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Elena Orlando

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Elena Orlando (born June 15, 1992) is an American ice hockey defenseman. She most recently played in the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) with the Buffalo Beauts during the 2021–22 season. Having played in the PHF since its inaugural 2015–16 season, she was one of five players to have recorded more than 100 regular season games played at the conclusion of the 2021–22 season.[1][2]

Elena Orlando
Orlando with the New York Riveters in 2015
Born (1992-06-15) June 15, 1992 (age 32)
San Jose, California, United States
Height 5 ft 7 in (170 cm)
Position Defense
Shot Left
Played for
Playing career 2010–2022

Playing career

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Growing up in California, Orlando originally began playing roller hockey until an ice rink was built in her neighborhood, at which point she switched to ice hockey along with her brother.[3]

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.[4] 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 (then known as Riksserien).[5] 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.[6]

After the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL; rebranded as PHF in 2021) was founded by Dani Rylan in 2015, she returned to North America to sign with the New York Riveters on a $10,000 contract.[7] She would only play one season with the Riveters, picking up one assist in seventeen games, before signing a $12,000 contract with the Connecticut Whale.[8] Orlando went on to play with the Whale for five consecutive seasons, playing a total of 72 games with the team, and was the recipient of a NWHL Foundation Award in 2017.

While serving as an alternate captain of the Whale during the 2019–20 NWHL season, she picked up 3 assists in 24 regular season games, more than doubling her career total, and was named to Team Packer for the 2020 NWHL All-Star Game.[9] She recorded an additional 2 points with the Whale in the four regular season games of the 2020–21 season, which was dramatically shortened due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

After half a decade with the Whale, Orlando signed with the Buffalo Beauts for the 2021–22 season. Continuing to live in Connecticut, she made the more than 310 mi (500 km) commute to Buffalo for practices and home games all season, managing to not miss a single game. In recognition of her perseverance and dedication to the sport, she received the Denna Laing Award (also called the PHF Perseverance Award) in 2022.[10]

Personal life

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Outside of hockey, Orlando works as a nurse.[11]

Career statistics

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    Regular Season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2014–15 IF Sundsvall Hockey Riksserien 5 1 1 2 4 - - - - -
2015–16 New York Riveters NWHL 17 0 1 1 12 2 0 0 0 4
2016-17 Connecticut Whale NWHL 12 0 0 0 4 - - - - -
2017-18 Connecticut Whale NWHL 16 0 1 1 2 1 0 0 0 0
2018-19 Connecticut Whale NWHL 16 0 0 0 4 1 0 0 0 2
2019-20 Connecticut Whale NWHL 24 0 3 3 12 2 0 1 1 0
2020-21 Connecticut Whale NWHL 4 0 2 2 2 1 0 0 0 0
2021-22 Buffalo Beauts PHF 20 0 0 0 4 2 0 0 0 0
PHF totals 109 0 7 7 40 8 0 1 1 6

References

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  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. Archived from the original on November 1, 2020. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  2. ^ "PHF (W) Stats All-time totals (Regular Season; To Season: 21/22; Sort: GP)". Elite Prospects. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  3. ^ Murphy, Connor (November 29, 2015). "Interview with Elena Orlando". Blueshirt Banter. Archived from the original on September 24, 2021. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  4. ^ "2013-14 Women's Ice Hockey: #14 Elena Orlando". Quinnipiac University Athletics. Archived from the original on February 19, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  5. ^ Rönnkvist, Ronnie (March 15, 2015). "Kvalserien till Riksserien avgjord". HockeySverige (in Swedish). Archived from the original on April 9, 2015. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  6. ^ Cimini, Kaitlin (August 12, 2015). "Elena Orlando: Defensive Forward or Defender for NWHL?". Today's SlapShot. Archived from the original on August 16, 2015. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  7. ^ Barshop, Sarah (March 4, 2016). "Behind the scenes on an NWHL road trip". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  8. ^ Murphy, Mike (September 12, 2016). "Elena Orlando Signs with Connecticut Whale". Blueshirt Banter. Archived from the original on October 27, 2021. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  9. ^ Rice, Dan (April 21, 2020). "Connecticut Whale: Defender Elena Orlando Back for 6th NWHL Season". The Hockey Writers. Archived from the original on April 24, 2020. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  10. ^ Rice, Dan (May 19, 2022). "PHF announces 2022 Award Winners". The Ice Garden. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  11. ^ "#NWHLxWISS: Nurse and Original NWHLer Elena Orlando". NWHL.zone. December 16, 2019. Archived from the original on October 16, 2021. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
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