KRS
New Chinese League Drops The Puck
China's revamped women's hockey dropped the puck this week for their first week of round robin action in Qiqihar.
The KRS Vanke Rays picked up their first win of the WCIHL season beating the Beijing Swift 4-1.
KRS' contingent of North American players made an immediate impact with Kaityln Tougas, Ryleigh Houston, and Danielle Fox each had a goal for the Vanke Rays in their win.
Scoring for the Beijing Swift was 25-year-old Wenzhuo Wang. Wang is a former captain of China's U-18 national team and also represented China at multiple World Championship competitions, but hasn't donned her national team since 2018. The Beijing Swift captain also spent a season in the CWHL with the Kunlun Red Star.
Recommended Articles
Former Metropolitan Riveters defender Minttu Tuominen, who was selected this season in the 2023 PWHL Draft, fired 12 shots on goal in the contest, nearly equalling the 13 total shots by the Beijing Swift in the game.
Other notable members of the KRS Vanke Rays roster includes Baiwei Yu, who captained China to promotion from the Division IB Worlds in 2022, and from the Division IA Worlds in 2023, helping her nation earn a spot in the top division of the World Championships in Utica, New York this spring. Other members of China's national team playing for KRS include Xin Fang and Mingui Kong. The team is coached by former Metropolitan Riveters coach Ivo Mocek.
The Chinese league is made up of teams from Shenzhen, Beijing, Harabin, Qiqihar, and Hebei, and Shanghai.
