Elena Orlando

Elena Orlando (born June 15, 1992) is an American ice hockey defender, currently playing with the Connecticut Whale of the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL). A stay-at-home defenceman and one of eight original NWHLers still active, she is the 5th longest-tenured player in league history.[1]

Elena Orlando
Born (1992-06-15) June 15, 1992
San Jose, California, United States
Height 5 ft 7 in (170 cm)
Position Defence
Shoots Left
NWHL team
Former teams		 Connecticut Whale
New York Riveters
IF Sundsvall Hockey
Quinnipiac Bobcats
Playing career 2010–present

Career

Growing up in California, Orlando originally began playing roller hockey until an ice rink was built in her neighbourhood, at which point she switched to ice hockey along with her brother.[2]

In high school, she attended Shattuck-Saint Mary's, where she played as both a forward and a defender and won the national championship in 2009. She was invited to the USA Hockey national development camp in 2008 and 2009.

From 2010 to 2014, she attended Quinnipiac University and played with the Quinnipiac Bobcats, scoring 11 points in 85 NCAA Division I games. She scored her first NCAA goal in a 2–1 defeat to the Colgate Raiders on October 30, 2010.[3] At Quinnipiac, she also played for the university's women's rugby programme.

After graduating, she signed with IF Sundsvall Hockey in the Swedish Women's Hockey League (at the time known as Riksserien).[4] She would pick up 2 points in 5 games with Sundsvall, adding another 9 points in 14 relegation playoff games as the club managed to save its top-flight spot.[5]

After the NWHL was founded by Dani Rylan in 2015, she returned to North America to sign with the New York Riveters on a $10,000 contract.[6] She would only play one year for the Riveters, picking up one point in seventeen games, before signing with the Connecticut Whale on a $12,000 contract.[7] She won the NWHL Foundation Award in 2017.

She picked up 3 assists in 24 games in the 2019–20 season, more than doubling her career total, and was named to Team Packer for the 2020 NWHL All-Star Game.[8]

Personal life

Outside of hockey, Orlando works as a nurse.[9]

Career statistics
    Regular Season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2014–15 IF Sundsvall Hockey Riksserien 51124 -----
2015–16 New York Riveters NWHL 1701112 20004
2016-17Connecticut WhaleNWHL 120004 -----
2017-18Connecticut WhaleNWHL 160112 10000
2018-19Connecticut WhaleNWHL 160004 10002
2019-20Connecticut WhaleNWHL 2403312 20110
NWHL totals 8505534 60116
Riksserien totals 51124 -----

References
  1. Rice, Dan (October 15, 2020). "'The NWHL has reignited that fire in me': Elena Orlando on her five seasons in the NWHL". The Ice Garden. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  2. Murphy, Connor (November 29, 2015). "Interview with Elena Orlando". Blueshirt Banter. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  3. "2013-14 Women's Ice Hockey: #14 Elena Orlando". Quinnipiac University Athletics. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  4. Rönnkvist, Ronnie (March 15, 2015). "Kvalserien till Riksserien avgjord". HockeySverige (in Swedish). Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  5. Cimini, Kaitlin (August 12, 2015). "Elena Orlando: Defensive Forward or Defender for NWHL?". Today's SlapShot. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  6. Barshop, Sarah (March 4, 2016). "Behind the scenes on an NWHL road trip". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  7. Murphy, Mike (September 12, 2016). "Elena Orlando Signs with Connecticut Whale". Blueshirt Banter. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  8. Rice, Dan (April 21, 2020). "Connecticut Whale: Defender Elena Orlando Back for 6th NWHL Season". The Hockey Writers. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  9. "#NWHLxWISS: Nurse and Original NWHLer Elena Orlando". NWHL.zone. December 16, 2019. Retrieved December 27, 2020.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.