Editing Gordie Howe (section)

==Playing careers==
Howe was an ambidextrous player, one of just a few skaters able to use the straight sticks of his era to shoot either left- or right-handed.<ref name="HockeyStories">{{cite book |last = Diamond |first = Dan |title = Hockey Stories on and off the Ice |year = 2001 |publisher = Andrews McMeel Publishing |isbn = 0-7407-1903-3 |page = [https://archive.org/details/hockeystoriesono0000diam/page/65 65] |url = https://archive.org/details/hockeystoriesono0000diam/page/65 }}</ref> As a young teen, he played bantam hockey with the King George Athletic Club in Saskatoon, winning his first championship with them in the 1942 Saskatchewan Provincial Bantam Hockey Finals. He received his first taste of professional hockey at age 15 in 1943 when he was invited by the [[New York Rangers]] to their training camp held at "The Amphitheatre" in [[Winnipeg]], [[Manitoba]]. He played well enough there that the Rangers wanted Howe to sign a "C" form, which would have given that club his [[National Hockey League]] rights, and to play that year at the [[Athol_Murray_College_of_Notre_Dame|College of Notre Dame]], a Catholic high school in Wilcox, Saskatchewan, that was known for producing good hockey players. However, Howe did not feel that was a good fit for him and wanted to go back home to play hockey with his friends; he declined the Rangers' offer and returned to Saskatoon.<ref>{{cite book |last = Howe |first = Gordie |title = Mr. Hockey: My Story |location = New York |publisher = G.P. Putnam & Sons |year = 2014 |pages = 49–52 }}</ref>
[[File:Gordie Howe with USHL Ohama Knights 1945-46.jpg|thumb|left|Gordie Howe (2nd from left, back row) on the 1945–46 Omaha Knights (USHL)]]
In 1944, Howe was noticed by [[Detroit Red Wings]] scout Fred Pinkney and was invited to their camp in [[Windsor, Ontario]]. He was signed by the Red Wings to a "C" form and assigned to their [[junior ice hockey|junior]] team, the [[Galt Red Wings]]. Due to the maximum number of [[Western Canada|Western]] players allowed by the league and the Red Wings' preference to develop older players, Howe's playing time with the team was initially limited. However, in 1945, he was promoted to the [[Omaha Knights (AHA)|Omaha Knights]] of the minor professional [[United States Hockey League (1945-1951)|United States Hockey League]] (USHL), where he scored 48 points in 51 games as a 17-year-old. While playing in Omaha, [[Frank Selke]] of the [[Toronto Maple Leafs]] noticed Howe's rights needed to be properly listed as Red Wings property. Having a good relationship with Detroit head coach [[Jack Adams]], he notified Adams of the clerical error, and Howe was quickly put on the team's protected list.<ref name="top100" />

