Alena Polenská (previously Mills; born 9 June 1990) is a Czech ice hockey player and former captain of the Czech Republic women's national ice hockey team. She plays in the Swiss Women's League (SWHL A) with the ZHC Lions Frauen.
| Alena Polenská | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Polenská on Show Jana Krause in 2019 | |||
| Born |
9 June 1990 Kutná Hora, Czechoslovakia | ||
| Height | 172 cm (5 ft 8 in) | ||
| Weight | 79 kg (174 lb; 12 st 6 lb) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Shoots | Left | ||
| SWHL A team Former teams |
ZSC Lions Frauen | ||
| National team |
 Czech Republic | ||
| Playing career | 2004–present | ||
Polenská was part of the first Czech team to participate in a top-level tournament of the IIHF Women's World Championship (2013 tournament) and was captain of the first Czech team to earn a medal at the Women's World Championship (2022).[1]
Playing career
editShe won a bronze medal for the Czech Republic at the 2008 IIHF World Women's U18 Championship. In the bronze medal game, Polenská scored two goals.[2] At the 2008 Roller Hockey World Championships, she won a gold medal. It marked the first time that a European team had won the event. On August 12, 2010, she was named captain of the Czech Republic Olympic Development Team.[3]
NCAA
editPolenská joined the Brown Bears women's ice hockey program in the autumn of 2009 and appeared in 28 games during her freshman campaign. Her five goals tied for first on the squad, and her 96 shots on goal led all Bears skaters.[4] On January 31, 2010, versus Yale, she registered two assists. In an exhibition game versus the Etobicoke Dolphins on 17 October 2010, Polenská scored two goals in a 5–2 victory.[5]
Russia
editPolenská played in Russia from 2014 to 2022. Her first season was played in the Russian Women's Hockey League (RWHL) with Dinamo Saint Petersburg, and she then remained with the club as the RWHL was replaced by the Zhenskaya Hockey League for the 2015–16 season. After four seasons with Dinamo, she signed with Agidel Ufa in 2018. With Agidel, Polenská won the 2019 Russian Championship and was selected for the ZhHL All-Star Game in 2019 and 2020.[6] Following that season, she signed with the KRS Vanke Rays[7]
Sweden
editAfter leaving the Vanke Rays, Polenská signed with Brynäs IF.[8] She left Brynäs following the 2022–23 season.[9]
International play
editPolenská was a stalwart member of the Czech national team for nearly two decades. She served as captain from 2010 until her retirement from international competition in 2023[10] and led the team through promotion to the Top Division, as well as their first World Championship medal victory.[1] She and figure skater Michal Březina served as flag bearers for the Czech delegation at the opening ceremony of the 2022 Winter Olympics.[11] After playing 260 international games, Polenská announced her retirement from the national team in June 2023.[12]
Personal life
editPolenská's Czech Republic jersey from the 2008 IIHF U18 Women's World Championship was displayed at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.[13]
In June 2018, she married American ex-pat Thomas Mills, who she met while playing in Saint Petersburg.[14][15] She returned to using her maiden name in 2024.
Career statistics
editRegular season and playoffs
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2009–10 | Brown University | NCAA | 28 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 12 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| 2010–11 | Brown University | NCAA | 26 | 10 | 7 | 17 | 12 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| 2011–12 | Brown University | NCAA | 23 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 12 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| 2012–13 | Brown University | NCAA | 22 | 9 | 10 | 19 | 16 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| 2014–15 | Dinamo St. Petersburg | RWHL | 32 | 22 | 21 | 43 | 18 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| 2015–16 | Dinamo St. Petersburg | ZhHL | 24 | 20 | 16 | 36 | 10 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| 2016–17 | Dinamo St. Petersburg | ZhHL | 36 | 13 | 16 | 36 | 10 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| 2017–18 | Dinamo St. Petersburg | ZhHL | 24 | 5 | 11 | 16 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2018–19 | Agidel Ufa | ZhHL | 32 | 22 | 14 | 36 | 14 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 2019–20 | Agidel Ufa | ZhHL | 28 | 12 | 17 | 29 | 12 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | ||
| 2020–21 | KRS Vanke Rays | ZhHL | 28 | 9 | 13 | 22 | 34 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 6 | ||
| 2021–22 | HPK | Naisten Liiga | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| NCAA totals | 99 | 31 | 30 | 61 | 52 | – | – | – | – | – | ||||
| Russia totals | 204 | 103 | 108 | 211 | 136 | 18 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 14 | ||||
International
edit| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Czech Republic | OGQ | DNQ | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| 2005 | Czech Republic | WWC D1 | 3rd | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | |
