Janka Hlinka

Janka Hlinka
Hlinka representing Slovakia at the 2022 IIHF World Championship Division 1A
Born (1995-10-31) 31 October 1995 (age 29)
Stratford, Connecticut, US
Height 1.71 m (5 ft 7 in)
Weight 73 kg (161 lb; 11 st 7 lb)
Position Forward
Shoots Left
EWHL team
Former teams		 ŠKP Bratislava
Coached for Manhattanville College Valiants
National team  Slovakia
Playing career 2014–present
Coaching career 2022–present

Janka Hlinka or Janka Hlinková (born 31 October 1995) is a Slovak-American ice hockey forward and member of the Slovak national team, currently playing in the European Women's Hockey League (EWHL) with ŠKP Bratislava. She previously played in the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) with the Connecticut Whale.[1] Her college ice hockey career was played at Middlebury College, where she won three New England Small College Athletic Conference championships.

Playing career

As a player with the Middlebury Panthers women's ice hockey program, Hlinka recorded 20 goals and 45 assists for a total of 65 points in 113 career NCAA Division III games. She and future Whale teammate Emily Fluke were Panther teammates for one season.[2]

Hlinka relocated to Europe after graduating from college. During the 2018–19 campaign, she suited up for ŠKP Bratislava U16 in the Liga kadetov, the top under-16 (U16) boys' league in Slovakia, posting 12 goals and 11 assists in 21 games. She then spent two seasons with Skellefteå AIK in the Swedish Damettan, where she led the team in scoring both seasons. She tallied 25 points (14+11) in 21 games over the span.

Hlinka played in 16 regular season games with the Connecticut Whale and two playoff games of the 2021–22 PHF season, including the Whale's first appearance in the Isobel Cup.

International play

Hlinka represented Slovakia in the Division I Group A tournaments of the IIHF Women's World Championship in 2019, 2022, and 2023.[3] She led the team in goals at the 2019 tournament, notching two across five games played.[4]

She ranked second in scoring of all tournament skaters at the 2024 IIHF Women's World Championship Division I Group B, with 3 goals and 5 assists for 8 points in five games.[5] Her performance was recognized with selection as the best forward of the tournament by the tournament directorate and as best player for Slovakia by the coaches.[6][7]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2014-15 Middlebury Panthers NCAA D3 23 4 12 16 26 — — — — —
2015-16 Middlebury Panthers NCAA D3 30 4 8 12 20 — — — — —
2016-17 Middlebury Panthers NCAA D3 27 8 12 20 22 — — — — —
2017-18 Middlebury Panthers NCAA D3 28 4 12 16 20 — — — — —
2018-19 ŠKP Bratislava U16 Liga kadetov 21 12 11 23 14 — — — — —
2019-20 Skellefteå AIK Damettan 15 13 6 19 24 1 0 0 0 2
2020-21 Skellefteå AIK Damettan 4 1 5 6 4 — — — — —
2021-22 Connecticut Whale PHF 16 1 1 2 2 2 0 0 0 0
2022-23 Connecticut Whale PHF 23 1 2 3 4 3 0 0 0 0
2023-24 ŠKP Bratislava EWHL 21 12 6 18 20
NCAA totals 113 20 45 65 88 – – – – –
Damettan totals 19 14 11 25 28 – – – – –
PHF totals 39 2 3 5 6 5 0 0 0 0

Note: Postseason statistics from the 2019–20 Damettan season are from the qualification series and are not included in playoff totals.

Source: [8]

International

Year Team Event Result   GP G A Pts PIM
2019 Slovakia WC D1A 5th 5 2 0 2 8
2021 Slovakia OGQ DNQ 3 0 1 1 6
2022 Slovakia WC D1A 3rd 4 0 1 1 4
2023 Slovakia WC D1A 6th 5 0 0 0 4
2024 Slovakia WC D1B 1st 5 3 5 8 0
19 5 6 11 16

References

  1. ^ Moed, Alexis (29 October 2021). "Janka Hlinka joins Whale for 2021-22 season". Connecticut Whale (Press release). Archived from the original on 30 October 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2022.
  2. ^ "Janka Hlinka '18 and Emily Fluke '15 Sign with Connecticut Whale". Middlebury College Athletics (Press release). 22 December 2021. Archived from the original on 23 December 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2022.
  3. ^ Merk, Martin (29 April 2022). "For Connecticut and Slovakia". International Ice Hockey Federation. Archived from the original on 31 July 2022. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  4. ^ "2019 IIHF Ice Hockey Women's World Championship Div I Group A – Player Statistics by Team: SVK - Slovakia". International Ice Hockey Federation. 7 April 2019. Archived from the original on 3 March 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  5. ^ "2024 IIHF Ice Hockey Women's World Championship Division I, Group B – Scoring Leaders". International Ice Hockey Federation. 6 April 2024. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
  6. ^ "2024 IIHF Ice Hockey Women's World Championship Division I, Group B – Best Players Selected by the Directorate". International Ice Hockey Federation. 6 April 2024. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
  7. ^ "2024 IIHF Ice Hockey Women's World Championship Division I, Group B – Best Players of Each Team Selected by Coaches". International Ice Hockey Federation. 6 April 2024. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
  8. ^ "Janka Hlinka: Career Statistics". US College Hockey Online. Archived from the original on 31 July 2022. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
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