You may have noticed that I’m a huge fan of sports romance books – closed door hockey romance in particular, and a hockey romance book if we get even more specific. It is my go-to comfort zone when I want a light-hearted romance. I’ve read pretty much every single one I can find in the store, online, and from my Kindle Unlimited subscription. They are so much fun to read and a little addictive if I’m being honest.
The neat thing about them is that most are a part of a series that follows the main characters of a Hockey team, so once you find an author you enjoy reading, you usually have a great new series to binge!
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Here are some of my most loved closed door hockey romance book recommendations
First and foremost, it should come as no surprise to most of you that the Appies Hockey team romance is from Emma St. Clair and Jenny Proctor. They are composed of sweet, closed door hockey romance with a bit of sizzle, great tropes like fake relationships, small town, best friends to more, falling for the coach’s daughter, and marriage of convenience. One of my favorites is the “mouthy bad boy of The Appies hockey team” in Emma St. Clair’s Runaway Bride and Prejudice.
Just Don’t Fall: A Sweet Closed Door Hockey Romance by Emma St. Clair
Before Logan Barnes was hockey’s hottest bad boy, he was my brother’s best friend … and my first crush. Oh, yeah–and the guy who ghosted me and broke my teenage heart.
Now Logan is back in Harvest Hollow, but not willingly. Recovering from an injury (and some bad press), he’s stuck playing for our minor league team.
Which means I’ll be working with him almost daily.
As the hockey team’s social media manager, it’s my job to wrangle all the guys into filming TikTok trending videos. But Logan doesn’t want to be wrangled.
Turns out … neither does my heart.
Because my old crush never died.
And when Logan becomes my accidental fake boyfriend, those old feelings flare hot enough to melt the ice.
But this is all totally one-sided. Totally fake. Isn’t it?
No matter what signals he seems to be giving me or how real things start to feel, I know Logan’s not home for good.
I survived Logan leaving me once. But this time, I’m not so sure my heart will recover …
Just Don’t Fall is a small town, closed door hockey romcom in the Appies series with all the fake dating, brother’s best friend vibes. You’ll get smoking chemistry and characters to root for but NO spice. (Yes, you read that right–a low spice hockey romance.) Perfect for fans of sports romance who want less heat.
Find it on Goodreads, Amazon, Bookbub, and Barnes and Noble (on Audiobook only).
Absolutely Not in Love: A Sweet Closed Door Hockey Romance by Jenny Proctor
My requirements for a man are simple. Must love books. Must NOT love hockey.
Which is why I will never be interested in my neighbor, the aloof and mysterious Felix Jamison, no matter how many books I see him hauling into his apartment. Unless he loses his pro hockey skates, I’m out.
But then he shows up at my symphony concert.
And I catch the sweet strains of Beethoven floating across the hall.
Have I mentioned how incredible he looks in his game day suit?
Still, my history with hockey is complicated. My older brother played, and let’s just say he stole enough limelight to land a plane at midnight. I was forced to be a part of that world for so long, now that I have a choice, it’s the last thing I want.
But something tells me Felix is about to change my mind…
Absolutely Not in Love is a closed-door hockey romcom with neighbor vibes between a bookish hockey goalie and a classical cellist, some forced proximity, and all the swoony chemistry!
Find it on Goodreads, Amazon, Bookbub, and Barnes and Noble.
A Groom of One’s Own: A Sweet Closed Door Hockey Romance by Emma St. Clair
He always dreamed of getting married–but for love, not to avoid deportation.
Eli Hopkins has it all–almost. A hockey career with the wildly popular Appies. Teammates who are like brothers. The only thing he’s missing is someone to share it all with.
Oh–and correctly filed visa paperwork.
Due to administrative error, Eli is about to lose everything.
Unless he can find someone to marry him in the next thirty days.
And he might have the perfect woman in mind. The only problem? He’d like to marry her for real, not simply for legal purposes.
Now Eli faces the challenge of winning over a wife who thinks the marriage is in name only …
A Groom of One’s Own is a closed door marriage of convenience hockey romcom with heart and humor, sizzle but NO spice. Perfect for fans of sports romance who want a little less heat.
This book is an Appies hockey romance along with Just Don’t Fall, Absolutely Not in Love, and Romancing the Grump. from All books connect but can be read as standalones.
Find it on Goodreads, Amazon, Bookbub, and Barnes and Noble.
Romancing the Grump: A Sweet Closed Door Hockey Romance by Jenny Proctor
He’s a grump and happy to stay that way. But can her sunshine melt the ice around his heart?
