Bill Guerin

Bill Guerin
Bill Guerin at the American Hockey League Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in 2015
Born	(1970-11-09) November 9, 1970 Worcester, MA, USA
Height	6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight	220 lb (100 kg; 15 st 10 lb)
Position	Right Wing
Shot	Right
Played for	New Jersey Devils Edmonton Oilers Boston Bruins Dallas Stars St. Louis Blues San Jose Sharks New York Islanders Pittsburgh Penguins
National team	United States
NHL Draft	5th overall, 1989 New Jersey Devils
Playing career	1991–2010

William Robert Guerin (born November 9, 1970) is an American former professional ice hockey player and the current assistant general manager of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Guerin played 18 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL), winning two Stanley Cup championships with the New Jersey Devils and Pittsburgh Penguins. Internationally, Guerin represented the United States in the Olympics in 1998, 2002 and 2006, and participated in two Ice Hockey World Championships. Guerin was the first player of Hispanic descent to play in the NHL.^[1][2]

Playing career

Professional

Bill Guerin during his time as Islanders captain.

Guerin was drafted in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft fifth overall by the New Jersey Devils and played with the team from 1991 to 1998, winning the Stanley Cup in 1995 . Midway through the 1997–98 season, Guerin was traded, along with Valeri Zelepukin, to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for Jason Arnott and Bryan Muir.

After a 41-goal season in 2001–02, Guerin left the Bruins as a free agent and signed a five-year contract with the Dallas Stars.^[3] Guerin performed below expectations during his tenure with the Stars. After a disappointing season in 2005–06, where he notched just 40 points, Dallas opted to buy-out the remainder of his contract. The conditions of buyouts in the NHL meant that the Stars would have to pay him two-thirds of the remaining salary on his contract spread out over twice as many years; this meant $6.7 million over one year became $4.4 million over two years.

On July 3, 2006, Guerin signed a one-year, $2 million contract with the St. Louis Blues.^[4] Playing on a line with former Oiler teammate Doug Weight, Guerin revived his career, easily eclipsing his disappointing goal-scoring mark from the 2005–06 season. He was named to the 2007 All-Star Game (hosted by the Stars) to represent the Blues. Despite numerous criticisms of his play during his time as a Star, Guerin received a standing ovation from the Dallas fans in recognition as his status as a longtime fan favorite.

On February 2, 2007, Guerin became the 214th NHL player to play in 1,000 games.^[5] Later that month, Guerin was traded to the San Jose Sharks^[6] for Ville Nieminen, prospect Jay Barriball and a conditional first-round pick (either New Jersey's in 2007 or San Jose's in 2008). During the upcoming off-season, Guerin signed a two-year contract with the New York Islanders.^[7] On July 9, 2007, Guerin was named captain of the Islanders, making him the 11th captain in team history.^[8]

Guerin fights Jim Slater, April 2010.

On March 4, 2009, Guerin was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins for a conditional draft pick. The pick, a 2009 fourth-round pick if the Penguins made the playoffs, was later turned into a 2009 third-round pick once the Penguins advanced to the second round of the 2009 Stanley Cup playoffs.^[9] Guerin won the Stanley Cup on June 12, 2009, with the Penguins, defeating the Detroit Red Wings by a final score of 2–1 for Game 7 at Joe Louis Arena. His 14 years between Stanley Cups as a player was the third-longest wait in NHL history, behind Chris Chelios (16) and Mark Recchi (15).

After vocal encouragement for his return from the crowd and teammates at Pittsburgh's Stanley Cup parade on June 15, as well as expressing his own affection for the city and team, Guerin signed a one-year contract extension with the Penguins on June 29 at a greatly reduced salary to play through the 2009–10 season. He became the first player to have a 20-goal season with seven different teams and one of only two to have a 20-goal season with five or more different teams (the other being Eddie Shack). Ray Shero, the general manager for the Penguins, however, decided not to offer Guerin a contract for the 2010–11 season. On September 7, 2010, the Philadelphia Flyers invited Guerin to try out at training camp, though on October 4, the Flyers released him prior to the start of the regular season.

On December 6, 2010, Guerin announced his retirement as a player from the NHL as a Pittsburgh Penguin.^[10] At the time of his retirement, Guerin ranked seventh all-time among Americans in the NHL with 429 goals.^[11] On June 6, 2011, the Penguins hired Guerin as their player development coach.^[12]

On June 6, 2014, Penguins General Manager Jim Rutherford announced that Guerin would be promoted to assistant general manager of the team. Rutherford said that Guerin would be focusing on developing the analytical side of the game.

Personal life

Guerin was born in Worcester, Massachusetts, and raised in Wilbraham, Massachusetts. He attended Wilbraham & Monson Academy, where he played high-school hockey.

Guerin is of Nicaraguan and Irish descent. He is married to Kara and they have four children: Kayla Lyn, born on July 6, 1997; Grace Elizabeth, born in 1999; Liam, born on May 26, 2001;^[13] and Lexi Rose,^[14] born on December 2, 2002.^[15][16]

While playing hockey, Guerin lived in Moorestown Township, New Jersey, with his wife and children.^[17]

Guerin is honored as the Penguins nominee for the Masterton Trophy during a pregame ceremony in April 2010.

Awards

• Member of three Stanley Cup-winning teams: New Jersey Devils (1995); Pittsburgh Penguins (2009 as a player) and (2016 as Assistant GM)
• Selected to four NHL All-Star Games: 2001, 2003, 2004, 2007
  • Named the MVP of the 2001 NHL All-Star Game
• NHL Second Team All-Star: 2002
• United States Hockey Hall of Fame 2013

Career statistics

International play

• 1989 - Played for the United States in the 1989 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.
• 1990 - Played for the United States in the 1990 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.
• 1996 - Won the 1996 World Cup of Hockey with the United States.
• 1998 - Played for the United States in the 1998 Winter Olympic Games.
• 2002 - Played for the United States in the 2002 Winter Olympic Games.
• 2004 - Played for the United States in the 2004 World Cup of Hockey.
• 2006 - Played for the United States in the 2006 Winter Olympic Games.

Transactions

• June 17, 1989 – New Jersey Devils' first-round draft choice, fifth overall, in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft;
• January 4, 1998 – Traded by the New Jersey Devils, along with Valeri Zelepukin, to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for Jason Arnott and Bryan Muir;
• November 15, 2000 – Traded by the Edmonton Oilers to the Boston Bruins in exchange for Anson Carter, Boston's 2001 first-round draft choice (Aleš Hemský) and Boston's 2001 second-round draft choice (Doug Lynch);
• July 3, 2002 – Signed as a free agent by the Dallas Stars;
• July 3, 2006 – Signed as a free agent by the St. Louis Blues;
• February 27, 2007 – Traded by the St. Louis Blues to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for Ville Nieminen, Jay Barriball and New Jersey's 2007 first-round draft choice (David Perron);
• July 5, 2007 – Signed as a free agent by the New York Islanders;
• March 4, 2009 – Traded by the New York Islanders to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Pittsburgh's 2009 third-round draft choice (pick traded to Phoenix).

See also

• List of NHL players with 1,000 games played

References

External links

• Bill Guerin's career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database