We're flying the flag at half-mast at Pass it to Bulis HQ this afternoon, in honour of our patron saint: Jan Bulis has called it a career.
The one-time Canuck, now 38, cited a desire to spend more time with his family, and it's one of those overriding desires, where nothing else really interests you. As he told the Czech news outlet Ceske Noviny, he had a contract offer, and could have kept playing, "but the family was given priority".
As an NHLer, Bulis put up 96 goals and 245 points in 552 games, and he added 85 goals and 171 points in 317 KHL games, according to Elite Prospects. We didn't witness most of those points, so we can't speak to the single greatest play of his career. But we're pretty sure it was the slick back-pass that gave us Cowan the Bra-barian.
That moment alone is worthy of some sort of commemoration in Vancouver.
Which brings me the Canucks recent announcement that a sixth player will be headed to the Ring of Honour next season. Suspiciously, they made this announcement on Friday, the same day I first saw reports that Bulis was retiring. Are the two events connected? I say perhaps.
Does Bulis deserve to be in the Ring of Honour? Depends on who you ask. (Someone who doesn't know about hockey, for instance, might be inclined to say yes, just so you'll stop asking.) On the one hand, Bulis wasn't very good when he was in Vancouver. He made our 2010 list of the 10 worst Canucks since the lockout, and was so bad on one occasion that ex-broadcaster Tommy Larscheid remarked aloud from the booth, "Let's face facts: Jan Bulis is just a dumb hockey player."
But on the other hand, he inspired us, and we rule, and he never once tried to shut us down. Plus, let's take a look at what the Ring of Honour is for, via Vancity Buzz:
The Ring of Honour, in case you’ve forgotten, is a way for the Canucks to honour a player that doesn’t deserve jersey retirement recognition. Previous inductees include Orland Kurtenbach, Kirk McLean, Thomas Gradin, Harold Snepsts, and Pat Quinn.
You know who definitely doesn't deserve jersey retirement recognition in Vancouver? Jan Bulis.
Jan Bulis for the Ring of Honour.
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