Dennis Hull - Career

Career

As a player he was in the shadow of his older brother Bobby Hull, where they were both teammates on the Chicago Black Hawks for eight seasons.

Dennis emerged as a star player on his own, scoring over 300 goals in his own right, and earning the nickname "the Silver Jet" (Bobby was known as "the Golden Jet").

When Bobby was excluded from the 1972 Summit Series because he played in the WHA, Dennis initially planned to boycott the event as well as a show of support for his brother, but Bobby persuaded him to stay on Team Canada. During the series, Hull took over from Vic Hadfield for the left wing position on the New York Rangers "Goal A Game" line with Jean Ratelle and Rod Gilbert, managing two goals and two assists in four games.

He was named a Second Team All-Star and played in five NHL All-Star Games. His best years were as part of the "MPH" (pun on 'miles per hour' using each player's last initials) line with centre Pit Martin and right wing Jim Pappin. The line was considered one of the better units in the NHL in the early to mid-1970s. He recorded seasons of 40, 30, 39 and 29 goals from 1971 through 1974. His best season was in 1973 when he recorded 39 goals and 51 assists for 90 points. He was instrumental in Chicago's appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals that season. Hull led the team with 9 goals and 15 assists for 24 points, finishing second in playoff scoring that season.

He played 14 seasons in the National Hockey League, with the Chicago Black Hawks (1964-1977) and Detroit Red Wings (1977–78).