===Detroit Red Wings===
Howe made his NHL debut on October 16, 1946, playing right wing for the Detroit Red Wings, scoring in his first game at age 18.<ref>{{cite web |title = Gordie Howe, 'Mr. Hockey,' turns 85 years old |url = http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=662796 |publisher = National Hockey League |access-date = January 22, 2014 }}</ref> He wore number 17 as a rookie. However, when [[Roy Conacher]] joined the [[Chicago Blackhawks|Chicago Black Hawks]] after the [[1946–47 NHL season|1946–47 season]], Howe was offered Conacher's number 9, which he would wear for the rest of his career. Although he had not requested the change, Howe accepted it when he was informed "9" would entitle him to a lower [[Pullman (car or coach)|Pullman]] berth on road trips. He quickly established himself as a great goalscorer and a gifted playmaker with a willingness to [[fighting in ice hockey|fight]]. Howe fought so often in his rookie season that head coach Jack Adams told him, "I know you can fight. Now can you show me you can play hockey?"<ref name="top100" /> The term "[[Gordie Howe hat trick]]" (consisting of a goal, an assist, and a fight) was coined in reference to his penchant for fighting; however, Howe himself only recorded two such hat tricks in his career,<ref>{{cite news |first = Jeff |last = Marek |title = How many Gordie Howe hat tricks did Mr. Hockey notch? |date = November 2, 2007 |publisher = [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]] |url = http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/marek/2007/11/how_many_gordie_howe_hattricks.html |access-date = March 30, 2008 }}</ref> on October 10, 1953, and March 21, 1954.<ref>{{cite news |last = Marek |first = Jeff |title = The mystique of the Gordie Howe hat trick |url = http://www.cbc.ca/sports/blogs/2008/10/the_mystique_of_the_gordie_how.html |publisher = [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]] |access-date = March 31, 2013 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090720010954/http://www.cbc.ca/sports/blogs/2008/10/the_mystique_of_the_gordie_how.html |archive-date = July 20, 2009 |date = October 29, 2008 }}</ref> Using his great physical strength, he was able to dominate the opposition in a career that spanned six decades (including one game with the [[Detroit Vipers]] of the [[International Hockey League (1945-2001)|IHL]] in 1997). In a feat unsurpassed by any hockey player, he finished in the top five in scoring for 20-straight seasons.<ref name="legendsofhockey.net">{{cite web |url = http://www.legendsofhockey.net/LegendsOfHockey/jsp/LegendsMember.jsp?mem=p197204&page=bio#photo |title = Howe, Gordie: Biography; Honoured Player |publisher = Legends of Hockey |access-date = December 13, 2015 }}</ref> Howe also scored 20 or more goals in 22 consecutive seasons between 1949 and 1971, an NHL record.<ref>{{cite book |author = [[National Hockey League]] |title = NHL Official Guide & Record |publisher = Dan Diamond & Associates |year = 2006 |page = 185 }}</ref>
[[File:Gordie Howe 1946-47.jpg|upright|thumb|Howe made his NHL debut for the Detroit Red Wings in 1946]]
Howe led Detroit to four [[Stanley Cup]] championships and to first place in regular-season play for seven consecutive years ([[1948–49 NHL season|1948–49]] to [[1954–55 NHL season|1954–55]]), a feat never equalled in NHL history. During this time, Howe and his linemates—[[Sid Abel]] and [[Ted Lindsay]]—were known collectively as [[Production line (hockey)|"The Production Line"]], both for their scoring and as an allusion to [[Detroit]] auto factories. The trio dominated the NHL in such a fashion that in [[1949–50 NHL season|1949–50]], they finished one-two-three in NHL scoring.<ref name=fifties>{{cite web |url = http://redwings.nhl.com/club/page.htm?id=43759 |title = Written History: 1950s |publisher = [[Detroit Red Wings]] |access-date = November 17, 2014 }}</ref> This was despite the fact Howe's career prime was during a defensive era, when scoring was difficult and checking was tight.<ref>{{cite news |last = Krupa |first = Gregg |title = Howe, Orr, Gretzky best of best in NHL history |url = http://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/nhl/2016/06/10/greats/85693688/ |work = [[The Detroit News]] |date = June 10, 2016 |access-date = June 10, 2016 }}</ref>

However, as he was emerging as one of the top players in the league, Howe sustained the worst injury of his career - his skull was fractured and his cheekbone and nose were broken after his attempt to check the Toronto Maple Leafs captain [[Ted Kennedy (ice hockey)|Ted Kennedy]] into the boards went awry during the 1950 playoffs. The severity of the fracture was such that he was taken to the hospital for emergency surgery in order to relieve the pressure on his brain.<ref name="top100" /> He missed the rest of the playoffs, but his dominant teammates were still able to win the Stanley Cup.

The next season, 1950–51, Howe came back, responding to his severe injuries by playing in every game, by leading the NHL in goals, assists, and total points (86), and by winning the scoring title by 20 points.<ref>{{cite web |title = NHL 1950-51 League Leaders |url = http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/top_league.php?lid=nhl1927&sid=1951&leaguenm=NHL |publisher = hockeydb.com |access-date = June 10, 2016 }}</ref> This was the first year of a four-year period of dominance by Howe which the NHL had never seen before. He won four straight scoring titles and in two of the years (1950–51 and 1952–53) he led the NHL in both goals and assists, which has only been done by five other players in history (a total of 10 times aside from Howe). In three of those years, he led the NHL in goals. In 1952–53, Howe became the first NHL player to score 90 points, finishing the season with 95 points and a career-best 49 goals <ref name="CBC obit" /> which just missed tying the league record of 50 goals held by [[Maurice Richard|Maurice "Rocket" Richard]] (albeit in a 50-game season). Prior to Howe, no NHLer had led the NHL in points more than two times in a row. Only three other players have ever matched the feat of winning four straight scoring titles since—[[Phil Esposito]], [[Jaromír Jágr]], and [[Wayne Gretzky]] (who won seven in a row).

