Hull To Miss St. Louis Reunion

Brett Hull's much-anticipated return to St. Louis has been postponed until April due to a bruised kidney.

The Dallas Stars' superstar right wing is listed as day-to-day after being injured in Friday's 4-2 victory over the New York Islanders. He was taken to Baylor Hospital in Dallas, where the bruise was discovered, and will miss Saturday night's game in St. Louis.

Hull, who leads the team with 15 points (six goals, nine assists), spent the previous 10 seasons with St. Louis but left as a free agent and signed a three-year, $17 million deal with Dallas. Citing Stanley Cup championship possibilities as the biggest reason for leaving, Hull departed after general manager Larry Pleau said the team would not re-sign the unrestricted free agent.

The 34-year-old Hull still expressed a desire to stay with St. Louis, which acquired him from Calgary in March 1988. But he could not agree on a new contract after demanding a no-trade clause and a reported salary worth between $5 million and $6 million a year.

The Blues' all-time leading scorer and owner of three 70-goal campaigns, Hull was booed at home after managing only one goal in a six-game series loss to Detroit in the Western Conference semifinals.

A six-time All-Star, Hull led the Blues in scoring in 1997-98 for the fourth consecutive season. He recorded 72 points, including a career-low 27 goals in 66 games. His 45 assists matched a career high.

Hull scored 228 goals in a three-year stretch from 1989-92, tallying at least 70 goals each season. In the 1990-91 season, he scored 86 goals -- the third-highest otal in NHL history -- and won the Hart Trophy as the league's most valuable player.

Hull, the son of hall of Famer Bobby Hull, followed that stretch with consecutive 50-goal seasons. He has scored 40 goals or more eight times in his career.

Hull has 560 goals and 442 assists in 816 career games. He has 69 goals and 51 assists in 108 postseason contests.

Dallas is tied for first in the NHL with 22 points. The Stars' only other regular-season visit to the Kiel Center is on April 3.

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