Blake Bolden, a native from Cleveland, Ohio has broken many barriers in achieving many firsts in the sport of Women’s ice hockey. Bolden started at a young age where she played minor youth hockey for the Cleveland Barons and the Ohio Flames. She later went to Northwood School in Lake Placid, NY while also participating in the first U18 World Championship for team USA, winning Gold in both 2008 & 2009 tournaments. Bolden then went to Boston College, captaining her senior year, with 3 Frozen Four appearances, earning Hockey East Defensive Player of the Year and All American Honors.

After graduating, she joined the Boston Blades of the CWHL (Canadian Women’s Hockey League), winning the Clarkson cup in 2015. In 2016, she played for the Boston Pride of the NWHL (National Women’s Hockey League) winning the inaugural Isobel Cup.

After two seasons and two All-Star appearances in the NWHL, she recorded 27 points in 20 games with HC Lugano in Switzerland in 2018.

She then returned to the NWHL, playing for the Buffalo Beauts. Representing the Beauts, she reclaimed her hardest shot title in the 2019 NWHL All-Star Skills Competition and was awarded Defensive Player of the Year. Dawned the Jackie Robinson of Women’s hockey, she is the first Black player drafted in the first round of the CWHL and the first ever to compete in the NWHL.

Bolden currently resides in Southern California. In 2020, she joined the Los Angeles Kings as their Growth and Inclusion Specialist and Pro Scout, the second women to ever scout in the NHL behind Cami Granato.

She has taken her passion for diversifying the game of hockey using her platform to shed light, share stories, and inspire the next generation.

Seen in features such as Sports Illustrated “The Unrelenting- most powerful, influential and outstanding women in sports”, alongside athletes like Serena Williams, Simone Biles, and Billie Jean King.

Bolden aims to make herself visible especially to black and brown youth, dabbling into sports broadcasting with NHL Network, NBCSports, and Sportsnet as an analyst, because she and so many of her other female colleagues believe, “If you can see it, you can be it.”

Bolden loves working with girls all over the country specializing in mental skills, goal setting, and nutrition, using her Blake Bolden Mentorship program, powered by Play-It-Again Sports.

Hockey, Sports, Sports Industry, Athlete, DEI Women's Empowerment, Influential Women, Female Leadership, Diversity Topics, Diversity & Inclusion, Women, NHL, Black Heritage,