Regina Pats' forward Liam Pue will always remember his 16th birthday because he scored two goals, one in regulation and one in a shootout against the Swift Current Broncos in a 7-6 win on Monday, February 16.
"It was a pretty crazy game, with two goalie pulls from both teams as well, which I've never seen before," Pue said on the SportsCage. "We got down by two or three goal leads and we found a way to get ourselves back in it, which was good to see from our group."
The Pats are fighting for a playoff spot and have won their last four games in a row, Regina is currently seventh in the WHL's Eastern Conference standings.
"It was definitely tough because we knew this was a big week for us, trying to secure that playoff spot, we all knew what was up for grabs with these two points every game," Pue detailed. "Our group did a great job showing up every day to the rink, showing up to the games, being prepared and ready."
Regina's last appearance in the WHL playoffs was in 2023 where the Pats lost to the Saskatoon Blades in a seven-game series. This season, Pue has played 26 games for the Pats, recording six goals and eight assists.
"This second half, I think definitely the foot kind of switches, you start to get your feel, especially in the WHL, and gain some confidence on the ice, which is huge if you have the confidence in the game," Pue explained.
"You can do a lot of things if you're confident in yourself. This definitely feels like I've taken a big step recently. We're hoping to keep it forward and do what I can to help the team make the playoffs."
Pue splits time with the Pats and the Regina Pat Canadians due to coming into the WHL as a 15-year-old. He is only allowed to play 34 games in total for the Pats due to the Western Canadian Development Model. With the Pat Canadians, Pue has played 21 games, scoring 16 goals and registering 32 assists.
"I think coming into the WHL, it's a different game than U18 hockey," Pue said. "I think being able to help the team however you can is important. Making sure you're using the minutes that you get on the ice wisely and trying to limit your mistakes as much as you can, even though that's hard to do sometimes."
The Regina Pats have two youngsters on their team in Pue and Maddox Schultz, who were both 15 years old when the Pats selected them. Schultz was taken first, meanwhile Pue was selected with the third overall pick in the 2025 WHL Prospects Draft. Recently alongside Pue, Schultz scored a goal in regulation and the shootout.
"It's pretty amazing to have Maddox," Pue explained. "He's a pretty special and gifted player, we're lucky to have him on our team. It's been great to have him and play alongside him on the same line. He's a guy you can trust on your team, so our team loves him."
The next game on the Pats schedule is Friday, when the team hosts the Edmonton Oil Kings.
"I think we've got to keep playing how we've been playing, once we get a lead we've got to be satisfied with winning by 3-2 or 2-1, whatever it is," Pue said about the Pats' upcoming games. "We've been playing great so far, so if we can keep the foot on the pedal, I think we'll be on the right track."
Catch the Pats hosting the Oil Kings on Friday with Dante De Caria bringing you the pre-game show at 6:30 p.m. and puck drop at 7 p.m. You can catch all the action on 620 CKRM.