Nathan Sanders didn’t earn his reputation as the grouchiest player on the Appies hockey team by chance. So when Summer Callahan breezes into his life with her flirtatious smiles and endless charm, he responds like he always does: he completely ignores her.
But Summer is intrigued by the surly defenseman, so when a viral social media post requires her to step in and fake it as Nathan’s girlfriend, she jumps at the chance. She’s convinced the ones with the hardest shells are often the softest underneath, and she’s determined to prove it.
But Nathan doesn’t crack so easily. Despite their obvious chemistry, he makes his lack of interest in a relationship—any relationship—perfectly clear. But the longer they pretend, the less fake everything seems, and the more Summer starts to fall.
She can only hope her fake relationship doesn’t lead to real heartbreak.
Romancing the Grump is a closed door, grumpy/sunshine, fake dating hockey romcom with heart and humor, sizzle but no spice. Perfect for fans of sports romance who want a little less heat.
Find it on Goodreads, Amazon, Bookbub, and Barnes and Noble.
Runaway Bride and Prejudice: A Sweet Closed Door Hockey Romance by Emma St. Clair
There’s one rule smart hockey players know not to break: never, and I mean, NEVER date the coach’s daughter. But no one ever accused Van of being smart.
When the mouthy bad boy of the Appies catches the groom cheating on the coach’s daughter, he can’t just walk away. Not on her wedding day.
Maybe his own relationships are casual, but he would never cheat and never treat wedding vows so carelessly. Not after he and his sisters watched their divorced parents cycle through marriage after marriage.
But forcing the groom to come clean sets off a chain reaction Van couldn’t have expected.
Ending with a black eye, an unexpected trip to Florida with one runaway bride, and a secret bargain struck with Coach.
A bargain that may just jeopardize the very real and very inconvenient feelings he’s developing for the very last person he ever should.
Runaway Bride and Prejudice is a closed door hockey romance featuring the team bad boy and a very good girl who also happens to be the coach’s daughter. It’s a sports romance with all the sizzle and swoon, but no spice.
Find it on Goodreads, Amazon, and Bookbub.
When Alec Met Evie: A Sweet Closed Door Hockey Romance by Jenny Proctor
Evie told herself not to fall for her pro-hockey crush. But when she sees him holding her baby girl, all bets are off.
When Evie moves South to the same mountain town where her childhood crush plays pro-hockey, she arms herself with all the reasons why she can’t fall for him again.
Number one: Alec is her best friend’s much older brother.
Number two: She’s recently divorced and does not need another man in her life. At least not anytime soon.
Number three: With a four-month-old daughter, she has zero time for dating.
Trouble is, Evie doesn’t know another soul in North Carolina, so when her rental floods before she’s even moved in, her only option is to crash with Alec for a few weeks. When she protests, he insists it’s what he’d do for his sister, and that’s basically what she is to him.
But all these years later, the unexpected chemistry between them definitely says otherwise.
A new relationship is risky when Evie is still licking her wounds from her divorce, and she has no idea if Alec has any desire to be a dad. His sister already warned he isn’t the type to settle down.
But she can’t make herself care about any of that. Not until she’s already fallen, and it might be too late to save herself from another heartbreak.
When Alec Met Evie is a closed-door, best friend’s brother hockey romcom with heart and humor, sizzle but no spice. Perfect for fans of sports romance who want a little less heat.
Find it on Goodreads, Amazon, Bookbub, and Barnes and Noble.
As You Ice It: A Sweet Closed Door Hockey Romance by Emma St. Clair
If at first you don’t succeed, DO NOT try, try again. At least not when it comes to dating a hockey player.
When Naomi met Camden Cole on Oakley Island, she assumed he would be gone in a week or two like any other tourist passing through.
Perfect for a fun summer relationship. A temporary one.
As a single mom to ten-year-old Liam, she’s not holding out hope for husband material and is way too skittish about commitment to consider more.
So when both Naomi and Liam start getting too attached, she cuts Camden loose. Better to end things before either of their hearts could get broken.
But the joke’s on her—they broke anyway.
As an added punchline (and gut punch), her job relocates her to the town of Harvest Hollow—where Camden plays for the Appies.
It’s FINE, Naomi tells herself. He’s a professional hockey player with a busy career. Their paths will never cross.
And they probably wouldn’t have—if not for Liam’s newfound hockey obsession.
Now, Naomi is right back where she was last summer—with the same feelings and the same desire to protect her and Liam.
But when Camden wants to go all-in with her and Liam, is Naomi ready to stop running?
As You Ice It is a closed door hockey romance with all the sizzle and swoon, but no spice.
Find it on Goodreads, Amazon, and Bookbub.
More Closed Door Hockey Romance Books to Enjoy!
