Rachel Llanes

Rachel Llanes
Llanes playing for the Boston Pride in the 2016–17 NWHL season
Born (1991-04-29) April 29, 1991 (age 33)[1]
San Jose, California, U.S.
Height 5 ft 2 in (157 cm)
Weight 121 lb (55 kg; 8 st 9 lb)
Position Forward
Shoots Right
Current team
Former teams
Free agent
KRS Vanke Rays (ZhHL/CWHL)
Kunlun Red Star (CWHL)
Boston Pride (NWHL)
Boston Blades (CWHL)
Northeastern Huskies (NCAA)
Current coach San Jose Barracuda
Coached for BB&N girls' ice hockey
National team  China
Playing career 2009–present
Coaching career 2014–present
Lin Ni
Traditional Chinese林尼
Simplified Chinese林尼
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinLín Ní
Wade–GilesLin Ni

Rachel Llanes (born April 29, 1991), also known by the Chinese name Lin Ni (Chinese: 林尼),[2] is an American ice hockey player and coach. She has served as strength and conditioning coach of the San Jose Barracuda since the 2022–23 AHL season.[3]

As a member of the Chinese national ice hockey team, she participated in the 2022 Winter Olympics and two IIHF Women's World Championship Divisiom I tournaments.

Llanes previously played with the Boston Blades and Kunlun Red Star WIH of the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL), the Boston Pride of the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL; renamed PHF in 2021), and the KRS Vanke Rays of the Zhenskaya Hockey League (ZhHL).[4][5] She is the only player to have won a championship in the CWHL, the NWHL, and the ZhHL.[6]

Playing career

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Llanes began playing hockey in her early teen years and played with the San Jose Jr. Sharks girls' travel team.[7][8]

She played NCAA Division I ice hockey with the Northeastern Huskies of Hockey East from 2009 through 2013.[9]

CWHL

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Llanes played for the Boston Blades in the CWHL, winning the Clarkson Cup with the team in 2015.[10][11]

NWHL

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In 2015, Llanes joined the Boston Pride for the inaugural NWHL season, winning the Isobel Cup with the team.[12] In July 2016, it was announced that Llanes would continue with the team for the 2016–17 season, with a pay increase for a one-year $12,000 contract.[13][14][15]

Return to CWHL & ZhHL

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In 2017, Llanes returned to the CWHL to sign with Kunlun Red Star (KRS) in China. She also served as the strength and conditioning coach for both KRS and the Chinese national team.[16] She remained with the team through several significant changes, first when it merged with the Vanke Rays to become the Shenzhen KRS Vanke Rays for the 2018–19 CWHL season, and again when the team joined the ZhHL for the 2019–20 season, after the CWHL folded.[17] In their first season as part of the ZhHL, the KRS Vanke Rays became the first non-Russian team to win the ZhHL championship and Llanes earned distinction as the first player in the history of women's ice hockey to win championships in the CWHL, the NWHL, and the ZhHL.[6]

Personal life

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Llanes was born on April 29, 1991, in San Jose, California. She is of Filipino heritage.[10][8]

Llanes holds a degree in criminal justice and psychology from Northeastern University.

From 2014 to 2016, Llanes served as assistant coach to the Lady Knights ice hockey team of the Buckingham Browne & Nichols School in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

References

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  1. ^ "Rachel Llanes - Women's Ice Hockey". Archived from the original on March 2, 2016. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  2. ^ "Beijing 2022 – Athletes: Ni LIN". Olympics.com. Archived from the original on January 31, 2022. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
  3. ^ "San Jose Barracuda Announce Staff Hires". San Jose Barracuda (Press release). October 14, 2022. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
  4. ^ "CWHL 2015/2016 - Boston Blades Team Roster". cwhlboston.stats.pointstreak.com. Archived from the original on August 27, 2013. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
  5. ^ Potts, Andy (January 28, 2022). "Chinese women target QF". International Ice Hockey Federation. Archived from the original on February 3, 2022. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  6. ^ a b Murphy, Mike (February 23, 2020). "Rachel Llanes' journey from role player to star". The Ice Garden. Archived from the original on April 22, 2020. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
  7. ^ Cimini, Kaitlin (August 20, 2015). "Rachel Llanes Expects A Lot From NWHL". Today's Slapshot. Archived from the original on February 25, 2016. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  8. ^ a b Hsieh, Ren (March 31, 2016). "Asian Players Helping to Make History in Women's Pro Hockey". Dat Winning. Archived from the original on October 6, 2017. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
  9. ^ Staffieri, Mark (January 28, 2016). "Women's Winter Classic Provides Proud Memories for Rachel Llanes". Women's Hockey Life. Archived from the original on September 28, 2020. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
  10. ^ a b Berkman, Seth (November 25, 2016). "Two Black Women Embrace Their Chance to Be Hockey Role Models". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved October 6, 2017.
  11. ^ "Boston Blades Select Llanes and Pickett in CWHL Draft". Northeastern Huskies. August 30, 2013. Archived from the original on October 6, 2017. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  12. ^ Nelson, Dustin (August 15, 2015). "Rachel Llanes, Hayley Williams & Paige Harrington Sign in NWHL". The Hockey Writers. Archived from the original on October 6, 2017. Retrieved October 6, 2017.
  13. ^ Linehan, Meg (August 30, 2016). "Emily Field, Rachel Llanes return to Boston Pride for NWHL's second season". Excelle Sports. Archived from the original on October 6, 2017. Retrieved October 6, 2017.
  14. ^ Share-Cohen, Brandon (July 30, 2016). "Boston Pride Re-Sign Rachel Llanes". The Hockey Writers. Archived from the original on October 6, 2017. Retrieved October 6, 2017.
  15. ^ Berkman, Seth (November 22, 2016). "Pay Cuts Jolt Women's Pro League and Leave Its Future Uncertain". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 6, 2017. Retrieved October 6, 2017.
  16. ^ Whelan, Kirsten (March 2, 2020). "In Russia's Women's Hockey League, KRS Remains a Standard-Bearer". The Victory Press. Archived from the original on August 5, 2020. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
  17. ^ Kaplan, Emily (January 29, 2020). "What the NHL can learn from the KHL's support of women's hockey". ESPN. Archived from the original on February 25, 2020. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
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