"I'm definitely a little bit of a late bloomer," Boldy said. "I hit puberty a little later than some other kids, but it's the way I matured and my game matured with my growth in size. Getting that strength and size definitely helped and allowed me to add more aspects to my game that made me a better hockey player."
Even when he was smaller, Boldy always believed the size would come. His dad, Todd, didn't play hockey, but he did play college football.
"My dad is a pretty big dude, so I was always kind of waiting for that growth spurt," Boldy said. "It finally happened and I just took advantage of it, started working out even harder and putting on the weight that I needed and working on my skating so it wouldn't get awkward or anything like that."
A skilled left-shot left wing, Boldy scored 33 goals and added 48 assists in 64 games with the U.S. Under-18 Team last season.
Become a Season Ticket Member today.
One of the highlights of his season came when he scored two goals and added an assist and was named the Player of the Game at the 2019 USA Hockey All-American Prospects Game at Xcel Energy Center in September.
While Boldy was already on the Wild's radar, Minnesota had several scouts on hand for his performance, which helped cement his place near the top of the team's draft board.
The hope is that it was the first of many memorable games in St. Paul.