Well, I thought I was the only one who thought a range hood wasn't necessary. I have a Wolf 6 burner rangetop, and because of the BTUs, I had to get a pretty powerful range hood. I can count on one hand the number of times that hood has been used in the 8 months since it was installed. And, when it was used, the rangetop wasn't even on. It was to get the stinch out of the house because I burned something in the oven which is several feet away! It worked great though. So, I guess all that power does come in handy for something
I'd think if you do a lot of grilling on top of the stove, you'd need some ventilation, though.