NEW ULM – When you play in the world of Junior Hockey, chances are you are going do a lot of traveling either through games you play or teams you play for.

New Ulm Steel goaltender Brady Boudreau is no exception.

The 18-year old netminder and the son of Wild coach Bruce Boudreau has played hockey for Hershey (PA.) Junior Bears, Team Maryland and the Anaheim (CA) Junior Ducks. He also played high school hockey for Orange (CA) Lutheran High School and Newport Mesa (CA). He also made Team California for the National Showcase in Pittsburgh.

He also traveled with his father who was head coach for the Washington Capitals and most recently the Anaheim Ducks.

“It is tough,” Boudreau said about all of the moving. “The first two places I lived I lived there for only a year but the last two places I lived I was there for four years. That may seem short for some people but for me it is long. It is difficult but you get used to it.”

Born in Biloxi, Mississippi, hockey quickly became a big part of his life with his entire family involved in the sport.

But another big part of Boudreau’s life that a lot of people do not know is that Boudreau maintained a 3.9 GPA in high school. That gained his acceptance into the National Honor Society as well as The National Society of High School Scholars for demonstrating outstanding leadership, scholarship and community commitment.

In fact, the 18-year-old Boudreau has been in college for just over a year.

“I should graduate next August with a Bachelor’s Degree in Sports Management from Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona.”

He said online classes have helped him.

“In this day and age with on-line college you can really accelerate your education,” he said. “It is becoming more and more normal. There are a lot more hockey players graduating early so they have more freedom. That is a huge benefit because before in Junior Hockey you really could not do college.”

Boudreau said that he wants to play hockey for as long as he can.

“That could be a few more years or a lot of years. I want to stay in hockey and with my degree in Sports Management I want to stay in some aspect of hockey,” he said.

Boudreau is living with host family Steve and Michelle Gag here in New Ulm.