As Howe emerged as one of the game's superstars, he was frequently compared to the [[Montreal Canadiens]]' Maurice Richard. Both were right wingers who wore #9, were regular challengers for the league scoring title, and could also play roughly if needed. Their first NHL match-up was in 1946, where Richard hit Howe with a hard check and an elbow to the chin. Howe and Richard never got to fight due to Sid Abel intervening. Abel received a broken nose.<ref>{{cite web |url=https:King Clancy/Red Storey.The Rocket battled each other for hockey supremacy |website=Vintage Detroit |last=Holmes |first=Dan |date=February 19, 2013 |access-date=July 7, 2021 }}</ref> Howe recalled "They always thought there was bad blood because I hit [Richard] once coming across the line and he spun like a rocket and fell down. He wasn't hurt that much and I started to laugh. But the laughter stopped when there were eight guys on me".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://o.canada.com/sports/hockey/gordie-howe-jean-beliveau-rivalry-grew-into-friendship |title=Gordie Howe, 1928-201X: Béliveau rivalry grew into friendship &#124; canada.com |website=o.canada.com |access-date=17 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160610204721/http://o.canada.com/sports/hockey/gordie-howe-jean-beliveau-rivalry-grew-into-friendship |archive-date=10 June 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Howe also had a rivalry with the Canadiens' centre [[Jean Béliveau]], who wrote in his autobiography that "trying to strong-arm Gordie off the puck in a corner was akin to wrestling with a telephone pole".<ref>{{cite news |date=June 10, 2016 |title=Gordie Howe, Jean Béliveau rivalry grew into friendship |url=https://o.canada.com/sports/hockey/gordie-howe-jean-beliveau-rivalry-grew-into-friendship |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181206002135/https://o.canada.com/sports/hockey/gordie-howe-jean-beliveau-rivalry-grew-into-friendship |archive-date=December 6, 2018 |access-date=December 5, 2018 |website=Canada.com |publisher=Postmedia News}}</ref><ref name="sportsworld.nbcsports.com">{{Cite web |last=Posnanski |first=Joe |date=December 23, 2014 |title=Gordie and Mr. Béliveau |url=https://sportsworld.nbcsports.com/gordie-and-mr-beliveau/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211101143058/https://sportsworld.nbcsports.com/gordie-and-mr-beliveau/ |archive-date=November 1, 2021 |website=NBC SportsWorld |publisher=NBC Sports}}</ref> The Red Wings and Canadiens faced off in four Stanley Cup Finals during the 1950s, and again in the [[1966 Stanley Cup Finals|1966]] final; Detroit prevailed in [[1952 Stanley Cup Finals|1952]], [[1954 Stanley Cup Finals|1954]] and [[1955 Stanley Cup Finals|1955]], but Montreal triumphed in [[1956 Stanley Cup Finals|1956]] and 1966.

The Red Wings also had a fierce rivalry with the [[Chicago Blackhawks]] who defeated them in the [[1961 Stanley Cup Finals]]. Chicago's [[Stan Mikita]] recalled one time as a rookie when he slashed Howe saying "he was an old man who didn't belong on the ice"; later in the season Howe exacted revenge with a check that gave Mikita a concussion.<ref name="hullmikita">{{cite web |url=https://www.nhl.com/blackhawks/news/hull-mikita-gretzky-on-their-encounters-with-howe/c-885662 |title=Hull, Mikita, Gretzky on their encounters with Howe |website=nhl.com |date=June 10, 2016 |access-date=July 7, 2021 }}</ref> [[Bobby Hull]] recalled the times he and Howe played against each other saying 'I enjoyed every high-sticking minute of it', describing Howe as "strong as a bull and tougher than a night in jail". In the 1968 All-Star Game where Hull and Howe were teammates for the first time, Hull said "it was nice finally having Gordie on my side. He was no fun playing against". Hull and Howe would also be rivals in the [[World Hockey Association]] (WHA), as members of the [[Winnipeg Jets (1972–96)|Winnipeg Jets]] and [[Houston Aeros (WHA)|Houston Aeros]], respectively, and would be reunited as teammates on the [[Hartford Whalers]] where they finished off their playing careers.<ref name="hullmikita"/>

