From Montana, to the Western Hockey League, and the hockey mom supporting the dream

By Merrick Parnell EBS CONTRIBUTOR

The Western Hockey League is regarded as one of the world’s top Major Junior Hockey Leagues. It boasts 22 teams across the Pacific Northwest and western Canada that play in large arenas, some even in professional National Hockey League venues. The WHL features some of the top 16- to 20-year-old talent battling for a shot at the NHL or other professional leagues.

Goaltender Braden Holt is one of those players in the Western Hockey League. Raised in Big Sky, he holds the distinction and honor of being the first Montana prospect to be drafted by a WHL team after he was selected in the 2018 WHL Bantam Draft by the Everett Silvertips. 

Holt made his WHL debut with the Everett Silvertips as a 16-year-old in 2019 when he was put in after the starter was pulled partway through the game. Holt eventually started to play significant minutes as the Silvertips’ starter. He was traded to the Victoria (Canada) Royals in 2022, and has played there since.

 Holt has even attended camps with the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs and Nashville Predators throughout his budding career. 

Any player at this elite level needs a robust support system, and Holt’s mother, Melody, is a big part of that system. Melody has been a hockey fan since 1995 when she lived in Colorado and the NHL’s Avalanche moved to Denver from Quebec City, Canada. 

She has proudly held the “Hockey Mom” title since her older son Evan started playing roller hockey before switching over to ice hockey. She recalls that even as a child Braden got used to being whisked around to rinks in a stroller. 

The Holt family eventually moved to Montana, and Braden started playing as a young goalie in Bozeman. His mother said the move has been essential in his development as a player, and hers as a supportive mother. 

“Braden loves the state of Montana and the friends he’s made there,” Melody said. “We met some truly Grade-A parents and coaches, and Braden was welcomed with open arms. A pivotal moment was when he was allowed to play with Team Northwest when he moved to Bozeman after meeting Garry Hefty with Top Shelf Hockey,” she recalls.

After that, Braden was recruited and offered positions with a few high-level programs, eventually leading him to play AAA Hockey in the Detroit market.

The AAA opportunities eventually led to Holt’s selection in the WHL draft. This season will be his last in the league, as he will age out at the conclusion. As Braden’s career in the WHL ends, one early memory stands out to Melody when reflecting on her son’s WHL career. 

“The memory of Braden making his first appearance in the net as a 16-year-old was such an overwhelming emotional experience,” she said. “Words can’t describe how proud we were, and to see the pure happiness and excitement on our son’s face after that game was priceless.” 

Melody has also enjoyed traveling around the Pacific Northwest in Oregon, Washington and Canada to watch Holt play.

 “My husband and I try to watch as many games as we can live, especially now that the end of his junior career is approaching,” she said. “It’s amazing traveling to all the different [arenas] throughout the league. We’ve traveled by car, plane, ferries and seaplanes… however we can get there.”

Being the mother of a goalie can be challenging because they are under so much pressure and can be under a microscope, but Melody said that her family offers endless support, and she gives Braden a lot of credit for handling the pressure well. 

“It’s a lot of pressure for these kids at this level—not just goalies. Braden has a mental strength coach and outlets like his faith and his music that helps him through tougher times,” Melody said. 

Melody has enjoyed her time as a WHL hockey mom and is excited to see Braden’s next chapter of his career. Until then, she can be found at the rink and arena, pouring her love, support, and admiration into watching her son on the ice as a true, blue hockey mom.