Brett Hull Gets Momentarily Excited

By Sean Gallagher

After hearing the news yesterday, we can only assume that Brett Hull practiced a moment that he will truly be excited about in just two years. On Tuesday the United States Hockey Hall of Fame announced that Brett Hull would be inducted into their nearly hallowed halls this year.

Due to his ill-advised five-game experiment as Wayne Gretzky's oldest player in Phoenix back in 2005, Hullie won't be eligible for selection to the (non U.S. exlusive) Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, Ontario until the Class of 2010, but hey, we're positive that the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame is just as inspiring as the real Hockey Hall of Fame. Much like winning a Golden Globe is just as exciting as winning an Academy Award. Or how great it must feel to be selected to the Amateur Adult Video News Hall of Fame before being called by the good sticky folks over at the Adult Video News Hall of Fame.

Or whatever.

But it's not that bad. Of course Hull is technically a Canadian, being born in Belleville, Ontario and all, but hey, who's counting? Hullie jumped the Canadian ship back when he no longer needed socialized medicine wanted to play on the world stage and Canada wouldn't have him was too chock-full of good Canadian guys to find a place for the Golden Brett and his unbelievable shot. Thank god for American baby-mommas and dual-citizenship! Are we right, Mexico?

The (US)HHOF Class of 2008 also includes Mike Richter, Brian Leetch and the new Mrs. Ray Ferraro Tony Granato's more talented sibling the only female hockey player we've ever heard of aside from the weird lesbian who plays in our rec league Cammi Granato, making it the single greatest class of the US Hockey Hall of Fame in their illustrious 35 year history. The first class, inducted in 1973, contained 25 names, only one of which you've ever heard (unless you happen to live next door to Elwin "Doc" Romnes).

The Class of 2008 is so good comparatively (as long as we all agree to overlook Hull's Canadian origin) that you could lump together any ten classes and they wouldn't compare. Hell, Rob "Robbie" Ftorek is an inductee (Class of 1991).

Of course, that still doesn't keep us from imagining the awkward few moments at the Hull household between the moment Hullie's new wife, Darcy, called him to the kitchen with her hand over the mouthpiece of the phone and said, "Goldie (we assume she must call him that), it's someone from the Hall of Fame," and the moment after the 7,000-year-old guy in Minnesota explained that he was from the (US)HHOF.

We bet those moments were fantastic. And then a little weird. And then very quiet.

But anyway, our most sincere congrats to Brett, even if he did go play in other places after St. Louis. Not that we can remember any of them. We'll be sure to celebrate in a more proper way in just two years. We imagine that he will, too.