The youngest of 10 children, Bob Boeser joined the Army near the end of World War II, when he turned 18, after graduating from De La Salle High School in Minneapolis. He later attended the University of Minnesota for a time and then settled at St. John’s University in Minnesota, playing there in 1947-48, and later coaching. Boeser was a forward who played for the local Minneapolis Bermans of the American Amateur Hockey League in 1947-48 and 1948-50, then played one year with the Minneapolis Jerseys. After the St. Moritz Olympics he also played briefly with some amateur clubs in England, France, and Eastern Europe.