BCEHL'S 2024-25 COMMISSIONER'S AWARD GOES TO NICHOLAS DRAPACK
For Immediate Release
July 22, 2025
Saanichton, B.C. - Nicholas Drapack of the U18 AAA Greater Vancouver Canadians has been named the 2024-25 recipient of the British Columbia Elite Hockey League's Commissioner's Award.
The Commissioner’s Award celebrates the BCEHL athlete who profoundly impacts their community and shows exemplary leadership on-and-off the ice.
This season, Nicholas has been a leader on his team and within the hockey community by going above and beyond with charitable and mentorship initiatives.
"Nicholas has been an exemplary citizen this year," BCEHL Commissioner Fred Zweep said, "He helped create opportunities for many individuals to continue to play the game of hockey who may have faced challenges to do so otherwise. We are proud of Nicholas for the person he is and to call him a part of the BCEHL family.”
Nicholas is originally from Oakville, ON, and this is where he began his hockey career. After a few years of playing, he decided he wanted to do more for the sport than just compete on the ice. With that goal in mind, he began to organize and collect hockey equipment, which he eventually donated to the residents of a remote community in Northern Quebec.
In 2022, Nicholas and his family relocated to the west coast where he joined the BCEHL and began to suit up for the Canadians in 2023.
During the 2024-25 season, the six-foot right winger decided to reestablish his charitable endeavours and started collecting equipment on his own time. Again, wanting to help the hockey community, and this time in British Columbia.
"Nick set a personal goal this season to assist underprivileged communities and help them overcome some of the hurdles of playing hockey,” Canadians' Head Coach Sinclair Kim said. “It was a large undertaking, but he was focused and determined to make a difference and help get some kids on the ice.”
Nicholas asked his teammates, family and friends for their unused equipment and even went to go visit younger players to talk about what he was trying to achieve. In the end, he collected 10 full hockey bags of gear including pucks, gloves and over a dozen hockey sticks. Now he was left figuring out who he could help.
Nicholas’ search for a community to help led him to Cariboo Cougars’ General Manager Trevor Sprague. Knowing the Canadians would head to Prince George on a road trip, he thought there might be some communities that could benefit from the equipment. Sprague came through in a huge way setting up Nicholas with the communities of Nak'azdli Whut'en and Kwadacha in Northern B.C. Eventually, the Canadians’ bus arrived in Prince George with 10 extra bags of equipment. With a little help from Sprague, Nicholas was able to deliver the gear to his neighbours and new friends up north.
Collecting and donating equipment wasn’t Nicholas’ only impact in the community this season. The Prince of Wales School Academy graduate dedicated three days a week during the school year to their hockey academy, and specifically to an eighth-grade player he mentored. Between them, there were lots of conversations around hockey and school as well as tips and insight into how to succeed, but Nicholas decided to do more for his protégé.
"Later in the year, when I knew I was moving, I gave him a bunch of hockey practice stuff," Nicholas said. "It made me really happy to be able to be a mentor," he continued.
Donating equipment, such as pucks and a shooting mat, to the younger player was his way to pay it forward for all the kindness a previous mentors had shown to him.
The 18-year-old also excelled in academics throughout his high school years, and will now continue his education by studying engineering at Queen's University in Kingston, ON, this fall. His parents are both engineers, and their work has inspired him to follow a similar path. In fact, being raised by engineers has impacted how he looks at the technical side of hockey in relation to how the body works and how things move. He often experiments to see if he moves his body a certain way, how the puck will adjust accordingly. He is interested in using his degree to one day create equipment such as prosthetics, wheelchairs and workout machines.
Nicholas and the Canadians had a good year on the ice, but his year off-the-ice had a profound effect both inside and outside the community. His actions will be an example for other to follow in the future on how to positively impact a person’s community.
“Nick follows through on everything he promises,“ said Kim. “His hard work, dedication, and ability to communicate with those around him are the hallmarks that enabled him to fulfill his goal. He is extremely deserving of the Commissioner's Award.”
We would like to take a moment to celebrate the efforts and accomplishments of the two other finalists for this year’s Commissioner’s Award.
Ava McGinley - Fraser Valley Rush Female U18 AAA
The Fraser Valley Rush forward, Ava McGinley, is passionate about being a positive impact to those around her and believes that giving back to her community is just as important as excelling in sports. Ava was involved in numerous activities, retreats and events volunteering around Tri-Cities Female Ice Hockey Association and her community. She aims to be a role model who leads by example and shares her knowledge, experiences and love for the game with younger players.
Nick McDonald - Valley West Giants U17 AAA
Throughout the 2024-25 season, Nick McDonald consistently demonstrated a willingness to help others and go above and beyond to contribute to the success of the team. Off-ice, he led the Giants' initiative to support local food banks and raise money for marginalized families through grocery store gift cards. On-ice, he brought a positive attitude to every game and practice and approached situations with optimism, something that his teammates fed off of.
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