Holidays With Heart by Courtney Walsh is a series I started and could NOT put down. I just love her way of writing characters, add in that both of them are closed door hockey romance… and its a winning combination for sure.
My Lucky Charm by Courtney Walsh
A humiliating break-up leads to an impulsive New Year’s Kiss with a complete stranger.
What could possibly go wrong?
It’s no secret that I love life. And Dr Pepper. But also, I love a challenge. . .
So when the coach of the Chicago Comets gives me the opportunity to help their star player, newly traded to their team, acclimate to life in Chicago, I’m all in.
I have to be. After my last job went up in flames, I have something to prove.
It turns out that the player, Grayson Hawke, is the rudest, most off-putting, reclusive guy I’ve ever met.
It also turns out that he is the beautiful stranger I kissed on New Year’s Eve.
I can do this job. I can do this job. I can do this job.
And I can. Really well.
I can make Gray’s life easier, show him all the reasons to fall in love with this city, and in the process, hopefully completely forget that the amazing kiss ever happened.
How hard can it be? We’re total opposites anyway.
I love people . . . and all their stories. Gray loves hockey . . . and nothing else.
I love to talk. Gray only stares.
I’m happy-go-lucky. Gray’s all work and no play.
There’s just one problem. The more time I spend with Grayson Hawke, the more I start to see that underneath his bristly, standoffish exterior, he’s nothing like the man everyone thinks he is.
And suddenly, all the reasons for keeping my distance, staying professional, and not falling for someone again. . .are impossible to remember.
My Lucky Charm is a grumpy/sunshine, sweet closed door hockey romance with all of the sizzle but none of the steam. It’s the second in the Holidays with Hart series, but My Lucky Charm can be read as a stand alone.
Find it on Goodreads, Amazon, and Bookbub.
My Phony Valentine by Courtney Walsh
A chance meeting. A hunky hockey player. A fake romance.
Hardly an ordinary day in the life of Poppy Hart.
My days usually consist of agonizing over my failing restaurant, worrying about my mountain of debt and nursing my broken heart.
Everything changes when I bump into a man in the coffee shop and claim him as my new boyfriend. To my absolute horror, he turns out to be hockey’s most renowned bad boy, Dallas Burke. To my absolute delight, he goes along with my story.
When his no-nonsense manager and meddling grandmother jump in the picture, they see a win-win solution for my failing restaurant and Dallas’s less-than-stellar reputation.
A full-fledged fake romance complete with contract negotiations, pretend dates, and phony PDA.
But as I get to know the real Dallas Burke, who is not the man the press says he is, it becomes clear that if this isn’t real. . . someone better tell it to my heart.
Find it on Goodreads, Amazon, and Bookbub.
It Had to Be You by Susan May Warren – This whole series by her is PHENOMINAL. This one just happens to have a closed door hockey romance in it!
Eden Christiansen never imagined her role as her younger brother Owen’s cheerleader would keep her on the sidelines of her own life. Sure, it feels good to be needed, but looking after the reckless NHL rookie leaves little time for Eden to focus on her own career. She dreamed of making a name for herself as a reporter, but is stuck writing obits—and starting to fear she doesn’t have the chops to land a major story. If only someone would step up to mentor Owen . . . but she knows better than to expect help from team veteran and bad-boy enforcer Jace Jacobsen.
Jace has built his career on the infamous reputation of his aggressive behavior—on and off the ice. Now at a crossroads about his future in hockey, that reputation has him trapped. And the guilt-trip he’s getting from Eden Christiansen isn’t making things any easier. But when Owen’s carelessness leads to a career-threatening injury and Eden stumbles upon a story that could be her big break, she and Jace are thrown together . . . and begin to wonder if they belong on the same team after all.
Find it on Goodreads, Amazon, Bookbub, and Barnes & Noble.
Check out other Closed Door Sports Romance Book Recommendations
Crossing Center Ice by Kimberly Rae Jordan – Kimberly Rae Jordan is a gifted writer when it comes to family and emotions. Which is readily displayed in this closed door hockey romance
I’m doing what I’ve always dreamed of doing…until an injury on the ice threatens it all.
Kenton Callaghan is living the dream. A star NHL player. A sought-after spokesperson. Wanted by beautiful women. If he’s a bit lonely at times, he figures it’s a small price to pay for all the rest. But when an injury threatens to rob him of his career, Kenton has to figure out how far he’s willing to go to get things back to where they were.
I know all about the professional sports life and have no intention of being involved in it again.
