Bobby Hull And The Lost Letter

Here's a very cool story from the Regina Leader-Post about a 53 year old hockey fan who not only recently got to meet the legendary Bobby Hull, but was able to hand deliver him a letter he had written (but was never mailed) to him as a 10 year old.

As a boy in the late 1960s/early 1970s Ivan Daku wrote many NHL players and most of them responded with autographs and kind words. But he always wondered why the great Bobby Hull - he of the reputation as hockey's most fan-friendly player - never responded to his letter.

It turns out Daku's letter was never mailed. Daku only discovered this back in 2006 when going through possessions of his deceased mother. He found the letter and instantly recognized what it was. Though it brought back a flood of memories, he did not know what to do with it and refused to open it and read what his 10 year old self had written.

"I said, 'No, I'm not going to open it. There will come a time when it's appropriate to open this up.' "I brought it back to Regina and showed it to my boys. They said, 'Open it up and let's see what it says,' but I decided to put it in the china cabinet. It sat in my house from 2006 until we went to Chicago," he told the Leader-Post.

Daku attended the Blackhawks/Blues game back on April 6th, 2014 and was able to hand deliver the letter to The Golden Jet himself.

"I said, 'Mr. Hull, I'd be honoured if you'd open it and see what's inside,' Daku says. "He took it, looked at it, and said (to the people who were assembled in the area), 'This is a letter from Ivan. His mother never mailed it ... Well, let's just see what it says.'

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little bit emotional when he took it. My heart stood still for a second because I had no idea what was in the letter. It took 43 years to get the letter in his hands. He was like, 'That's a long time!'

So what did the letter say?

Dear Bobby, I like your style of hockey. I think you play better than Brad Park. Please could you send me some tips on left wing. And a picture and autograph of you.

Your fan,

Ivan Daku