Béatrice Bilodeau: From a Backyard Rink to Wearing the 'C'
Béatrice Bilodeau's introduction to hockey came from the people closest to her, and it was cemented on a patch of ice her father built beside their home in Quebec.
Her father and older brother both played the game, and for Béatrice, that was enough. She started playing at four years old, and for the better part of the next eight years, she played on boys’ teams because that was what was available to her. It was not a hardship. “I love playing with the boys,” she said. “I was going to school with them, and it was just like I was part of the gang.” That outdoor rink became the place where it clicked for her, where she would work on her shot and realize, as she put it, that this was the game she wanted to play.
My full conversation with University of Ottawa captain Béatrice Bilodeau is available now on YouTube.
Growing up in Quebec means growing up around hockey, and Béatrice discovered that early on. “Everyone wants to play hockey,” she said, “and even if they’re not on a team, they know about it. It made it easy to connect with friends through the sport.” Girls’ programs were not as accessible then as they are now, but she did not experience that gap as a setback. She played, she developed, and by the time she made her way to Cégep Limoilou and the Titans program, she had a foundation built from years of competing against players who pushed her to get better.
The Cégep years were when her game took a significant step. Training four to six times a week alongside skilled teammates in a structured program pushed her to levels she had not reached before. The COVID-19 pandemic cut her first season short, as it did for players across every level, but she credits that disrupted stretch with teaching her something she carried forward. “It taught us resilience,” she said. “We focused on individual skills and techniques, which ultimately benefited our growth as players.” By the time her final season with the Titans wrapped up, she had earned the RSEC Sportsmanship Award, voted on by league staff. “It was special because it was voted on by the league’s staff, recognizing my efforts to be a good teammate,” she said. “I was just being myself, which made it even more meaningful.”
The decision to continue her hockey career at the university level was not difficult. The question was where. Béatrice chose the University of Ottawa and the Gee-Gees, and the reasoning behind that choice says more about her than any number could. “With COVID affecting recruitment, I chose a program that felt like home,” she said. “The culture and coaching style resonated with me, and I knew I would fit in well.”
The jump from junior to collegiate hockey came with an adjustment. The game was faster, the players more physically developed, and the margin for mistakes was certainly smaller. But the work she had put in through her years in Quebec’s competitive environment prepared her for exactly that kind of transition. Now in her fourth year and wearing the captain’s ‘C’, Béatrice doesn’t hesitate when talking about her time with the Gee Gees. “These have been the best years of my life,” she said. “I’ve met amazing people and pursued my academic and athletic goals simultaneously.”
The way that Béatrice describes leadership is a great example of why it’s a role she was meant to fill. To her, it’s about being available to teammates, being consistent, and understanding that the role of a captain is as much about the person beside you as it is about what you do on the ice.
In March, she was named the winner of the Marion Hilliard Award, recognizing outstanding achievement in hockey, academics, and community involvement. Her volunteer work spans Kids Help Phone, the ROMI mentorship program for rural students interested in medicine, Fillactive, seniors in long-term care, and medical support at community sporting events. For Béatrice, none of it feels separate from the rest of her life in Ottawa. ‘It’s so nice to see what impact we can have on them,’ she said. ‘It’s also nice to know that we’re doing that while having so much fun and just living the best experience of our lives. If it can help little girls to dream big and keep pushing, I’m more than happy.’”
Girls’ hockey is more accessible now than it was when Béatrice was four years old, working on her shot on the rink her father built, and she is aware of what that means for the players coming up behind her. And as she looks ahead, there may well be uncertainty, but the foundation has been built on a journey defined by success on the ice and a tremendous impact in the community.
My full conversation with University of Ottawa captain Béatrice Bilodeau is available now on YouTube.