Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2009

Brett Hull headed to Hockey Hall of Fame

He scored 741 goals, 1,391 points in career

To perhaps no one's surprise, former St. Louis Blues superstar Brett Hull scooped the rest of the media world by telling a Dallas reporter Monday night what the rest of us knew would happen -- he was headed for the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Hull has always seemed a step ahead of the rest of the hockey world.

The formal announcement came Tuesday afternoon. Hull joins a star-studded 2009 induction class that includes former teammates Steve Yzerman and Luc Robitaille along with Brian Leetch.

Hull joins his Hall of Fame father, former Chicago Blackhawks and Winnipeg Jets star Bobby Hull, as one of the top father-son duos in sports history.

Their NHL totals included an astounding 1,351 goals -- 741 by Brett and 610 by Bobby -- and 2,561 points in 2,332 games.

"It is hard to put into words what this means to me, especially since I'm joining my father in the Hockey Hall of Fame," Brett Hull said in a statement before heading to Montreal for the NHL Draft in his job as executive vice president for the Dallas Stars.

When few players spoke up about clutching and grabbing he felt was limiting the sport's appeal, Hull came out with guns blazing. He fired off sound bytes for anyone and everyone to hear.

By the time he was ready to retire, the NHL had adjusted its rules to combat many of the things Hull used to complain about.

"The game's got to be made so that you get people wanting to phone their buddy or their girlfriend and say, 'Let's go to a hockey game,'" Hull once said. "You have to call the penalties, to the point of stupidity almost, to get it through to the players and coaches and the general managers that this is not acceptable for our game -- and we're not going to have it."

Hull finished his career with 741 goals and 1,391 points in 1,269 games with the Blues, Dallas Stars, Detroit Red Wings and Phoenix Coyotes.

Even though he won Stanley Cups in Detroit and Dallas, Hull still considers his time in St. Louis as truly memorable.

"I think every single player loved it there, had a love affair with the city of St. Louis and the people of St. Louis," Hull told the News-Democrat in a previous interview. "They are unbelievable fans, not only in hockey, but football and basketball and baseball.

"I wasn't born or raised in St. Louis, but after 11 years there, I felt like I was a part of the internal family, a part of the city --just like I was born to be there."

Hull's familiar No. 16 was retired by the Blues in 2006. A street that runs along the south side of Scottrade Center bears his name.

He remains the team's all-time leading goal-scorer (527), ranks second to Hall of Famer Bernie Federko in points (936) and assists (409) and is first in hat tricks (27), power-play goals (195), game-winning goals (70) and shots on goal (3,367).

"When you do your research and figure out the exact career he had here as a Blue, it's pretty astounding," said Blues President John Davidson, who is headed for the Hall of Fame's broadcaster's wing as the 2009 Foster Hewitt Award winner. "It's almost mind-boggling when you look at the numbers. There's no question he was one of the greatest."

In NHL history, only Wayne Gretzky and Gordie Howe have more goals than Hull. Hull also has a record-tying 24 career playoff-game winners, none bigger than his triple-overtime goal that won the 1999 Stanley Cup for the Dallas Stars.

"He had the ability to be able to see a play develop a couple seconds in advance," said former Hull teammate Adam Oates. "Brett knew where he had to be to score goals, and he would be there when he needed to be."

Davidson said Hull's hockey sense and instincts were as important as his patented one-timer shots that left goalies grasping at air.

"He had flair for the game. He had a flair for being magical with his goal-scoring," Davidson said. "I'd sure like to find another Brett Hull. That would be great."

Hull's most memorable season was probably his 86-goal, 131-point explosion in 1990-91 for the Blues, the same year he won the Hart Trophy as NHL Most Valuable Player.

"He used to find little seams out there, and the good centermen that played with him knew that," said Blues announcer Kelly Chase, one of Hull's closest friends. "He didn't need to have complete body position, he just had to have his arms or his hands free. He practiced that, pushing off guys or coming in late and getting off a shot."

No one knew that better than Oates, the former Blues center who spoke about Hull's mystical scoring ability when his former teammate's jersey was retired.

"I played 19 years in the league, and clearly, playing with Brett was the highlight of my career -- and the most fun at the same time," said Oates, who had 25 goals and 115 points in just 61 games in 1990-91. "I can't believe it was only three years out of that 19, that blows my mind."

From 1989 until Oates was traded to Boston in 1992, the duo piled up 282 goals, 353 assists and 635 points, with Hull contributing 231 goals and both supplying 228 assists.

"Obviously, I had the most success with him, but it's hard to bat an eye at Wayne Gretzky and Mike Modano, Pavel Datsyuk, Steve Yzerman, guys like that," Hull said. "People talk about being in the zone, and it was almost like both us were in the same zone every night."

Hull is the 15th Blues player to enter the Hall of Fame, following Glenn Anderson, Al MacInnis, Scott Stevens, Grant Fuhr, Bernie Federko, Dale Hawerchuk, Joe Mullen, Wayne Gretzky, Peter Stastny, Guy Lapointe, Jacques Plante, Glenn Hall, Dickie Moore and Doug Harvey.