After a lot of time and hard work, Avery Walker finally has her degree in physiotherapy, and her first—and only—client, courtesy of Max Zevardi, is Emily Callaghan. The man who paid for her education through a scholarship has now hired her to work full-time with the woman. She’s grateful for the work, which is flexible enough for her to still be there for her family. It seems like the perfect job—until she meets Kenton Callaghan.
Avery has had experience with professional athletes, and it wasn’t pleasant. Knowing that Kenton will likely seek the quickest way to heal and get back to the game, she is determined to keep her distance from him. But when he turns to her for help with his rehabilitation, Avery feels obliged to help out. But just because she’s agreed for their lives to intersect professionally, it doesn’t mean that any other parts need to.
Kenton has always been up to a challenge, whether it’s in his career or his personal life, and the challenge Avery is presenting him is hard to resist. He wants what she can offer him in terms of helping his recovery, but there’s something else there. An aloofness beyond her professional exterior that he wants to understand.
The last thing Avery wants is to see Kenton as anything other than a client. He’s too close to events in her past for her comfort, so keeping him at a distance is a must. There is too much at risk to take a chance, especially when she suspects that Kenton might be crossing a line she can’t tolerate.
Find it on Goodreads, Amazon, and Bookbub.
Jade’s Match by Hallee Bridgeman – Hallee Bridgeman is one of my all-time favorite authors, and I just loved this closed door hockey romance with an Olympic twist! But all the sweet romance books in this series are wonderful.
Two Olympians are matched in a media campaign that turns into something more than a game.
Rio Games silver medalist and social media darling CORA “JADE” ANDERSON is approached by a popular cell phone company to launch a flirty but fake media campaign with ice hockey star DAVIS ELLIOTT. When things get off to a rocky start, Cora and Davis both wonder what they’ve gotten into and how they’ll get through the months until the Korean games.
It’s not long until things start to warm up between the athletes and soon this fake romance becomes something much more real. Cora knows just how to work social media and engage her fans, and as the world watches and interacts with them, their love grows. When Davis is selected for Team USA, the opposition starts. As a Korean American, he’s already facing odds Cora can never comprehend, but he takes his frustration at the racism to the ice and lets the puck take the beating.
Things come to a head just weeks before the games begin. Can Davis and Cora’s very public relationship survive the aftermath of a very public confrontation, or are they going to have to let their love go when the Olympic flame is extinguished at the closing ceremonies?
Find it on Goodreads, Amazon, Bookbub, and Barnes & Noble.
Faceoff by Mari Loyal – Read my Review of the whole St. Cloud Hockey Series (spoiler alert, I loved it). This whole series is closed door romance.
He’s the cocky captain of the men’s hockey team, and now we’re stuck together for a class project.
LUZ
The days in my hockey career are numbered after an accident years ago that left me with chronic pain. Now that I’ve become the captain of the women’s team at my jock-hating ivy league college, the last thing I need is any distractions from school or hockey.
But then something that can only be defined as a meet-disaster with Max Cassiano, the men’s team captain, leads to open hostility between our teams. Fortunately, that whole mess helps me ignore how freaking hot he is.
Kinda.
MAX
I might seem like the hottest prospect to everyone in town, but I’m chopped liver to my massive Italian family. My focus has to be on my hockey career if I want to wow them, and I’m sure being named captain of the men’s team is the ticket.
Until a snobby professor pairs me up for an assignment with the one distraction I can’t seem to shake: Luz, the captain of the women’s team. And she’s way cuter than anyone who hates me has a right to be.
Sparks fly when we faceoff off the ice, but can we win this game if our teams hate each other?
Find it on Goodreads, Amazon, and Bookbub.
Over Time by Mari Loyal
He’s the grumpy hockey captain with a bad boy reputation, and now I’ve been assigned as his tutor for the rest of the semester.
ARAN
The pressure is on in my senior year to wow hockey recruiters no matter what. My only outlet was casual dating until the latest fling makes a scene in the middle of my team’s locker room, and gets me in trouble with the coach. And that’s without him even knowing I’m about to flunk an elective.
So I have a plan: Step one, swear off girls for the rest of the season. Step two, do some overtime school work with the help of a tutor.
Except said tutor is about to ruin the whole plan.
MADDIE
Just a few months left of college and I’ll officially start my career as an author. But before that, I’m in desperate need of more income to move away from my fatphobic roommates. So I ramp up my tutoring gig, and start working on a hockey romance idea that I can self-publish quickly. There’s only one problem: I know nothing about hockey—or real life romance.
Insert Aran. Not only I’ll get paid for tutoring him, but maybe he can also teach me about the sport. All I have to do is remember that a real-life romance is off the table.
The overtime tutoring sessions start getting less academic, but can we beat the ticking clock?
