City Americans sent 19-year-old forward Shaun Rios of San Jose, Calif., to the Wenatchee Wild for a seventh-round pick in 2028.

• ALUMNI GLANCE — Ryan Pulock, 30, is in his eighth full season in the National Hockey League and played in his 500th career regular season game last week. A product of Grandview, Pulock joined the Wheat Kings for the 2010-11 season and graduated in the spring of 2014 after serving as captain in his final two seasons. During his four-year WHL career, he had 64 goals, 146 assists, 210 points and 64 penalty minutes in 261 regular season games. He had 15 points in 24 playoff games. In the NHL, he has 223 points in 567 career regular season and playoff games.

• BIRTHDAY BOYS — Codey Burki (Nov. 17, 1987), Bart Cote (Nov. 12, 1970), Kelly Greenbank (Nov. 17, 1955), Vinny Iorio (Nov. 14, 2002), Mike LeClerc (Nov. 10, 1976), Quintin Lisoway (Nov. 12, 1995), Brent Mireau (Nov. 11, 1967), Jim Mollard (Nov. 11, 1963), Aiden Mucenski (Nov. 15, 1999), Eric Samuelson (Nov. 18, 1962), Mark Schneider (Nov. 10, 1990), Jeremy Wray (Nov. 16, 1982).

• THE WEEK AHEAD — In a bit of an odd week, the Wheat Kings have back-to-back games at Westoba Place against the Pats on Friday and Saturday, with both starting at 7 p.m.

• ANSWER — In the 52 finals that were held and didn’t involve a tie, the answer is below.

— 4-0 (13).

— 4-1 (16).

— 4-2 (12).

— 4-3 (11).

On a sidenote, there have been four seasons when there was a tie game in the final outcome: In the 1975–76 post-season when the New Westminster Bruins defeated the Saskatoon Blades 4–2–1, in the 1970-71 playoffs when the Edmonton Oil Kings defeated the Flin Flon Bombers 4–1–1 and in the 1967–68 playoffs when the Estevan Bruins topped Flin Flon 4–0–1.

The outlier is the 1972–73 final when the Medicine Hat Tigers beat Saskatoon 3–0–2.