# Sean Hill (ice hockey)

Sean Ronald Hill (born February 14, 1970) is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman who played 17 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for eight different teams. He won the Stanley Cup in 1993 with the Montreal Canadiens.

## Playing career

Hill was drafted in the 8th round, 167th overall by the Montreal Canadiens in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft from the Wisconsin Badgers, and was a member of the United States 1992 Winter Olympic Team. On October 8, 1993, Hill scored the first goal in the history of the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in a 7-2 loss against the Detroit Red Wings. In August 2006, he signed a one-year contract with the New York Islanders.

### Suspension

On April 20, 2007, Hill became the first player to be suspended for abusing the performance-enhancing substance policy the NHL and NHLPA have put in place. Hill began the mandatory 20-game suspension in Game 5 of the Islanders' Eastern Conference Quarter-Final versus the Buffalo Sabres. The Islanders lost the game and were eliminated from the playoffs. Islanders General Manager Garth Snow said that he supported the league's decision to suspend Hill. Hill, who was signed by the Minnesota Wild as a free agent in July 2007, would be required to sit out the first 19 games of the 2007–08 season without pay. In July, Hill claimed that he passed both a lie detector test, and independent drug test regarding his substance abuse. In a statement, the Wild said, "We believe Sean did not knowingly take any banned performance-enhancing substance." Hill returned to the lineup on November 21, 2007, after completing the 20-game suspension.

## Career statistics
### Regular season and playoffs

| | | | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1986–87 | Lakefield Chiefs | COJHL | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1987–88 | Duluth East High School | HS-MN | 24 | 10 | 17 | 27 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1988–89 | University of Wisconsin–Madison | WCHA | 45 | 2 | 23 | 25 | 69 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1989–90 | University of Wisconsin–Madison | WCHA | 42 | 14 | 39 | 53 | 78 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1990–91 | University of Wisconsin–Madison | WCHA | 37 | 19 | 32 | 51 | 122 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1990–91 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1990–91 | Fredericton Canadiens | AHL | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 1991–92 | United States National Team | Intl | 12 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1991–92 | Fredericton Canadiens | AHL | 42 | 7 | 20 | 27 | 65 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 |
| 1991–92 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | — | — | — | — | — | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 1992–93 | Fredericton Canadiens | AHL | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1992–93 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 31 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 54 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 1993–94 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | NHL | 68 | 7 | 20 | 27 | 78 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1994–95 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 45 | 1 | 14 | 15 | 30 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1995–96 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 80 | 7 | 14 | 21 | 94 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1996–97 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1997–98 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 13 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1997–98 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 42 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 48 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1998–99 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 54 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 48 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1999–00 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 62 | 13 | 31 | 44 | 59 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2000–01 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 48 | 1 | 10 | 11 | 51 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 12 |
| 2001–02 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 23 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2001–02 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 49 | 7 | 23 | 30 | 61 | 23 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 20 |
| 2002–03 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 82 | 5 | 24 | 29 | 141 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2003–04 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 80 | 13 | 26 | 39 | 84 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2005–06 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 78 | 2 | 18 | 20 | 80 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2006–07 | New York Islanders | NHL | 81 | 1 | 24 | 25 | 110 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2007–08 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 34 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 28 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 2008–09 | EHC Biel | NLA | 47 | 3 | 17 | 20 | 112 | — | — | — | — | — |
| NHL totals | NHL totals | NHL totals | 876 | 62 | 236 | 298 | 1008 | 55 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 42 |

### International

| Year | Team | Event | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1990 | United States | WJC | 7 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 10 |
| 1992 | United States | OLY | 8 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 6 |
| 1994 | United States | WC | 8 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| Junior totals | Junior totals | Junior totals | 7 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 10 |
| Senior totals | Senior totals | Senior totals | 16 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 12 |

## Awards and honors

| Award | Year |
| All-WCHA Second Team | 1989–90 |
| WCHA All-Tournament Team | 1990, 1991 |
| All-WCHA Second Team | 1990–91 |
| AHCA West Second-Team All-American | 1990–91 |