Hockey Trivia: Bobby Hull of the Chicago Black Hawks

Perhaps the greatest goal scorer in the history of the National Hockey League, Bobby Hull, along with Stan Mikita, wowed them in Chicago throughout the 1960’s. There were two distinctive parts to the Golden Jet’s professional hockey career:  The National Hockey League and the World Hockey Association. As an indicator of his success and popularity, the Bobby Hull rookie card from the 1958-59 Topps series is worth a whopping $3000.

This article deals with Bobby Hull’s career in the National Hockey League. Test and expand your hockey trivia knowledge of Bobby Hull’s NHL accomplishments with these four trivia questions.

Q. Despite having eleven more total points in his rookie season, who did Bobby Hull finish second to in the 1957-58 Calder Memorial Trophy voting?

A. Frank Mahovlich of the Toronto Maple Leafs won the Calder in 1958. Ironically, both players were still in their teens and straight out of junior. Typically, back in the day, a player spent several years in the minor pro leagues before behind brought up to take one of the scarce NHL jobs.

With the Black Hawks in that first year, at the age of just 18, Hull scored 13 goals and assisted on 34 for 47 points while playing the full 70 game schedule. Mahovlich, a year older than Hull, totalled 36 points on 20 goals and 16 assists over 67 games for the Maple Leafs.

Q. Bobby Hull was a five time 50+ goal scorer in the National Hockey League. In which year did Bobby score his NHL career high 58 goals?

A. 1968-69 saw Hull create a new NHL goal scoring record. Bobby’s 58 goals would stand as a record for just two seasons before Phil Esposito shattered the mark in 1970-71 with 76. Hull was on pace for 58 in 1965-66 but missed five games and scored just 54.

His last 50 goal season in the NHL came in 1971-72 when he scored exactly 50 for the Blackhawks. In the WHA, Bobby exploded for 77 goals over 78 games with the Winnipeg Jets in 1974-75.

Q. From 1957-58 until the end of 1971-72, Hull played exclusively with the Chicago Black Hawks. Which two teams did he play for in his final NHL season?

A. After the WHA merged with the NHL for the 1979-80 season, Hull followed the Winnipeg Jets as they switched leagues. After 18 games with the Jets, Bobby jumped ship to the Hartford Whalers where he played another nine games before retiring.

Q. Better known for his offensive abilities, in what year was Bobby Hull awarded for his gentlemanly play with the Lady Byng Trophy?

A. Hull won the Byng in 1964-65 while sitting 32 minutes in the penalty box over 61 regular season games. He was also awarded the Hart Memorial Trophy that same year as the NHL’s most valuable player.

In a five year stretch from 1963-64 to 1967-68, Chicago dominated the Lady Byng. Ken Wharram won the trophy the year before Hull. Stan Mikita went from king of the sin bin early in his NHL career to a two time winner of the Lady Byng in 1966-67 and 1967-68.

1966-67 Chicago Blackhawks: The One That Got Away

1966-67 is typically remembered by NHL fans as the last season of the ‘Original Six’ era, the first year of Bobby Orr and the last time the Toronto Maple Leafs would win the Stanley Cup. Chicago Blackhawks fans remember that year as a seemingly guaranteed Stanley Cup victory gone horribly wrong.

Chicago dominated the 1966-67 NHL regular season, winning 41 of 70 games and finishing seventeen points above the next competitor. The Black Hawks score 264 goals, 42 more than the Detroit Red Wings and allowed just 170, 18 less than the Montreal Canadiens.

Five of the top point-getters in the NHL that season wore a Chicago Black Hawks uniform. Stan Mikita and Bobby Hull went one-two with Mikita tying Hull’s single season record with 97 points. Ken Wharram finished fourth, Phil Esposito finished seventh and Doug Mohns came in ninth.

The well-rounded team also took the Vezina Trophy on the backs of the goaltending duo of Glenn Hall and Denis DeJordy. Three time Norris Trophy winner, Pierre Pilote, was runner-up to Harry Howell of the New York Rangers for the award for the top defenseman.

The Black Hawks took home the hardware in 1966-67. Of course, they won the Prince of Wales Trophy as the best team in the regular season. It was the first time in team history that the Hawks finished first in the NHL. Stan Mikita won the triple crown, taking home the Art Ross Trophy, Hart Memorial Trophy and Lady Byng Trophy.

Four of the six players on the First All-Star Team were from Chicago. Pierre Pilote was on defense, Stan Mikita was at centre, Ken Wharram was on right wing and Bobby Hull was on the left side. Glenn Hall was the Second Team All-Star goaltender.

Yet, in spite of all this success, the Black Hawks bowed out in the opening round of the playoffs to the Toronto Maple Leafs in six games. What should have been Chicago’s fourth Stanley Cup victory, and first since 1961, instead became a Cup celebration for the third seed Toronto Maple Leafs. The Leafs beat the Montreal Canadiens in the Stanley Cup finals in six games after Montreal took out the New York Rangers in four games in the opening round.

Chicago would make it to the Stanley Cup finals three more times, only to lose. It wasn’t until 2010 before the Blackhawks won their next Cup, their first since 1961. The Maple Leafs, after stealing the Cup from Chicago in 1967, have yet to make another appearance in the finals.