As a player, he was in the shadow of his older brother Bobby Hull, where they were both teammates on the ChicagoBlack 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". 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 for Vic Hadfield at 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" line with centre Pit Martin and right wingJim 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 and Detroit Red Wings.
After Hockey
Upon retirement as a player, he became a broadcaster, as well as an educator, returning to St. Catharines, Ontario, where he played Ontario Hockey LeagueJunior hockey, to study at Brock University, graduating with a degree in History and Physical Education. He then taught at Ridley College and then became Athletic Director of Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago. Recently, he has been noted as a public speaker and comedian, and continues to operate a cattle farm raising Polled Hereford with his brother Gary in Northumberland County, Ontario. He has written a book entitled "The Third Best Hull" which contains entertaining and often hilarious memoirs of his hockey career. Hull became good friends with Soviet goaltending legend Vladislav Tretiak, whom he had played against during the 1972 Summit Series, recalling "I told Tretiak that he's become famous for letting in goal...I said to him that 'if you had stopped it, you'd probably be a cab driver in Moscow today.' "