Find it on Goodreads, Amazon, and Bookbub.
Shutout by Mari Loyal
He’s the golden retriever hockey captain who was once my best friend, turned perfect stranger, and now he’s come crashing back into my life.
OLIVIA
I’m not huge into the party scene, especially after what happened last year at the Bolt House where the hockey jocks live. I’d rather stay home reading a book or cooking up a new recipe to the tune of some hard rock. But now my friends convince me to go to a party and what could go wrong, right?
Of course, we get there and find my boyfriend cheating on me with a random girl. And even worse, the one who confronts my now ex is none other than Brooklyn, Bolt House resident, hockey captain… and my former best friend.
Yep, the same one I had a major crush on basically all my life.
BROOKLYN
I haven’t seen Olivia since she basically shut me out of her life a year ago. Yeah, I was a jerk and deserve it, but does it make me even more of a jerk if I’m happy to see her break up with her boyfriend?
Maybe this is my chance to get back in her good graces, and what better opportunity than fulfilling the promise we made freshman year of signing up for a Spanish elective together.
But just as I’m starting to think I’m better suited for the role of Olivia’s boyfriend rather than her friend, I get a huge offer that could kickstart my hockey career with a bang.
And I really don’t want to choose between hockey and her again.
Are we playing the only game we can both win by shutout or are we about to lose each other forever?
Cross Check Crush by Dulcie Dameron – This book was a closed door hockey romance chef’s kiss. And it you like this one… THERE’s more in the series!
This is one crush she’s willing to bet on…
Reality star sweetheart, Freya Danielson, is no stranger to living under a microscope. But not even her fans know about her secret crush on hockey’s hottest bad boy, Bridger Baros.
Bridger’s grumpy persona might be off-putting to some, but Freya sees past the bluster to who he is underneath. Sweet, shy, considerate…
And woefully oblivious to how deep Freya’s feelings run.
Bridger can’t catch a break. If it’s not his brother’s constant passive-aggressive comparison bringing on a headache, it’s his teammates ragging about his aversion to dating. But when everything comes to a head after a frustrating phone call, Bridger finds himself in need of a fiancée. Fast.
When Bridger finds out the owner of his social media fan page is none other than the country’s most beloved “good girl,” he proposes they strike a deal: If she’ll pretend to be his fiancée at his family’s Thanksgiving get together, he’ll help her monetize her fan page by giving her an insider’s scoop into what it’s like to be a Dragon.
There’s just one catch—for Freya, nothing with Bridger is pretend. And she’s secretly hoping that by the time their holiday weekend away is over, Bridger has caught feelings for her too.
Putting it all on the line for a self-proclaimed bachelor is scary, but Freya’s determined to win Bridger’s heart—or get crushed trying.
**Cross-Check Crush is a sweet closed door hockey romance full of flirty messages, fake dating, and fuzzy, warm feelings that are most certainly NOT fake.**
Find it on Goodreads, Amazon, and Bookbub.
More Closed Door Hockey Romances You might enjoy, since I cannot possibly mention every single one in this post (All of them are currently on Kindle Unlimited):
- Desire or Defense by Leah Bruner (really good series) – Inuendo, Some Language, Fade to Black
- Season’s Schemings by Kate Bailey – Inuendo, Some Language, Fade to Black
- Head Over Skates: A Sweet Enemies to Lovers Hockey Rom Com by Gigi Blume
- Double Duty Defense by MJ Padgett – Closed Door Romance, part of a series
- Single Dad Center by Latisha Sexton – REALLY good storyline! Closed Door Hockey Romance
- Kissing Beck Thomas by MJ Padgett – Closed Door and really a sweet story
- The Golden Goal: A Sweet Rivals to Lovers Hockey RomCom by Annah Conwell – Interesting storyline
- Redd, Whit & Blue: A Second Chance Hockey RomCom (Nebraska Knights Holiday Hockey Romance) by Ellie Hall – Closed Door, part of a neat series
- Stick To Me: A Hockey Romcom (New York Raptors Book 1) by Marion De Ré – Closed Door, Part of a series, she also writes some other really good sports romance books
To see other closed door sports book recommendations, check out my article listing some of my recent favorites across all different sports, including surfing and snowboarding!
If you think I missed any sweet hockey romances that should be on this list, please let me know! I’m always looking for more to read. (Authors feel free to DM me if I havent read your book yet!)
I loved the Appies series and Courtney’s book!
Me Too!!! I own them all. I’m just sad that it’s over now. I am hoping Courtney Walsh will be coming out with another one in the series, but I haven’t seen her tease anything about it. And the last book came out, I think, two years ago now. Have you seen anything about a new book in that series?