After being consistent contenders through the 1950s and early 1960s, the Red Wings began to slump in the late 1960s. When Howe turned 40 in [[1967–68 NHL season|1967–68]], the NHL [[1967 NHL Expansion|expanded]] from 6 to 12 teams and the number of scoring opportunities grew as the game schedule increased. Howe played the [[1968–69 NHL season|1968–69 season]] on a line with [[Alex Delvecchio]] and [[Frank Mahovlich]].<ref name="CBC obit" /> Mahovlich was a scorer, and Delvecchio was a gifted playmaker. The three were dubbed "The Production Line 3", and at age 40, Howe scored 103 points, surpassing 100 points for the only time in his NHL career by scoring 44 goals and a career-high 59 assists.<ref name="CBC obit" /><ref name="hof" />
[[File:Gordie Howe.jpg|thumb|upright|Howe relaxing at "Gordie Howe Hockeyland" in [[St. Clair Shores, Michigan]], circa 1966]]
Following his personal best 103-point season, conflict arose with the Red Wings after Howe discovered he was just the third-highest paid player on the team with a $45,000 salary. While team owner [[Bruce Norris (ice hockey)|Bruce Norris]] increased Howe's salary to $100,000, he blamed Howe's wife, [[Colleen Howe|Colleen]], for the demand.<ref name="top100" /> Howe remained with the club for two more seasons, but after 25 years, a chronic wrist problem forced him to retire after the [[1970–71 NHL season|1970–71 season]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nhl.com/news/this-date-in-nhl-history-september-8/c-281602386 |title=Sept. 8: Howe announces retirement after 25 seasons with Red Wings |date=September 8, 2020 |website=nhl.com}}</ref> and he took a job in the Red Wings front office. At the beginning of 1972, he was offered the job as first head coach of the [[New York Islanders]], but declined it.<ref>{{cite news |first = Jim |last = Proudfoot |work = [[Toronto Star]] |date = January 8, 1972 |page = 41 |title=Howe Offered Coaching Position with Islanders}}{{full citation needed|date=June 2016}}</ref>

By the end of his NHL career, Howe had won the [[Hart Memorial Trophy]] as the NHL's most valuable player six times: 1952, 1953, 1957, 1958, 1960 and 1963—at that time the most of any player, and as of 2025 second only to Gretzky's nine.<ref>{{cite web |title = NHL Hart Memorial Trophy Winners |url = https://www.hockey-reference.com/awards/hart.html |publisher = Hockey-Reference |access-date = June 10, 2016 }}</ref> He also finished second or third in the voting for the Hart a further six times. Howe was named to the NHL's First All-Star Team 12 times and to the Second All-Star Team eight times.

Howe was named an Officer of the [[Order of Canada]] in 1971.<ref>{{cite news |title = Gordie Howe, ice hockey star, obituary |url = https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2016/06/10/gordie-howe-ice-hockey-star---obituary/ |work = The Daily Telegraph |location = London |date = June 10, 2016 |access-date = June 10, 2016 }}</ref><ref name=GN>{{cite news |last = Frisk |first = Adam |title = Gordie Howe dead at 88 |url = http://globalnews.ca/news/2753666/gordie-howe-dead-at-88/ |publisher = [[Global News]] |date = June 10, 2016 |access-date = June 10, 2016 }}</ref> His number 9 jersey was retired by the Red Wings on March 12, 1972.<ref>{{cite web |title = Retired Jerseys: Gordie Howe |url = http://redwings.nhl.com/club/page.htm?id=43912 |publisher = Detroit Red Wings |access-date = June 10, 2016 }}</ref>

===World Hockey Association===
One year later, Howe was offered a contract to play with the [[Houston Aeros (WHA)|Houston Aeros]] of the newly formed [[World Hockey Association]] (WHA), which had also signed his sons [[Mark Howe|Mark]] and [[Marty Howe|Marty]] to contracts for $5 million for four years, although Gordie's contract called for just one year. Dissatisfied with not having any meaningful influence in the Red Wings' office, he underwent wrist surgery to make a return to hockey possible, and he led his new team to consecutive [[Avco World Trophy|league championships]] in 1974 and 1975; he had stated at the time that winning the former with his children playing alongside him "probably" meant more to him than his Stanley Cup wins with Detroit.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://newspaperarchive.com/delphos-herald-may-20-1974-p-5/ | title=Delphos Herald Newspaper Archives, May 20, 1974, p. 5 | date=May 20, 1974 }}</ref>  In 1974, at age 46, Howe won the Gary L. Davidson Trophy, awarded to the WHA's [[Most Valuable Player]] (the trophy was renamed the [[Gordie Howe Trophy]] the following year). He pondered retiring after both the end of the Avco Cup Final of [[1974 WHA playoffs|1974]] and [[1975 WHA playoffs|1975]] for a front office job but ultimately kept playing.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://newspaperarchive.com/southern-illinoisan-may-13-1975-p-22/ | title=Southern Illinoisan Archives, May 13, 1975, p. 22 | date=May 13, 1975 }}</ref> Howe played with the Aeros until [[1976–77 WHA season|1977]], when he and his sons joined the [[New England Whalers]].<ref name="hof"/> After Marty's cheekbone was broken by [[Robbie Ftorek]], in the next game Howe used his stick to cross-check Ftorek in the face. Writer Michael Farber recounted "Mark told Gordie, 'Dad, he's [Robbie] my friend, he's an old teammate on Team Canada, he has been a mentor to me,' But none of that mattered. Robbie had mussed up a Howe. Gordie Howe grew up on the prairie. He believed in prairie justice."<ref name="sportsworld.nbcsports.com"/>

