Change of scenery has benefitted Huckins as he chases Q title with Sherbrooke
* photo credit: Vincent Levesque Rousseau
When Cole Huckins heard that the Sherbrooke Phoenix had acquired Jacob Melanson, he immediately sent his former teammate a text.
After two seasons together in Acadie-Bathurst, where the pair helped lead the Titan out of the first round of the QMJHL Playoffs on both occasions, they have another opportunity to chase a title this year with the high-flying Phoenix.
“[I told him] I’m really pumped to be back with you,” Huckins said of his text. “To have a familiar face to come to the locker room is always nice and I think it made the transition easier for him and made it exciting in the locker room for me.”
The acquisition of Melanson (SEA), and even back to Huckins (CGY) in the offseason, has highlighted an ‘all in’ approach by Phoenix general manager and head coach Stephane Julien. With a roster at the start of the year that also featured Ethan Gauthier, Tyson Hinds (ANA), Joshua Roy (MTL) and David Spacek (MIN), Julien added Jakub Brabenec (VGK), Marc-Andre Gaudet (STL) and Melanson before the QMJHL trade deadline as the Phoenix chase their first Gilles-Courteau Trophy (formerly President Cup).
With 13 games left in the regular season, Sherbrooke top the Western Conference, own the QMJHL’s third best record at 38-12-5 and are the sixth ranked team in the Kia CHL Top 10.
“It’s exciting in the room,” Huckins said. “Everyone knows what our goal is and what our team is capable of. We added some really big pieces at the trade deadline and I think that got everyone really excited for the playoffs and the future.
“The goal is to win and everyone thinks we have the team to do it.”
The acquisition of Huckins gets a little lost in the shuffle now but a fresh start in Sherbrooke has worked wonders for the Calgary Flames draft pick. In 53 games, the Fredericton, N.B., native has set career highs in goals (24), assists (24) and points (48) and recorded his first QMJHL hat-trick Nov. 19.
Cole Huckins 🎩🎩🎩 alert‼️@PhoenixSherbroo | @NHLFlames pic.twitter.com/6wYbmxt1iS
— Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) November 20, 2022
“I think a change of scenery was really nice,” he admitted. “I’ve been playing with some great players and I’ve been able to find myself in a position to succeed so it’s been nice in that aspect.
“But I’ve got to give a lot of credit to my teammates for finding me open and them being able to bury the puck when I pass it to them.”
Over the course of three seasons after he was selected 16th overall in the 2019 Q Draft, Huckins played 138 games for the Titan, recorded 96 points and had his name called with the 77th overall pick in the NHL Draft after the 2020-21 season. He recently made his return to Bathurst Feb. 19 where he had an assist in a 5-3 Phoenix win.
Despite a move from the CHL’s smallest market in Bathurst to one of the QMJHL’s biggest, the transition has been easy for Huckins. Prior to his QMJHL career, he attended Stanstead College, which is approximately 40 minutes from Sherbrooke, so he was familiar with the area. He has family close by, has a strong relationship with his new billets and while he doesn’t speak French, he seamlessly fit into the Phoenix room get the get-go.
“I’m working on my French and picking up some words here and there,” he said. “It’s a learning curve and I’m trying to get use to the language. For the most part everyone speaks English in the room so it hasn’t been that big of an adjustment.
“It’s a great group of guys [and] I’ve loved my time here.”
