Coming off an outstanding four-year run playing at the NCAA Division One level, Leah Lum is taking her career to the Canadian Women’s Hockey League as a member of the Shenzhen-based Kunlun Red Star that is developing players for Team China and the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing.
The Richmond native established herself as one of the top players in the history of the University of Connecticut women’s hockey program. She appeared in all 39 games for the Huskies last season, tallying 10 goals and 20 assists. In her senior year, she became just the third player to reach 100 career points.
Lum was selected to join the 2022 China Olympic Camp in Shenzhen for an 11-day training and testing showcase this May. She proved to have one of the most noteworthy showings of the session.
“We all think that Leah has a strong and solid foundation in athleticism along with her comprehensive skills,” said Rob Morgan, the Sport Director of Kunlun. “She played both forward and defenseman in college which enables her to take multiple responsibilities and make more contributions on both offensive and defensive ends.”
Lum played defense in her first two years at UConn before switching back to forward, the position that Lum used to play. In two exhibition games held in Shenzhen this summer, she showed the same versatility on the ice.
The 21-year-old McRoberts graduate is a fourth-generation Canadian with full Chinese heritage. Her family has been keeping up with many Chinese traditions that will help make her adaptation in China much easier.
“I love the food here in Shenzhen,” pointed out Lum. “I always eat Chinese food when I go home during Christmas break and for family dinner in summer. My dad likes to cook tofu and rice with barbecue pork and we as a family celebrate Chinese New Year. When I was in college during Chinese New Year, my mom and dad would come out to Connecticut to hand out the red envelops to me and all my teammates.”
She is eager to skate with the up-tempo Red Stars and help Team China get to the next level.
“Shenzhen is beautiful. Having walked back and forth from the apartments to the rink it kind of has a feeling of a small campus. The facility here is top-notch. Kunlun Red Star wants the team to have the best here and I love it. I never thought I would have an opportunity to get to play for Team China but now being here and seeing everything, it’s becoming more and more real to me.”
Lum will bring an edge, confidence, and toughness to the KRS roster. Her combination of shooting and passing skills will allow the Red Star to play faster at both ends. Her abilities are key ingredients for the ice hockey style Kunlun will design for the next season.
Lum is the second and final 2018 CWHL Draft pre-signing for the Red Star joining Princeton University goaltender Kimberly Newell.
The CWHL is a professional league established in 2007 and features seven teams located in Canada (4), China (2) and the U.S. (1). There is typically a 28-game regular season that starts in October followed by playoffs in March. With files from Maura Sun/Kunlun Red Star
