A.J. Mleczko always seems to be in the right place on the ice for the No. 1 Harvard women's hockey team.

That was the case 9:05 into the second period at then No. 6 Northeastern last Wednesday, when the Crimson and Huskies were deadlocked in a 1-1 tie. Sophomore forward Tammy Shewchuk stickhandled past the blue line for a shot in transition that Northeastern goaltender Erika Silva deflected. But Mleczko had skated down the ice in anticipation of the rebound and knocked in the puck to give Harvard the lead for good.

That goal began yet another impressive week for the co-captain, a week that culminated in her 100th career goal Saturday at Niagara, making Mleczko the first Harvard women's hockey player to accomplish that feat. She recorded three goals and eight assists in Harvard's three games last week and leads the nation in scoring with 33 points this season. Mleczko also earned ECAC and Ivy League Player of the Week honors.

After returning from the U.S. Olympic Team that won the gold medal at Nagano last winter, Mleczko has been Harvard's most versatile player this season.

On special teams, she handles the puck from the point on the Crimson power play unit and moves over to defenseman in man-down situations. As the center on a line that features two of the ECAC's top six goal scorers in Shewchuk and freshman forward Jen Botterill, Mleczko has assumed the role of playmaker, distributing 24 assists to Harvard's many scoring threats.

And as Mleczko passed another career milestone with her 100th goal, the Crimson continued its quest for a national championship with three convincing victories, outscoring Northeastern and Niagara by a combined 17-1. The Crimson is proud to name A.J. Mleczko, arguably the best player on potentially the best women's hockey team in Harvard history, its Athlete of the Week. --Zevi M. Gutfreund