Cole Temple had two goals and two assists to pace the Regina Pats to a 7-4 victory over the Moose Jaw Warriors on Friday night at Affinity Place in Estevan.
The Pats scored three times in a 31-second span of the first period to seize a 3-0 advantage. Jaxswin Vaughan scored 8:24 into the opening frame, Corbin Baughan added to the lead 15 seconds later, and Temple notched his first of the game 16 seconds after the second goal to complete the barrage.
Moose Jaw called a timeout after Temple’s tally, and that seemed to settle the Warriors down. Connor Schmidt scored on a Moose Jaw power play to pull the Warriors to within two, and Max Finley’s goal 85 seconds into the second trimmed the Pats’ lead to one.
But the Pats again struck quickly. Temple scored to make it 4-2, and Logan Peskett added to the lead 54 seconds later. Sam Oremba’s marker put the Pats up by four after 40 minutes.
Owen Berge and Ethan Hughes on a power play pulled the Warriors to within two, but Zane Rowan’s goal into an empty net dashed any hopes of a Warriors’ comeback.
“I liked the way we played in the first period,” said Pats head coach Brad Herauf. “With some things in the second period, I thought we got complacent, but in the third period, I thought we did some winning things to win the hockey game.”
Herauf pointed out that Temple – the team’s first round pick in the 2022 WHL Draft – was involved physically from the outset.
“The second period went real well for him. He was making plays, he was skating and he was being physical. When he’s doing that, he’s going to be all over the puck.”
Pats’ goalie Madden Mulawka allowed four goals on 32 shots, but Herauf said Mulawka made some timely saves, including a couple of breakaways, and when the Warriors had pressure in the third.
Dimitri Fortin made 29 saves for Moose Jaw.
Herauf pointed to a couple of 16-year-olds forwards, Cohen Klassen and Zachary Lansard, who are creating difficult decisions for the team.
“They’re pushing our older guys for spots, so either way, if they make our team this year, it’ll be good, but if not, they come in as 17-year-old guys ready to play,” said Herauf.
The Pats and the Warriors will meet again Saturday night at 7 p.m. in Assiniboia.
