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Brett Hull Biography |
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Brett Andrew Hull (born August 9, 1964 in Belleville, Ontario) is a former NHL player, and the son of legendary player Bobby Hull. Though in the earliest years of his career few saw him as a potential star, the colorful and often outspoken Hull announced his retirement on October 15, 2005 with 741 career goals, placing him third on the all-time list. He played for the Calgary Flames, St. Louis Blues, Dallas Stars, Detroit Red Wings and Phoenix Coyotes.
Hull was drafted out of the Junior A British Columbia Hockey League Penticton Knights as the 117th overall pick (sixth round) in the 1984 NHL Entry Draft by the Calgary Flames. Hull then played two years of U.S. college hockey for the University of Minnesota-Duluth before turning pro during the 1986 NHL playoffs. He spent most of the 1986-87 season with the minor league Moncton Golden Flames, being named to the American Hockey League's First All-Star Team and receiving the Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award as the league's top rookie, before being recalled to the NHL for good for the 1987-88 NHL season season. In March of that year, after repeatedly publicly criticizing the City of Calgary and the organization, he was traded to the St. Louis Blues (hockey), for whom he played most of his career. While in St. Louis, Hull developed into a prolific goal scorer with linemate Adam Oates and the duo were dubbed "Hull and Oates" (a pun on the well-known musical duo of Hall & Oates). In Hull’s best season, 1990-91 NHL season, he scored 86 goals, the third highest mark ever recorded in one season, also setting a new record for right wingers in goals. That year he was awarded the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL's Most Valuable Player. Following the 1991-92 NHL season, the St. Louis Blues (hockey) traded Adam Oates to the Boston Bruins for Craig Janney. Although talented, Janney was not to the calibre of Oates, a highly skilled passer and playmaker. Hull's production dropped off and he said he was never the same player without Oates. Hull played eleven seasons for the Blues before signing with the Dallas Stars as a free agent before the 1998-99 NHL season season. He helped the Stars capture the Stanley Cup that season, scoring what many consider to be a controversial Cup-winning goal off his own rebound in the third overtime period of Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals against Buffalo Sabres goalie Dominik Hasek. Video replay showed that Hull's skate was in the crease, which the Sabres argued was a violation of a rule then in effect that disallowed goals if an offensive player was in the goal crease. The goal was reviewed as the Stars celebrated on the ice, but was allowed to stand by the video review officials, who ruled that Hull's three consecutive shots on Hasek, the third of which went in, constituted possession of the puck through to the end of the play (the rule allowed for a player to bring the puck into the crease and score). The legality of the goal is still debated, and it is arguably the most disputed Cup-winning goal in NHL history. The crease interference rule, which was introduced in 1997 amid widespread criticism, was eliminated the following season. Hull and Hasek later won the Stanley Cup as teammates in 2001-02 NHL season with the Detroit Red Wings. On August 6, 2004 in sports, Hull signed a two-year, $4.5 million contract with the Phoenix Coyotes, who unretired his father's uniform number 9 for him. Bobby Hull's #9 jersey had been originally retired by the franchise on February 19, 1989, when they were the Winnipeg Jets. The first year of the contract was nullified by the 2004-05 NHL season, and some argue the time off damaged Hull's game irreparably; when hockey restarted in 2005-06 NHL season, Hull played only 5 games with the Coyotes before, dissatisfied with his performance, he announced his retirement on October 15, 2005. The University of Minnesota-Duluth retired his #29 jersey on February 3, 2006http://www.umdbulldogs.com/index.php?story_id=2262, followed later that year by a announcement on June 29, 2006 in sports that the St. Louis Blues will retire Hull's #16 jersey on December 5, 2006 when his former team the Detroit Red Wings are in town. As of the beginning of the 2006-07 season, Hull has returned to the Dallas Stars in a front-office role as 'Ambassador of Fun', and as a part-time radio analyst. Personal life He married fellow University of Minnesota-Duluth student Alison Curran in Las Vegas on May 27, 1997. They had three children - Jude, Jayde, and Crosby - before they divorced. Hull married longtime girlfriend Darcie Schollmeyer on July 21, 2006 in Cabo San Lucas. Criticism Hull often served as a magnet for criticism in his hockey career, often revolving around his relative defensive deficiencies. He was outspoken throughout his career, unafraid to talk about his team, city, fans, coaching, or the NHL as a whole. Hull carried on a well-reported feud with coach/GM Mike Keenan for several years while Keenan headed the Blues, was one of the first players to criticize the defense-first style of hockey that rose in the mid-1990s, and publicly criticized U.S. coaches (Bob Johnson (ice hockey) and Ron Wilson) during international competitions for not giving him the ice time he felt he was due. In 1986, Hull made a decision that would earn him the lasting hatred of Canadian hockey fans when, snubbed by Team Canada coach Dave King for a Ice Hockey World Championships team made up of mostly NHL players, Hull chose to play for the United States (which sent a mostly-collegiate team) instead. Hull held American citizenship through his mother in addition to his Canadian citizenship by birthplace and father, but was mostly raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba and suburban Vancouver, British Columbia. As a mostly Canadian-trained player, the son of a Canadian hockey legend, not to mention born in Belleville, Ontario, fans north of the border viewed The Golden Brett as nothing less than a traitor, who would turn his back on his own flag, for playing under the Stars and Stripes, particularly as his stardom grew. Career achievements and facts Career statistics { in: See also 
Courtesy of: http://www.wikipedia.org/ |
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