The Sceptres' second-round pick pairs selfless grit with a deceptive scoring touch, aiming to prove that her subtle, detail-oriented style can deliver results on the professional stage.
Describing Jamie Nelson’s game might be summed up as: the first impression isn't necessarily the one that matters.
"I like to say that I surprise people the more that you watch me," said the Toronto Sceptres' 2026 second-round draft pick. "The more that you watch me play, the more you'll appreciate what I can do."
Clearly, Toronto Sceptres’ general manager Gina Kingsbury watched enough to make her their second-round pick at the 2026 PWHL Draft. Kingsbury and head coach Pascal Rhéaume met with Nelson for more than an hour the night before the draft, but didn’t tell Nelson directly that they planned to select her.
When Kingsbury called Nelson's name, the excitement on Nelson's face reflected more than the relief of simply being drafted.
"Gina and Pascal did a really good job of communicating with me beforehand," Nelson said. "Once I heard my name after Gina said it, I just immediately felt comfortable with the staff that I'd be walking into.
Nelson believes that scouting her would have allowed them to see the details of her game that aren't always immediately obvious.
"Doing the little things and playing the right way and playing selfless and just being a good teammate," Nelson said. "I think that they value that and they saw that I can do great things in Toronto under them."
But Nelson can also produce. After four seasons at Minnesota State, Nelson transferred to the University of Minnesota for her final NCAA season and had 11 goals and 31 assists for 42 points in 39 games.
Nelson's ability to contribute in more ways than expected became something of a running theme during her year with the Gophers. During a midseason meeting, one of her coaches offered a compliment that started with an admission.
"He's like, 'Don't take this the wrong way,'" Nelson said.
"He said, 'You've surprised me how good you are in various situations,'" Nelson said. "'The more I see you at practice and the more that you play games for us, I appreciate the way you play.'
"I'm like, 'I like that. I think that's a compliment.'"
With the Sceptres, Nelson hopes to surprise fans as well. She isn't a player who’s flashy or drawing attention. When asked which established PWHL player she sees as a stylistic comparison, Nelson pointed to Montreal Victoire forward Laura Stacey.
"I could see my style of play being similar to Laura Stacey just because she's not super flashy, but she does all the little things right," Nelson said. "Strong on the forecheck, good stick, and then obviously she sees production out of doing all those things."
Nelson saw plenty of production herself last season, including one game against St. Cloud State. On Jan. 23, she exploded for a hat trick and five points.
"I didn't do anything differently," Nelson said. "It just felt like one of those games where everything was working for me. Not to say any part of it was easy, but I was making the same plays that I normally would, and then they just were all going. I think I had the hockey gods on my side a little bit."
She points to her hat-trick goal as an example. St. Cloud State's goaltender came out to play the puck, mishandled it and sent it directly onto Nelson's stick.
"I'm doing the same things, I'm pressuring the goalie, but usually they don't mess up," Nelson laughed. "That game, it just was on a silver platter right there for me."
Nelson's next transition will be considerably bigger than changing NCAA programs. She’s from Andover, Minn., native and has never lived outside Minnesota.
"I've always played for the hometown teams," she said. "I've never lived anywhere except Minnesota."
"I've been to Canada twice. Both times Calgary. So I've never been to Toronto," Nelson said. "I've heard great things. That's one of the first things that I ask if someone congratulates me on being drafted or brings up Toronto. I'm like, 'Have you been?' And then I ask their opinion of it, and it's always positive."
She plans to visit Toronto before making the move for the season.
"I want to get there at least a week early just to get a foundation, get my bearings, see where the practice facility is and all that," she said.
She'll also have a couple of familiar faces waiting for her. Former Minnesota State teammate Jess Kondas has spent the first three PWHL seasons in Toronto, while Nelson also played with Sceptres goaltender Jessie McPherson at Minnesota State in 2024-25.
"I know moving there, I have someone that I can go to with all my questions that's been on the inside for the past three years," Nelson said of Kondas.
Nelson also knows several members of Toronto's newest cohort from years of NCAA competition and USA Hockey camps, including Emma Gentry, Kiara Zanon and Clara Van Wieren. And she's particularly happy about one player she won't have to defend anymore: first-round pick Kirsten Simms.
"I could not be more excited," Nelson said. "She's a pain to play against and just pulls things out that you're like, 'I've never seen anyone else do that before.' And she just made it look easy.
"It's not just once, like a one-off highlight reel. It's consistently. You know she's going to do it and you still can't stop it. It's so frustrating."
"I'm super excited to be on a team with her versus trying to defend her."
There will be plenty of new things to get used to for Nelson in the professional ranks, from new teammates to new cities and arenas. When Toronto visits Minnesota, Nelson expects plenty of friends and family in attendance.
"I'll have it circled on my calendar," she said. "It'll be very wholesome. It'll be a homecoming. I'm sure my dad will get a suite and have just as many people in there as he can pack."
But first comes training camp in November, where Nelson will try to carve out a role on a Sceptres roster that Kingsbury and Rhéaume believed she could complement well enough to spend a second-round pick on her.
Those habits and little things that she does will allow the coaching staff to see how reliable and important she can be to the Sceptres’ lineup.
"I like to say that I surprise people the more that you watch me," Nelson said. "The more that you watch me play, the more you'll appreciate what I can do."
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