Meet recent Boston College graduate and PWHL player, Grace Campbell.
Grace Campbell from Kensington, Maryland, just graduated from Boston College, where she was a goalie for the women’s hockey team. She started playing hockey when she was about 3 years old. Campbell was inspired to start playing hockey by her older brother. When she was younger, she wanted to be just like her brother. Campbell said what made her fall in love with hockey was “the fast pace and challenge of all the moving parts…” and that she “grew up watching the Washington Capitals and that was when I became obsessed”.
Growing up, Campbell played for the Montgomery Blue Devils as well as Team Maryland. During her sophomore year of high school, she went away to boarding school at Shattuck-St. Mary’s located in Minnesota, where she played for three seasons. Campbell then went on to play hockey at the collegiate level at Boston College.
Campbell said she had an “incredible” experience playing hockey at Boston College. During both her sophomore year and junior year, she led Hockey East in conference saves and overall saves. In her fourth year, she was named team captain. Campbell said while playing at BC, “it felt like a family atmosphere and the people there are all amazing. I definitely developed a lot on and off the ice in my four years, thanks to my coaches and teammates”.
Entering the next chapter of her life, Campbell said she was looking forward to having the opportunity to continue her hockey journey. She explained how special it is to have the chance to make a career out of hockey because “it wasn’t really an option when I was younger.” When Campbell found out the PWHL was starting, she was very excited. She told us that “it is so special […] gives little girls something to look up to and a place to strive to reach.” Before entering the Professional Women’s Hockey League draft, Campbell prepared by controlling what she could during her training and tried to enjoy the process.
Campbell entered the PWHL draft that took place on June 17. While Campbell went undrafted, her journey did not end there. On July 6, the Toronto Sceptres signed Campbell to a one-year Standard Player Agreement. You can cheer Campbell on during Toronto’s first game of the season later this year!