If you’ve been to a UBC women’s hockey game in the last few years, you’d probably be quick to notice Grace Elliott. It would be hard not to. Standing at a whopping 6-foot-2, she towers over everyone else on the ice, teammates and opponents alike.
But while her height is what stands out at first glance, it’s usually not long until her skills are evident as well.
With the regular season ending last week, Elliott finished as the top scorer in her conference and in the country, with 24 goals in 28 games and 37 points on the season. She hasn’t just been excellent this year, either. The White Rock native is also the reigning Canada West and U Sports Player of the Year, and recently broke the program’s all-time Canada West points record in December. Across her UBC career, she’s notched 150 total points in 162 games.
These accomplishments are no coincidence. They are the result of her constant drive to be the best player she can be, a trait that sets her apart.
“She wants to be the best, to get better. She just has that internal drive,” said her head coach, Graham Thomas. “She wants to win. She accepts challenges, hard coaching and criticism.”.
That drive to win started early for Elliott. The power forward’s hockey journey began in part because of her brother, who also played, and her dad who runs an ice rink in Surrey. That rink was where Elliott learned to skate for the first time — and hockey came soon after.
She quickly developed her skills and progressed through the levels of minor hockey in the local area, suiting up for the Surrey Falcons, the Greater Vancouver Comets and Delta Hockey Academy. It was in Delta where she first caught Thomas’ eye.
In 2020, with the T-Birds’ season shut down for COVID-19, the only action the women’s hockey team saw was a couple of exhibition matches against local teams. The first of these games was against Elliott and the Delta Hockey Academy. Seeing Elliott play from the opposing bench, she immediately stood out to Thomas — even as a younger player.
“She was just loaded with potential,” he said. “She just jumped out to me right away and this is before we even were recruiting her or talking to her.”
As a teenager, Elliott was already developing the skills she needed to be a great hockey player. Beyond her height and reach, she had a great ability to read the game — while also not being afraid to use her physicality.
After committing to UBC and joining the team for the 2021-22 season, Elliott continued to flourish and develop. She saw less playing time in her first year, playing in 25 games and registering 11 points, before becoming just under a point-per-game player in her second and third years. Then, in her fourth year, she exploded. After a 28-point season in 2023-24, she nearly doubled her total the following year, racking up 49 points in the 2024-25 season.
It was an incredible jump. But for Elliott, her breakout season wasn’t because she improved her skills on the ice. Instead, the forward credits that growth to her mental development and increased maturity. Almost paradoxically, as she stopped worrying about individual statistics — instead trying to ensure her team’s success, finding how she can best help her teammates — her point totals increased. It’s a team-oriented mindset.
“When you get to that point … it's easier to score, it's easier to get assists, it's easier to play as hard as you possibly can because you want to be good for your team.”
She has been. After being elected as alternate captain by her teammates in her final season with the Thunderbirds, the fifth-year has helped lead UBC to the top spot in the Canada West standings, with 26 victories this season, the most in the country — and an all-time record for Canada West.
But despite the success and accolades, being a star player comes with its challenges. Because Elliott is the T-Birds’ top scorer, she is a target for players from opposing teams, who adopt a more physical strategy when guarding her.
Case in point, one of the toughest moments of her career came during the national consolation final in 2024, where she was faced with a very physical game against the University of Saskatchewan Huskies. In the final game of their season against a bitter rival — with Saskatchewan hosting the tournament — everything seemed to be going against her.
“I kind of got beat up and the [referees] weren't on my side. The crowd was booing at me … It was just super tough mentally to push through that”, said the forward.
Despite the difficulty faced in that moment, Elliott found strength in her teammates and family on the bench and in the crowd.
“Ultimately, I've gotten so much stronger from that moment.”
Many girls, however, don't have that same support system to push through the difficulties inherent in sport. More than one in five girls stops playing sports in her teen years, despite 70 per cent of them saying that sport positively impacts their mental health.
That is why National Girls and Women in Sports Day was created. This date honours the accomplishments of female athletes, coaches and leaders — and is an initiative Elliott fully and enthusiastically supports.
”It's so important to have days like these, dedicated to all the hard work that people put into women's sports. Honestly, sometimes we don't get recognized as much as the men’s side does,” said Elliott. “So I think it's super important to push that … and make us [be] seen.”
It’s a movement that’s gaining momentum not just in university sport, but in professional sport as well. With the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) being founded in 2023, the sport has experienced the most visibility it’s seen in decades, growing substantially with each season and setting attendance records for women’s hockey.
In the PWHL’s first three seasons, the league has also welcomed a few Thunderbirds to the professional ranks.
While she didn’t make the final roster — now playing professionally in Sweden — Elliott’s former teammate Chanreet Bassi became the first ever T-Bird to be drafted into the league, by the hometown Vancouver Goldeneyes. Another former teammate, defender Rylind MacKinnon, also left her mark in the pros. After initially going undrafted, MacKinnon made the roster of the Toronto Sceptres, playing in 22 games for them before heading east to join the Boston Fleet.
It’s the highest level of play the sport has to offer. And based on her trajectory coming off her final year of university hockey, Elliott could be next to join them.
“ I'm hoping to continue playing hockey, whether that's PWHL or somewhere in Europe … I’ve talked a little bit to [some former teammates], I know Rylind [MacKinnon] loves it a lot … I'm hoping that I'll [love it too],” said Elliott.
MacKinnon in particular was someone who Elliott cited as a role model. In a group characterized by their determination and competitiveness, having people who bring a positive influence is imperative to keep morale up. Even though she’s been away from the team for a couple years now, her presence and leadership is still felt and has been invaluable to the development of this T-Birds’ team, including Elliott.
“She’s such a genuine person. She pushes herself so hard and she was a great captain who led us to where we are now,” said Elliott.
For Thomas, Elliott has now taken on a similar role herself.
“She’s very selfless. She will give a lot of credit to her linemates, to her teammates … I know that’s the kind of mindset she has,” he said.
As a driven and competitive player, she’s managed to find balance between managing the expectations put on her to perform at her best, while also helping elevate others.
“She [works] so hard in practice, in the gym and everywhere. It [raises] the level of everybody,” said Thomas.
In the coming weeks, a high level will be required from UBC — more than ever. Playoffs are right around the corner, and every team in Canada West will be looking for an opportunity to knock down the No. 1 seed T-Birds, who are looking for their seventh conference title. They have a target on their back. But they couldn’t be happier.
She’s very selfless. She will give a lot of credit to her linemates, to her teammates … I know that’s the kind of mindset she has.
“[We have to] just go out there and [not] change anything. Play in the way that we've been playing … [the] pressure is a privilege”, said Thomas. We want to win the league, we want to win nationals. So [it’s about] just recognizing and accepting [the pressure], and then knowing that we've earned it to get to this point, but we [also] gotta continue to earn it.”
For Elliott, this year’s playoffs will bring mixed feelings. While there is sadness in leaving a program that has been a big part of her life and her career as a hockey player, she’s also looking forward to the next chapter in her life, whether that be in the PWHL, in Europe, or beyond.
But for now, she’s putting all that to the side. With every game from now on potentially being her last as a Thunderbird, her focus is on the games ahead of her, and enjoying her final moments with some of her teammates.
“ We have 12 graduating seniors that are just so, so special to this program. … we've been together for these past five years and [have] just grown so much as a whole. It's super exciting that we are in this situation, in this moment, and I think it's gonna be awesome.”
National Girls and Women in Sport Day was on Feb. 4, 2026.
