Bobby Hull, NHL and WHA Legend died at 84 years.

[Blansky]

https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/...et-dies-age-84

I was lucky enough to meet him one day in around 1974 when we took a van load of kids to meet him before a WHA game in Edmonton.

The kids (hockey players) were around 10 or 11 years old and he came out of the dressing room and talked to them for about 15 minutes and signed autographs and posed for pictures. He said he wasn't feeling well and may not play that night, but he went out and scored 2 goals anyways.

He was so great and gracious to those kids.

[sickened1]

Rest in peace.

[AzPaul]

.

[Yobber76]

Great player, had some bad demons as a human being.
As a fan however, you would think he was a wonderful person.

[Blansky]

Originally Posted by Yobber76

Great player, had some bad demons as a human being.
As a fan however, you would think he was a wonderful person.

Yeah seems a bit of a Dr Jekyll/Mr Hyde situation. Could have been the alcohol problems or I wonder if he had later concussion issues.

I often wonder too is how many of these ex athletes are living in a great deal of pain after years of extreme wear and tear.

[RW16610]

May he rest in peace.

[avidflyer]

The Golden Jet

[OverGeared]

Originally Posted by Blansky

Yeah seems a bit of a Dr Jekyll/Mr Hyde situation. Could have been the alcohol problems or I wonder if he had later concussion issues.

I often wonder too is how many of these ex athletes are living in a great deal of pain after years of extreme wear and tear.

I sympathize with people who battle addictions or brain injuries, but that doesn't excuse Hull's off-ice actions, nor can his on-ice actions make up for his repeated spousal abuse, deadbeat fatherhood, assaulting a police officer, and history of racist comments (including pro-eugenics, pro-Hitler, and a fear that the Black population was growing too fast to handle them.)

Jekyll/Hyde is an apt description, not of Hull himself (he was unquestionably an atrocious human being) but of the public perception of Hull. Great athletes can seem like artists when they're at their best, and Hull belongs in the same camp as other artists who worked well in their medium but failed as decent human beings: Michael Jackson, Jerry Lee Lewis, OJ Simpson, Roman Polanski, Chris Brown, R. Kelly, Mel Gibson, etc. We struggle to reconcile their accomplishments alongside their crimes. Some people have an easier time than others when it comes to forgiving (or outright dismissing) those crimes in the name of their art.

[Blansky]

Originally Posted by OverGeared

I sympathize with people who battle addictions or brain injuries, but that doesn't excuse Hull's off-ice actions, nor can his on-ice actions make up for his repeated spousal abuse, deadbeat fatherhood, assaulting a police officer, and history of racist comments (including pro-eugenics, pro-Hitler, and a fear that the Black population was growing too fast to handle them.)

Jekyll/Hyde is an apt description, not of Hull himself (he was unquestionably an atrocious human being) but of the public perception of Hull. Great athletes can seem like artists when they're at their best, and Hull belongs in the same camp as other artists who worked well in their medium but failed as decent human beings: Michael Jackson, Jerry Lee Lewis, OJ Simpson, Roman Polanski, Chris Brown, R. Kelly, Mel Gibson, etc. We struggle to reconcile their accomplishments alongside their crimes. Some people have an easier time than others when it comes to forgiving (or outright dismissing) those crimes in the name of their art.

I don’t disagree with any of this.

The complexity of an incredible athlete and by all accounts a great ambassador of the sport with a reputation of always doing everything he could for the fans, and then the dark side of his away from the ice actions and opinions.

It can be hard to reconcile the two.

[1st amg]

RIP Golden Jet

[brandrea]

Rest Easy Golden Jet

[RichM]

A childhood hero of mine. Rest in Peace Bobby.

[Knappo 1307]

Originally Posted by OverGeared

I sympathize with people who battle addictions or brain injuries, but that doesn't excuse Hull's off-ice actions, nor can his on-ice actions make up for his repeated spousal abuse, deadbeat fatherhood, assaulting a police officer, and history of racist comments (including pro-eugenics, pro-Hitler, and a fear that the Black population was growing too fast to handle them.)

Jekyll/Hyde is an apt description, not of Hull himself (he was unquestionably an atrocious human being) but of the public perception of Hull. Great athletes can seem like artists when they're at their best, and Hull belongs in the same camp as other artists who worked well in their medium but failed as decent human beings: Michael Jackson, Jerry Lee Lewis, OJ Simpson, Roman Polanski, Chris Brown, R. Kelly, Mel Gibson, etc. We struggle to reconcile their accomplishments alongside their crimes. Some people have an easier time than others when it comes to forgiving (or outright dismissing) those crimes in the name of their art.

Agreed. Great player, great to people when in the spotlight, but a bad human in the "darkness", one time is too many...

[dddrees]

Originally Posted by Blansky

I don’t disagree with any of this.

The complexity of an incredible athlete and by all accounts a great ambassador of the sport with a reputation of always doing everything he could for the fans, and then the dark side of his away from the ice actions and opinions.

It can be hard to reconcile the two.

It’s the complexity of people, it’s a human frailty. It just tends to get magnified a bit with celebrities.

[1st amg]

He was one of the first to label a “slap shot” what a beast


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[ltmgeller]

Rip