With the Canada West hockey postseason in full swing, the conference has begun announcing its major awards for the 2025–26 regular season. Isa MacPhee has been named the 2026 Canada West Rookie of the Year.

MacPhee's two goals and 13 points were tied for the highest total among rookie defencemen in the conference. Her 13 points also ranked second among all MRU Cougars blueliners, trailing only CW First Team All-Star Summer Fomradas.

For Head Coach Scott Rivett, MacPhee's ability to make an impact on the game was a realization that came almost immediately. 

"It became pretty clear early on as a first-year kid she could have a big impact on our program on and off the ice," Rivett said. "We had high expectations for her coming into the season and she certainly lived up to them. The pace in which she plays at, her ability to generate offence from the back end is something that doesn't come around every single year. We've been fortunate to have a number of great first-year defensemen and this year she has been able to put her name in that group."

The lofty expectations that Rivett speaks of were a product of her time before Mount Royal where she was a consistent point producer for Stanstead College. Although MacPhee's stat line was enough to catch any recruiters eye, Rivett says there were some key underlying qualities to MacPhee's game that made him believe that MacPhee would be able to hit the ground running as a member of the Cougars.  

"We watched her over the last couple years and we saw her continue to grow to the point where we felt like it could translate to Canada West and the style of game we play here," Rivett explained. "Her work ethic, her attitude, the energy that she brings certainly found a way to have an impact on our team even as a first year. Her ability to play with pace, distribute pucks and make players around her better is what she did really well this year."

Like most players who are progressing to a new level of play, MacPhee came to Mount Royal eager and excited, with the hopes that she was going to be able to translate her prior success to the U Sports game. A task that Coach Rivett says can prove to be more challenging for some because the university game, particularly on the defensive side, poses some daunting obstacles that can only be overcome with in-game experience.

"The hardest jump on the women's side is the ability to play solid defence, this level is quicker and more physical than anything they would have played before and teams play with a lot more structure. [MacPhee's] attitude, coachability and her desire to be better is what allowed her to make the transition pretty easily. A lot of players have the skillset but she was able to apply it because of those three things."

With an award like Rookie of the Year, it may be easy to focus on stat lines, box scores and highlight clips, but according to Coach Rivett MacPhee's daily habits is what separates her from the other rookies across the conference. 

"She's a kid that just loves to play hockey. She's at the rink all the time, she's always looking to do more, she asks questions, she puts a lot of work into her craft," Rivett said. "She makes it look like it comes easy to her but that's because of the work she puts in."

While MacPhee's offensive instincts were a clear strength in year one, the expectation is that her all-around game will continue to evolve.

"I think she will become an even better all-round defenceman. She leans a little offensive right now, which is great, but her consistency without the puck will definitely mature over the next few years as her game does and I think she will be a kid we can rely on in all situations."

Already a conference Rookie of the Year, MacPhee has firmly established herself as a cornerstone on the Cougars' blue line and her trajectory suggests the best is still to come.

Isa MacPhee is a first year Arts Student from Kingsboro, PEI.