For all the razzle-dazzle of the Flin Flon Bombers, who have made every SJHL Final in the 2020s, the heartbeat of their success truly comes from the grit and determination of Cole Tanchuk and those like him.
Tanchuk, 20, is a rugged, 6-foot-1, 199-pound defender from a cattle farming family near Shellbrook, SK, 45 kilometres west of Prince Albert, and the connection between success in the agriculture vocation and the requisite drive to win in hockey is crystal clear to him.
“I believe that’s where I acquired my hardworking nature,” Tanchuk says.
“Growing up on a firm instills in you a strong work ethic; if you don’t put in the effort, things won’t get done. This mindset translates to hockey and being part of a good team; there are rules and expectations, and adhering to your role is crucial for the team’s success.”
Tanchuk moved from a young age to play minor hockey in Prince Albert and was a dominant all-around blue liner for the Prince Albert Pirates U15s between 2017 and 2019; in 60 games those two years, he posted 55 points while maintaining a defence-first, mature focus.
That output led to him being selected in the second round, 19th overall by the Bombers of the SJHL, and in the fifth round by the Seattle Thunderbirds of the Western Hockey League in their respective 2019 drafts.
Directly after his Covid-shortened campaign with the Tisdale Trojans U18, Tanchuk was one of the few youngsters on the Bombers team that earned a spot in the 2022 Centennial Cup, the Junior A National Championship, in Estevan, SK.
The lessons he learned right away as part of a run deep into May are some he internalized very quickly.
“That first year (in the SJHL) was a shock to me, especially in the first month or two,” he says.
“Everyone was so big and strong, but (Head Coach) Mike Reagan and (Assistant Coach) Cole McCaig have been incredible. They and the veteran players taught me that I had to come ready to practice and play hard every night and that this league is tough. It is a tricky balance between humility and confidence, so while I knew it would take me some time, I also realized that to succeed, I also had to be myself.
“I had to learn to be more reliable and trustworthy so the coaching staff could count on me,” he adds.
“Being a farm boy trained me to be tough and resilient. I learned to take hits and not let them get me down. I knew I had to block shots even if they hurt because I had to get the job done. On a farm, there are many jobs you don’t want to do, just like in hockey, where there are tougher games than others, but I have been raised to enjoy the tough times and the grind.”
Both sets of Tanchuk’s grandparents had farms, and the head of cattle, pigs, and chickens in the family number in the hundreds.
His father, Mike, is the Foreman for the Town of Shelbrook and still farms, while his mother, Stacey, runs her own pharmacy. Cole’s brother Ashton attends law school at the University of Saskatchewan.
All of them are hardcore Bombers fans now, which stands to reason, given that Cole has donned the Flin Flon jersey 179 times at the time of writing.
The wild, electric nights at the Bombers’ home, the Whitney Forum, are world-famous, and Tanchuk does not take a moment for granted.
Even after last season’s disappointing six-game loss in the Canterra Seeds Cup final to Melfort, the third-consecutive finals loss for Tanchuk and the Bombers.
“Knowing that we were top dogs all year and then losing in the finals wasn’t a good feeling,” he says.
“But when I look back and reflect on those Whitney nights, it’s a tough, amazing feeling to explain. You’re out there, and the crowd is going crazy; you get goosebumps. Being a Bomber, walking down the street, I’ll have about ten people talking to me about last night’s game, or the team or whatever, and it’s a really cool feeling.”
“For sure, sometimes people get negative,” he adds, “but most of the time here, things have gone well, so there’s almost always a positive interaction. We love the Bomber fans so much.”
Tanchuk was given the honour of the captain’s ‘C’ ahead of this season. After dealing with unruly animals all his life, the patience and determination needed to steer the Bombers players in the right direction is right up Cole’s alley.
“Working with animals is definitely similar to what (Coach Mike Reagan) tries to do with us,” he says with a laugh.
“He wants us all to buy into something, and it’s the same with our cows. We have to get them to do what we want and to work as a team, so it makes it a little clearer for me to see what he and the staff are trying to achieve with us.”
Tanchuk is considering joining the Royal Canadian Mounted Police when his hockey career is over.
Yet his pride in coming from a family of Saskatchewan farmers is abundantly clear, and there is no doubt he credits that upbringing for much of his present success.