Ya buga wasa daya kakar tare da Trail Smoke Eaters na British Columbia Hockey League kafin ya koma Brandon, kuma ya yi amfani da kakar wasa ta farko a matsayin mai tsaron gida. An ba da tallafin karatu ga Jami'ar Maine, McVicar ya tafi can a shekara ta 2000, amma NCAA ta yanke hukuncin rashin cancanta don haka ya koma Brandon a watan Nuwamba na wannan shekarar. Tare da masu tsaron gida uku a cikin tawagar, McVicar ya taka rawar gani a cikin kakar wasa, amma an kira shi mai farawa don kakar 2001-02. Bayan da kakar wasa ta ƙare, Vancouver Canucks ta zaba shi a matsayin na 151 a cikin duka.
2002 NHL Entry Draft, ko da yake McVicar ya kasance tare da Brandon na shekara guda kafin ya zama mai sana'a.