Alena Mills née Polenská (born 9 June 1990) is a Czech ice hockey player and captain of the Czech national ice hockey team, currently[update] signed with Brynäs IF Dam of the Swedish Women's Hockey League (SDHL).[1] She was part of the first Czech team that made their top-level IIHF World Women's Championship debut at the 2013 tournament as well as captain of the first Czech team to earn a medal at Women's Worlds in 2022.[2]
Alena Mills | ||||||||||||||||
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![]() Mills on Show Jana Krause in 2019 | ||||||||||||||||
Born |
(1990-06-09) 9 June 1990 (age 32) Kutná Hora, Czechoslovakia | |||||||||||||||
Height | 172 cm (5 ft 8 in) | |||||||||||||||
Weight | 79 kg (174 lb; 12 st 6 lb) | |||||||||||||||
Position | Forward | |||||||||||||||
Shoots | Left | |||||||||||||||
SDHL team Former teams |
Brynäs IF KRS Vanke Rays HPK Hämeenlinna Agidel Ufa Dinamo St. Petersburg Brown Bears | |||||||||||||||
National team |
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Playing career | 2004–present | |||||||||||||||
Medal record
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She won a bronze medal for the Czech Republic at the 2008 IIHF World Women's U18 Championship. In the bronze medal game, Mills scored two goals.[3] 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.[4]
Mills joined the Brown Bears 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.[5] On January 31, 2010, versus Yale, she registered two assists. In an exhibition game versus the Etobicoke Dolphins on October 17, 2010, Mills scored two goals in a 5–2 victory.[6]
Mills 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, Mills won the 2019 Russian Championship and was selected to the ZhHL All-Star Game in 2019 and 2020.[7] Following that season, she signed with the KRS Vanke Rays[8]
Mills has been a stalwart member of the Czech National team for nearly two decades. She has been captain since 2010[9] and led the team through promotion to the Top Division as well as their first medal win.[2] She also served as flag bearer for the Czechs during the 2022 Winter Olympics.[10]
Mills' Czech Republic jersey from the 2008 IIHF Women's U18 World Championship was displayed at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.[11]
In June 2018, she married American expat Thomas Mills, who she met while playing in Saint Petersburg.[12] Thomas Mills grew up in Hoonah and Juneau, Alaska and, as of February 2022[update], teaches in Russia while his wife is traveling playing hockey.[13]
Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
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Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
2009–10 | Brown Bears | NCAA | 28 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 12 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
2010–11 | Brown Bears | NCAA | 26 | 10 | 7 | 17 | 12 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
2011–12 | Brown Bears | NCAA | 23 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 12 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
2012–13 | Brown Bears | 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 |
Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
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2004 | Czech Republic | OGQ | DNQ | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
2005 | Czech Republic | WW D1 | 3rd | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | |
2008 | Czech Republic U18 | WW18 | ![]() |
5 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 0 | |
2008 | Czech Republic | WW D1 | 3rd | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 8 | |
2008 | Czech Republic | OGQ | DNQ | 3 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 0 | |
2009 | Czech Republic | WW D1 | 5th | 5 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 2 | |
2011 | Czech Republic | WW D2 | 1st | 4 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 0 | |
2012 | Czech Republic | WW D1A | 1st | 5 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 2 | |
2013 | Czech Republic | OGQ | DNQ | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
2013 | Czech Republic | WW | 8th | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | |
2014 | Czech Republic | WW D1A | 1st | 5 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 4 | |
2014 | Czech Republic | WWQ | DNQ | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
2015 | Czech Republic | WW D1A | 1st | 5 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 0 | |
2016 | Czech Republic | WW | 6th | 5 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0 | |
2017 | Czech Republic | OGQ | DNQ | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
2017 | Czech Republic | WW | 8th | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
2019 | Czech Republic | WW | 6th | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 2 | |
2021 | Czech Republic | WW | 7th | 6 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 4 | |
2021 | Czech Republic | OGQ | Q | 3 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 2 | |
2022 | Czech Republic | WW | ![]() |
7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | |
0 |
Olympic Games | ||
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Preceded by | Flagbearer for ![]() Beijing 2022 with Michal Březina |
Succeeded by incumbent |