Girls Hockey Day at TD Garden promotes women's game, draws 400 players

BOSTON -- More than 400 hockey players gathered at TD Garden on Monday, all there for the fourth annual Girls Hockey Day, presented by Wasabi Technologies. There were little girls in Boston Bruins jerseys and pink leggings, girls with confident skating strides and ones just attempting to head on ice for the first time.

"It's just special," said Alex Carpenter, who is from North Reading, Massachusetts, and won silver medals at the 2014 Sochi and 2022 Beijing Olympics for the United States. "You remember when you played as a kid. I didn't have these opportunities. So to be able to see NHL teams put this day on for young girls everywhere, it's special to see that the game is being recognized."

The event dates to 2017, when it was created to promote growth, encourage participation and celebrate women's hockey, with Learn to Play public skates and one-hour clinics for teams. It was not held in 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Our whole youth hockey department has done a great job with girls' hockey in general," Boston Bruins Foundation president Bob Sweeney said. "To see the numbers grow year in and year out is great."
The Bruins have the largest girls Learn to Play program in the NHL, including nearly 500 participants ages 5-10 across 11 rinks. The overall Learn to Play program is about 35 percent female.
During the session, Sweeney presented a check for $10,000 to the Brianna Decker Endowment for Girls Hockey, donated from Wasabi Technologies to the Boston Bruins Foundation. The Endowment was started by Decker, who played for the United States three times at the Olympics (2014, 2018, 2022), in 2019 to provide grants to girls hockey programs and increase female youth participation by helping with the sport's costs.
"It will go to the Brianna Decker Fund, which helps young girls that might not have the opportunity or the wherewithal to pay for hockey because we know how expensive it can be," Sweeney said. "It provides scholarships to different youth organizations.
"I applaud her for starting her foundation. I think she's going to influence a lot of young ladies for years to come."

Participating in the event were United States Olympians Carpenter and Caroline Harvey, a silver medalist in 2022, both of whom are from New England. They were on hand to help facilitate the clinics with retired Bruins goalie Andrew Raycroft.
"I didn't try hockey until I was almost seven on a real team," Carpenter said. "So to see girls this young getting into -- whether they continue it or just get to play it and enjoy it -- it means the world to see that people are putting that effort to make it happen."