NHL-Hall of Famer 'Golden Jet' Bobby Hull dies at 84
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[January 31, 2023]
(Reuters) -Hockey Hall of Famer Bobby Hull, the first National
Hockey League player to score more than 50 goals in a season, has
died at the age of 84, the Chicago Blackhawks said on Monday.
Canadian Hull, who had a feared slapshot and was known as the
'Golden Jet' because of his blonde hair and speed on the ice, helped
lead the Blackhawks to a Stanley Cup championship in 1961 that ended
a 23-year title drought for the franchise.
"Hull is part of an elite group of players who made a historic
impact on our hockey club," the Blackhawks said in a statement.
"Generations of Chicagoans were dazzled by Bobby's shooting prowess,
skating skill and overall team leadership."
The electric left winger helped resurrect the fortunes of a
Blackhawks franchise which, prior to his arrival, had missed the
playoffs in 11 out of the previous 12 seasons.
Hull, who with team mate Stan Mikita popularized the curved hockey
stick blade which gave shooters more velocity and caused the puck to
move differently at times, played 15 seasons with Chicago and his
604 goals remain a franchise record.
Hull was a five-time 50-goal scorer, led the NHL in goalscoring
seven times, twice won the Hart Trophy as the league's most valuable
player and was voted a First-Team All-Star on the left wing 10
times.
"When Bobby Hull wound up to take a slapshot, fans throughout the
NHL rose to their feet in anticipation and opposing goaltenders
braced themselves," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said in a
statement. "During his prime, there was no more prolific goalscorer
in all of hockey."
In 1972 Hull famously joined the upstart World Hockey Association
when he signed the first $1 million contract in hockey history to
play for the Winnipeg Jets, who relocated to Phoenix in 1996 and
became the Coyotes.
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![](../images/013123PIX/sports21.jpg)
Former NHL star Bobby Hull (L) embraces
his son Brett Hull during an on-ice ceremony to introduce the 2009
Hockey Hall of Fame inductees before the Toronto Maple Leafs' and
Detroit Red Wings' NHL hockey game in Toronto November 7, 2009.
REUTERS/ Mike Cassese/File Photo
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The decision cost Hull a chance to
play for Team Canada in the 1972 Summit Series against the Soviet
Union as the NHL blocked his participation. The series, won by
Canada, remains a defining moment for a generation of Canadians.
Hull's son Brett also played in the NHL, scoring 741 goals and
winning Stanley Cups with Dallas and Detroit before joining his
father in the Hall of Fame in 2009.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Ken Ferris)
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