Orlando Making History on Beauts Blue Line
February 12, 2022 - Premier Hockey Federation (PHF)
Buffalo Beauts News Release
On July 13 Elena Orlando took to social media posting a heartfelt message that seemingly brought her Premier Hockey Federation career to a close.
One of the league's original members had just completed her sixth season and fifth with Connecticut and would be remembered as one of the league's most reliable stay-at-home defenders of all time.
A couple of months later, a new chapter began in Buffalo.
"I was pretty convinced that I was done but every season keeps bringing me back in," Orlando said. "There was always that thought in the back of my mind. I got that call from GM Nate Oliver about what the Beauts were trying to build and what they were putting together and I knew it was something I wanted to be part of. They have a great organization so it wasn't hard to convince me to come back for another year."
The 29-year-old is one of only five PHF players to compete in all seven seasons since the inaugural 2015-16 campaign. She's also making history as just the fourth player to reach 100 career regular season games having reached the milestone during last weekend's trip to Minnesota which was capped by a Beauts win.
"Honestly I'm still in shock that I've played that many games," she said. "It seems like these past six and a half or seven years have just flown by. I didn't realize I was that close until Nate told me and I thought wow. The win was really nice. It was a long time coming for us. It was a nice gift!"
Orlando grew up in California where she was introduced to the sport playing roller hockey. An ice rink was built near her house and she followed her older brother's interest in switching their wheels for blades. She played on boys teams until around the eighth grade, later moved away to attend the prestigious Shattuck-St. Mary's, was recruited to play collegiately for the Quinnipiac Bobcats, and spent a season competing overseas in Sweden.
"I didn't even know that they were starting up the league (NWHL)," Orlando says, recalling her decision to return home to pursue her dream. "My Dad actually read an article about it and sent it to me and said they were doing tryouts. I wanted to continue playing so I was very interested. I signed up for the tryouts and went through that whole process and signed with the Riveters."
The New York Riveters at the time were one of the Founding Four teams where Orlando played the first 17 games of her career. They lost in the semifinals that season but enjoyed an exhibition trip to Japan.
"Anyone that played in that first year would probably have a similar feeling about it, but just being the first paid professional women's hockey players in North America was a substantial feat that we accomplished," she said. "To play in front of sold out crowds was something I never expected myself to be doing. As a kid growing up there wasn't that goal, like the NHL for women, so to be playing in something like that was huge. That whole year was magical. I had a great time and have a lot of great memories."
The San Jose native signed with the Whale for Season 2 and spent the next 72 games in green where she continued to compile some unforgettable memories.
"I played with all of those players for many years," she said. "Someone like Shannon Turner I played with every single season. It really became like a family. Being part of that organization for so long meant a lot to me. I live in Connecticut, so being in a leadership role there and being able to bring that organization up for the fans in that community was really great to be part of."
Being among the likes of Turner, and Boston's Jillian Dempsey and Kaleigh Fratkin who have all surpassed 100 games is something Orlando never imagined.
"I was talking to my Dad in year one and I remember telling him that if I'm lucky maybe I'll play another year or two but I wasn't expecting it to go much further than that," she said. "Being immersed in it and with the love of the sport, how much I've grown in this league and as a person and a player, the urge just keeps bringing me back."
Orlando also takes pride in seeing the steps the PHF has taken to develop professional women's hockey for the next generation.
"I think it's just been awesome to see the growth of the league," she said. "From year one until now with the broadcasting deals to the salary cap increases and expansion it's been really awesome to see from the start to where we're at now. I think we're definitely on the right path. As the league grows with more viewership and sponsorship the only way to go is up from here and that's really exciting."
In Buffalo her PHF experience in terms of games played is more than the rest of the budding Beauts blue line combined but she appreciates the opportunity to help build something special.
"So far I've had a great experience with the Beauts," she said. "Top to bottom the organization is great. Obviously we've faced some adversity so far this season but I think everyone has really bought into the idea of continuously building and getting better each game. The goal is to win the Isobel Cup and everyone is buying into what it takes to get there and make sure we're clicking and firing on all cylinders going into playoffs."
The Beauts are in sixth place in the standings heading into this weekend's series at home against the fifth place Riveters. It's a team they beat once in November and they enter the action on the heels of a season-high six goals scored in their Minnesota victory.
"We played Metropolitan at the beginning of the season and I think we're probably both different teams since what we both saw then," Orland said. "We're just going in focusing on what we need to do. We know how important these games are and what these points mean in terms of seeding. We know what's on the line and we're prepared for it."
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Premier Hockey Federation Stories from February 12, 2022
- Orlando Making History on Beauts Blue Line - Buffalo Beauts
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