Sean Zimmerman

Sean Zimmerman
Sean Zimmerman
Born	May 24, 1987 (age 39); Denver, Colorado, U.S.
Occupation	Professional ice hockey defenseman (retired)
Years active	2002–2018
Known for	Playing for Orlando Solar Bears in the ECHL; representing Team USA at 2007 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships

Sean Zimmerman (born May 24, 1987) is a retired American professional ice hockey defenseman. His most recent team was the Orlando Solar Bears in the ECHL. Hailing from Denver, Colorado, Zimmerman represented Team USA at the 2007 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, where he contributed to securing a Bronze medal for the United States.

Personal life

Raised in Littleton, Colorado, Zimmerman began playing competitive youth hockey alongside his sister Michelle following the relocation of the Colorado Avalanche to Denver. In pursuit of higher-level training, the siblings moved in 2000 to Langley, British Columbia, enrolling at Delphi Academy, which was later renamed Westpointe Collegiate Academy. After the school's closure, Zimmerman moved to Spokane, Washington, to compete in Junior B hockey with the Spokane Braves. Meanwhile, his sister earned a full athletic scholarship to play Division I hockey at St. Lawrence University.

Zimmerman was later selected by the Spokane Chiefs in the WHL draft.

Playing career

Zimmerman spent four seasons competing with the Spokane Chiefs in the Western Hockey League (WHL), amassing 10 goals and 59 points over 270 games. In the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, he was chosen 170th overall by the New Jersey Devils. He played within their minor league system before being traded to the Phoenix Coyotes in September 2008 in exchange for Kevin Cormier.

Despite attending Coyotes’ training camps, Zimmerman did not secure a spot on their NHL roster and divided his time between their AHL affiliate, the San Antonio Rampage, and their CHL affiliate, the Arizona Sundogs. During that period, he recorded 2 goals and 5 points across 56 games. The following season saw an improvement as he tallied 9 points with a +13 plus/minus rating over 72 games for San Antonio.

At the NHL trade deadline, Phoenix sent Zimmerman along with a sixth-round draft pick to the Vancouver Canucks for Mathieu Schneider. He re-signed with Vancouver but was soon traded to the Florida Panthers in exchange for Nathan Paetsch. In December 2010, Florida traded him plus a conditional seventh-round pick to the Boston Bruins for Jeff LoVecchio and Jordan Knackstedt. Then in February 2011, Zimmerman was involved in another trade along with Brian McGrattan to the Anaheim Ducks for David Laliberte and Stefan Chaput.

In September 2012, Zimmerman returned to Colorado as a free agent by signing with the Denver Cutthroats of the CHL. He remained with them through the 2013–14 season until operations were suspended in August 2014.

Shortly thereafter, Zimmerman joined the Colorado Eagles and served as team captain. Under his leadership, the Eagles captured their inaugural Kelly Cup championship during the 2016–17 ECHL season. On August 8, 2017, he signed a one-year deal with the Orlando Solar Bears.

International play

Zimmerman represented Team USA at the 2007 World Junior Championships. Throughout seven games, he achieved a +1 rating and accumulated six penalty minutes. The United States triumphed over Finland with a 6–3 score in their opening playoff match but narrowly lost to Canada 2–1 before clinching bronze by defeating host nation Sweden 2–1. This tournament marked Zimmerman's sole international medal achievement.

Regular season and playoffs

			Regular season					Playoffs
Season	Team	League	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2002–03	Spokane Braves	KIJHL	45	3	5	8	70	—	—	—	—	—
2003–04	Spokane Chiefs	WHL	67	4	4	8	16	4	0	0	0	0
2004–05	Spokane Chiefs	WHL	71	2	14	16	36	—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Spokane Chiefs	WHL	72	2	19	21	44	—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Albany River Rats	AHL	6	0	0	0	4	—	—	—	—	—
2006–07	Spokane Chiefs	WHL	60	2	12	14	69	6	0	2	2	2
2006–07	Lowell Devils	AHL	1	0	0	0	2	—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Lowell Devils	AHL	66	0	6	6	47	—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Trenton Devils	ECHL	8	0	1	1	10	—	—	—	—	—
2008–09	San Antonio Rampage	AHL	36	2	0	2	30	—	—	—	—	—
2008–09	Arizona Sundogs	CHL	20	0	3	3	20	—	—	—	—	—
2009–10	San Antonio Rampage	AHL	72	2	7	9	105	—	—	—	—	—
2010–11	Rochester Americans	AHL	7	0	0	0	0	—	—	—	—	—
2010–11	Providence Bruins	AHL	23	0	4	4	23	—	—	—	—	—
2010–11	Syracuse Crunch	AHL	=21	=0	=3	=3	=24
2011–12	Syracuse Crunch	=AHL=42=1=6=7=39=—=—=—=—
2012–13	Denver Cutthroats	=CHL=61=0=13=13=77=5=0=0=0=33
2013–14	Denver Cutthroats	=CHL=66=3=8=11=112=16=0=4=4=26
2014–15	Colorado Eagles	=ECHL=63=0=10=10=116=7=0=0=0=41
2015–16	Colorado Eagles	=ECHL=72=2=6=8=196=6=0=0=0=8
2016–17	Colorado Eagles	=ECHL=58=1=12=13=168=17=2=1=3=10
2017–18	Orlando Solar Bears	=ECHL =52 =1 =7 =8 =122 =8 =0 =1 =1 =43
AHL totals !274 !5 !26 !31 !274 !— !— !— !— !—
ECHL totals !253 !4 !36 !40 !612 !38 !2 !2 !4 !102

International

Year	Team	Tournament	Outcome		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2007	United States	WJC	Template:Silver2		7	0	0	0	6
Junior career totals					7	0	0	0	6

Awards and honors

Award	Year
Kelly Cup (Colorado Eagles)	2017

External links