| 2008 | Czech Republic | U18 | 
|
5 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2008 | Czech Republic | WWC D1 | 3rd | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 8 | |
| 2008 | Czech Republic | OGQ | DNQ | 3 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2009 | Czech Republic | WWC D1 | 5th | 5 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 2 | |
| 2011 | Czech Republic | WWC D2 | 1st | 4 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2012 | Czech Republic | WWC D1A | 1st | 5 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 2 | |
| 2013 | Czech Republic | OGQ | DNQ | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| 2013 | Czech Republic | WWC | 8th | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | |
| 2014 | Czech Republic | WWC D1A | 1st | 5 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 4 | |
| 2014 | Czech Republic | WWQ | DNQ | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| 2015 | Czech Republic | WWC D1A | 1st | 5 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2016 | Czech Republic | WWC | 6th | 5 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2017 | Czech Republic | OGQ | DNQ | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2017 | Czech Republic | WWC | 8th | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
| 2019 | Czech Republic | WW | 6th | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 2 | |
| 2021 | Czech Republic | WWC | 7th | 6 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 4 | |
| 2021 | Czech Republic | OGQ | Q | 3 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 2 | |
| 2022 | Czech Republic | WWC |
|
7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | |
| 2023 | Czech Republic | WWC |
|
6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | |
| Junior totals | 5 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 0 | ||||
| Senior totals | 91 | 37 | 39 | 76 | 48 | ||||
Awards and honors
edit- Most Valuable Player for the Czech Republic, 2008 U18 World Championship
- Most Valuable Player, Princeton Tiger Lilies, 2009[19]
References
edit- ^ a b Podnieks, Andrew. "Czechia wins historic bronze". IIHF. Archived from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
- ^ "IIHF World Womens U18 Championship, Women – Play-Off Bronze Medal Game, Game 19 – Game Summary: SWE - CZE 2-4" (PDF). IIHF. 13 January 2001. Archived (PDF) from the original on 7 March 2018.
- ^ "Polenska Named Czech Team Captain". ECAC Hockey (Press release). 12 August 2010. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
- ^ http://www.brownbears.com/sports/w-hockey/2010-11/bios/polenska%20alena00 Archived 26 August 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Polenska Powers Brown to Exhibition Win". ECAC Hockey. 17 October 2010. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
- ^ "Interview with Alena Polenská". hc-forward.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 3 October 2013.
- ^ "Алена Миллс подписала контракт с "Ванке Рэйз"" (in Russian). Kontinental Hockey League. 10 December 2021. Archived from the original on 12 December 2021. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
- ^ "Tjeckisk toppspelare klar för Brynäs IF – centern Alena Mills ansluter". Brynäs IF (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 13 July 2022. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
- ^ "Trio av spelare lämnar Brynäs IF". www.brynas.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 20 June 2023.
- ^ "Alena Polenska Named Czech Hockey Team Captain". Brown University Athletics. Archived from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
- ^ Žehanová, Barbora. "Českou vlajku na zahájení ponesou hokejová kapitánka Mills a krasobruslař Březina". www.olympijskytym.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 4 September 2022.
- ^ Montroy, Liz (11 June 2023). "Alena Mills announces national team retirement". IIHF. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
- ^ "Alena Polenska". The Times Leader. 18 May 2009. Archived from the original on 20 October 2011.
- ^ Kemmerer, Gillian (4 May 2020). "Ice Diaries: Alena Mills". Kontinental Hockey League. Archived from the original on 24 November 2021. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
- ^ Stremple, Claire (14 February 2022). "Why one Hoonah family rooted for the Czech women's hockey team this Olympics". KTOO. Archived from the original on 1 March 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
- ^ "The Official Website of Hockey Canada | Minor Hockey, Team Canada, National Championships and more". www.hockeycanada.ca. Archived from the original on 28 October 2020. Retrieved 28 October 2020.
- ^ "Alena Polenska: Career Statistics". USCHO.com. Archived from the original on 28 May 2012. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
- ^ Podnieks, Andrew; Nordmark, Birger, eds. (2019). IIHF Guide & Record Book 2020. Toronto: Moydart. p. 655. ISBN 9780986796470.
- ^ "Brown Welcomes Class of 2013". ECAC Hockey. 1 September 2009. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
External links
edit- Biographical information and career statistics from Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com
- Alena Mills at Olympedia
