The Golden Jet will not be flying to Manitoba this fall.
Bobby Hull turned down an invitation to attend the inaugural Winnipeg Jets Hall of Fame induction ceremony in October for personal reasons, the club announced Friday.
"It's a true honor to be inducted into the Winnipeg Jets Hall of Fame alongside my former linemates, and friends, Anders Hedberg, and Ulf Nilsson," Hull said in a a statement.
"While I will not be in attendance for the celebration, I want to thank the Jets for the special recognition and the wonderful fans of Winnipeg for all of their support throughout the years.ā
The Jets expressed their disappointment in a statement of their own.
"The Winnipeg Jets Hall of Fame was created to acknowledge the rich history of our team which began with the World Hockey Association and quickly reached international significance through the achievements of the Hotline," the club said.
"Accordingly, we are deeply disappointed that Mr. Hull has declined our invitation to join his teammates, Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nilsson when we honor their collective accomplishments on October 19th and 20th."
Hull spent parts of eight seasons with the original Jets franchise (now the Arizona Coyotes) in the WHA and NHL from 1972-73 to 1979-80, scoring 307 goals with the club including three 50-plus-goal campaigns and a 77-goal season in 1974-75.
He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983.
