Concordia’s Jessymaude Drapeau named U SPORTS women’s hockey Player of the Year

Jessymaude Drapeau, a fifth-year forward with the Concordia Stingers, has been named the winner of the Brodrick Trophy as U SPORTS women's hockey Player of the Year. The announcement was made Wednesday night at the All-Canadian Gala in Waterloo, Ont., host of the 2026 Miller Waste Systems U SPORTS Women's Hockey Championship. 

Queen's forward Jada Wood captured Rookie of the Year honours, while Ottawa forward Béatrice Bilodeau earned the Marion Hilliard Award for Student-Athlete Community Service. Finally, UBC bench boss Graham Thomas was named Fox 40 Coach of the Year. 

The puck drops on the 2026 Miller Waste Systems U SPORTS Women's Hockey Championship on Thursday at the Woolwich Memorial Centre and concludes Sunday with the gold medal game at 3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT, live on CBC Television in English and TVA Sports in French. All games will also be broadcast on CBC Sports in English and Radio-Canada's digital platforms French, respectively. Tickets can be purchased at usportstickets.ca. 

BRODRICK TROPHY (Player of the Year): Jessymaude Drapeau, Concordia

Stingers captain Jessymaude Drapeau, a fifth-year forward from Rivière-du-Loup, Que., continues to cement her legacy as one of the top players in U SPORTS. 

Drapeau led the nation in scoring this season with 39 points, including 22 goals (ranking second) and 17 assists, earning First Team All-Canadian honours. During the campaign, she also surpassed the 100-point milestone for her university career while helping guide the Stingers to a dominant 22–2 regular-season record and a perfect 4–0 run through the RSEQ playoffs to capture the conference championship. 

Off the ice, Drapeau's excellence extends beyond hockey. She was named a recipient of the Weider Award, presented to Concordia University student-athletes who excel in sport, academics and community involvement, and she has also earned Academic All-Canadian honours. In 2024-25, Drapeau was honoured with the RSEQ Leadership and Social Engagement Award.  

Her impact on the national stage was already well established after being named Championship MVP at the 2024 U SPORTS National Championship, where she played a pivotal role in leading Concordia to its second national title in three years and fourth in school history. 

This marks the fourth time a player from Concordia has won the Player of the Year award – dedicated to the Brodrick family and its vision for the development of women's hockey at both the university and throughout U SPORTS – but the first since three-time inaugural winner Corinne Swirsky (1998, 1999, 2000).  

Other nominees: Grace Elliott (UBC), Sophie Hudson (Queen's), Katie Sweeney (St. Thomas) 

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Jada Wood, Queen's

Bursting onto the scene in her first season, Jada Wood quickly established herself as one of the league's brightest young talents in the league for the Queen's Gaels.

The first-year star from Williams Lake, B.C., recorded an impressive 20 points in her opening season with the Tricolour, finishing first amongst her rookie counterparts across the country. She also led all U SPORTS rookies with 13 assists, while finding the back of her opponents' net seven times.

Wood, an arts and science student at Queen's, played in all 26 games for the Gaels. She found her grove early in the season, putting up points in three of their first four games. Her most productive outing came in the team's win over Windsor, assisting on half of their eight tallies. She also bookended her breakout debut campaign with a pair of goals in her team's final game against Ontario Tech. 

She is the first Queen's player to win the award. 

Other nominees: Isa MacPhee (Mount Royal), Angélie Jobin (Concordia), Toby Graham (STFX) 

MARION HILLIARD AWARD (Student-Athlete Community Service): Béatrice Bilodeau, Ottawa

Béatrice Bilodeau is a standout on the ice and in her community as the captain of the Ottawa Gee-Gees.

Completing her second year of medical school at Ottawa, the forward recorded a career-high seven goals and seven helpers in her 26 games played this season. The dedicated student-athlete has not missed a regular season game in her four seasons with the Garnet and Grey, which spans an impressive 102 games overall.

She is also equally active within her community. Bilodeau has been volunteering as a crisis responder with Kids Help Phone since 2022. In her hometown of Ste Marie, Que., she has volunteered at the Festival of Sport, a large community event encouraging sport participation and physical activity for all, for the past three years. Beginning in 2024, she also supported the alumni leadership program within Fillactive, a Canada-wide initiative that brings together nearly 15,000 girls aged 12-17 to try new physical activities. In 2021, she completed Hockey Canada's Coach 1 and Coach 2 programs.

Bilodeau began volunteering in 2024 as a mentor with ROMI (Rural Outreach & Mentorship Initiative), which offers free, personalized one-on-one mentorship for high school students from rural communities who are interested in exploring a career in medicine. She also recently began volunteering to assist seniors living in long-term care at the CHSLD Ernest-Brisson in Gatineau.

In 2025, Bilodeau joined multiple medical teams, including Festival Sportif and the Triathlon St-Noël. 

She is the third Ottawa player to take home the award following Karina Verdon (1999-2000) and Danika Smith (2008-09), who now serves as the Gee-Gees' Assistant Director, High Performance Athletics. 

Other nominees: Tessa Stewart (Regina), Jordyn Verbeek (Concordia), Marisa   McClocklin, (Saint Mary's) 

FOX 40 Coach of the Year: Graham Thomas, UBC 

Leading the UBC Thunderbirds to a record-breaking regular season with 26 wins and 52 points, Graham Thomas has been honoured with the second U SPORTS Coach of the Year of his career. Last winning in 2012-13 in his first season at the helm, Thomas has continually produced one of the most pre-eminent programs in U SPORTS Women's Hockey.

This season saw the Thunderbirds finish first in the nation in wins, points, goals against (24) and penalty kill (92.8 per cent), second across U SPORTS in goals (85) and fifth in power play (19.5 per cent). UBC has lost just 13 of 112 regular season games over the past four seasons and have advanced to a fifth straight U SPORTS championship after sweeping Trinity Western and Manitoba in the Canada West playoffs. 

The native of Calgary has amassed 254 career regular season wins, now fourth all-time in Canada West history.

Over the course of his previous 13 seasons with the T-Birds, Thomas has won six Canada West championships along with a U SPORTS silver and two national bronze medals. 

Other nominees: Kelly Paton (Laurier), Julie  Chu (Concordia), Peter Murphy (St. Thomas)

2026 U SPORTS WOMEN'S HOCKEY AWARD WINNERS & ALL-CANADIANS

BRODRICK TROPHY (Player of the Year): Jessymaude Drapeau, Concordia
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Jada Wood, Queen's
MARION HILLIARD AWARD (Student-Athlete Community Service): Béatrice Bilodeau, Ottawa
FOX 40 Coach of the Year: Graham Thomas, UBC

First Team All-Canadians

Second Team All-Canadians

All-Rookie Team