George J. Hill is a Canadian retired ice hockey

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

and coach who was an All-American for

Michigan Tech Michigan Technological University (Michigan Tech, MTU, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Houghton, Michigan, founded in 1885 as the Michigan Mining School, the first post-secondary institution in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. ...

Early life

Hill was born in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

. In 1960, he led the

Brandon Wheat Kings The Brandon Wheat Kings are a Canadian junior ice hockey team based in Brandon, Manitoba. They are members of the Western Hockey League (WHL) since joining the league in the 1967–68 season. Previously, they played in the Manitoba Junior Hoc ...

to a first-place finish in the

MJHL The Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL) is a Junior 'A' ice hockey league operating in the Canadian province of Manitoba and one of nine member leagues of the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL). The MJHL consists of thirteen teams all based ...

championship, winning the league scoring title, Rookie of the Year, and MVP. Brandon won the league tournament and advanced all the way to the

Abbott Cup The Abbott Memorial Cup, commonly referred to as the Abbott Cup, was awarded annually from 1919 through 1999 to the Junior "A" ice hockey Champion for Western Canada. The Cup was named after Captain E.L. (Hick) Abbott who was a noted hockey pl ...

final, where they fell to the

Edmonton Oil Kings The Edmonton Oil Kings are a major junior ice hockey team based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, that play in the Western Hockey League. As of July 2008, they are owned by Daryl Katz's Oilers Entertainment Group, which also owns the Edmonton Oilers. ...

3–4. Hill's team had a near repeat performance the following year, this time losing to Edmonton, 1–4.

Career

After two junior seasons, Hill was recruited to

by John MacInnes. He played on the freshman team in 1962 and watched the varsity club win the program's first

National Championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...

. Hill led the team in scoring and was named both the WCHA Sophomore of the Year and an All-American. The Huskies were unable to overcome

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...

in the Conference semifinal and did not compete in the national tournament. Hill was named

team captain In team sport, captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field. In eithe ...

the following year. While he produced nearly identical numbers, the team was unable to defeat

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, losing their two-game series 8–9 on aggregate. Hill left after his second season and pursued a professional career, playing in several senior and minor leagues over the next eight years. He ended his career in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, helping

Wiener EV Wiener Eislaufverein (Wiener EV, WEV; Vienna Ice Skating Club) is an ice-sports club located in Vienna, Austria. They were founded in 1867 and the club’s greatest successes have been in ice hockey, figure skating, and speed skating. The club a ...

to a runner-up finish in 1972. He was inducted into the Michigan Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 1994.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, George 1941 births Living people AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans Brandon Wheat Kings players Buffalo Bisons (AHL) players Calgary Stampeders (ASHL) players Canadian ice hockey centres Flin Flon Bombers players Green Bay Bobcats players Ice hockey people from Winnipeg Los Angeles Blades players Michigan Tech Huskies men's ice hockey players Omaha Knights (CHL) players Tulsa Oilers (1964–1984) players Wiener EV players