2015 BLG Awards - Nominee CIS Male Athlete of the Year: Cedric McNicoll, McGill Redmen

Cédric McNicoll

McGill University

Sport: Hockey

Year of eligibility: 5

Academic program: Management (Accounting)

Hometown: Boucherville, Que.

Cédric McNicoll, a 25-year-old management junior at McGill University, made his debut with the Redmen a year ago after three seasons at the professional level in the AHL and the ECHL, which followed a stellar junior career in the QMJHL.

A 5-foot-10, 186-pound centre who hails from Boucherville, Que., he excelled in his first season with the Redmen in 2013-14, earning OUA East all-star honours and finishing second on the team in scoring with 35 points in only 23 league contests. He then claimed the OUA playoff scoring title with 16 points in eight games and guided the Redmen to an appearance in the CIS championship, where they lost in double overtime to eventual champion Alberta during the semifinals.

He was the 2014 recipient of the Guy Lafleur Award of Excellence as the Quebec university player who best combines hockey excellence with academic success and citizenship.

This season, he won the prestigious Stuart Forbes Trophy as McGill’s male athlete of the year and merited CIS All-Canadian second-team status after being voted MVP of the OUA East. McNicoll, who also received the Bobby Bell Trophy as Team MVP, finished tied for fourth in the OUA scoring race with 34 points in 25 games. He either scored or assisted on 33.3 per cent of the team’s 102 regular-season goals, and then tied for the OUA playoff scoring title with 12 points in eight games.

Academically, he is majoring in accounting and achieved a grade-point average of 3.75 (out of 4.0) as a sophomore, making the Principal’s Student-athlete Honour Roll. Last fall, he was among the CIS Top Eight Academic All-Canadians honoured by Governor General David Johnston. 

In the community, he has volunteered for numerous school and hospital visits during his time in the QMJHL, the ECHL and AHL.

“Cédric was a key contributor to our success over the past two seasons,” says Kelly Nobes, head coach of the Redmen. “He is dynamic offensively with exceptional vision and play-making ability and a real quick release. He is also very solid without the puck and plays well in all three zones. He is very effective on faceoffs and is used in all situations. Cédric has been a great leader for our team as he is very serious and conscientious with regards to his approach to games and practices. His work habits are outstanding. Not only is he an elite player in the CIS, he is also an elite student as evidenced by his GPA in the demanding academic program.”

Profile courtesy of: Earl Zukerman, McGill University