===1974 Summit Series and WHA All-Star Games===
{{main|1974 Summit Series}}
Howe was named with sons Mark and Marty to the WHA version of Team Canada for an eight-game series against the Soviet Union. Playing on a line with son Mark and [[Ralph Backstrom]], Howe contributed seven points in seven games at age 46. The Soviets won the series four wins to Canada's one, and with three ties.<ref name=1974summit/>

In the final season of the WHA, Howe had the opportunity to play with Wayne Gretzky in the [[1979 WHA All-Star Games]]. With a format of a three-game series between the WHA All-Stars and [[HC Dynamo Moscow|Dynamo Moscow]]t The WHA All-Stars were coached by [[Jacques Demers]], and Demers asked Howe if it was okay to put him on a line with Gretzky and his son Mark.<ref name=p234>{{cite book |first = Ed |last = Willes |title = The Rebel League: The Short and Unruly Life of the World Hockey Association |year = 2004 |page = [https://archive.org/details/rebelleagueshort0000will/page/221 221] |publisher = McLelland and Stewart |location = Toronto |isbn = 0-7710-8947-3 |url-access = registration |url = https://archive.org/details/rebelleagueshort0000will/page/221 }}</ref> In game one, the line scored seven points, as the WHA All-Stars won by a score of 4–2.<ref name=p234/> In game two, Gretzky and Mark Howe each scored a goal and Gordie Howe picked up an assist as the WHA won 4–2.<ref name=p234/> The WHA also won Game Three to ensure a clean sweep.<ref>{{cite book |title = The Edmonton Oilers |isbn = 9780786455461 |page = 262 |last = Gaschnitz |first = K. Michael |publisher = McFarland |year = 2003 }}</ref>

===Hartford Whalers===
When the WHA folded in 1979, the renamed [[Hartford Whalers]] joined the NHL. While the Red Wings still held Howe's NHL rights even though he had retired eight years earlier, the Whalers and Red Wings reached a gentleman's agreement in which Detroit agreed not to reclaim him. Howe had experienced dizzy spells in the latter part of the [[1978–79 WHA season]], and underwent an "extensive battery of tests" before deciding to play the [[1979–80 NHL season]].<ref>{{cite news |title = Decision to play rest solely with Howe |agency = S-P Services |url = https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=O5djAAAAIBAJ&pg=4519,2073450&dq=gordie+howe&hl=en |newspaper = Saskatoon Star-Phoenix |page = A12 |date = September 22, 1979 |access-date = October 11, 2013 }}</ref> By playing in the opening game on October 11, Howe, now 51, passed [[Doug Harvey (ice hockey)|Doug Harvey]] to be the [[List of oldest National Hockey League players|oldest person to play in an NHL game]]. In Howe's final season, he would appear in all 80 games of the schedule and helped his team to make the playoffs by scoring 41 points (15 goals and 26 assists).<ref name="CBC obit" /> Late in the season, the Whalers signed [[Bobby Hull]] and put Howe, Hull and [[Dave Keon]] on the same line. One particular honour came when [[Eastern Conference (NHL)|Wales Conference]] head coach [[Scotty Bowman]] selected Howe, [[Phil Esposito]] and [[Jean Ratelle]] to the mid-season [[32nd National Hockey League All-Star Game|All-Star Game]]—which was to take place in Detroit—as a nod to their storied careers before they retired. Howe had played in five decades of All-Star Games and he would skate alongside the second-youngest to ever play in an All-Star Game, 19-year-old Wayne Gretzky. The [[Joe Louis Arena]] crowd gave him a standing ovation twice, lasting so long he had to skate to the bench to stop people from cheering. He had one assist in the Wales Conference's 6–3 win.<ref name="legendsofhockey.net"/> On April 6, 1980, Howe scored his 801st and final goal in the NHL against the [[Detroit Red Wings]] at the [[Hartford Civic Center]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nhl.com/news/gordie-howe-801-nhl-goal-almost-forgotten-with-alex-ovechkin-one-away-338781086|title=Howe's 801st NHL goal forgotten by many with Ovechkin closing in|work=NHL.com|date=December 14, 2024|access-date=April 5, 2025}}</ref> Howe played his final game at the age of 52 years and 10 days on April 11, 1980 in Game 3 of the Preliminary Round of the [[1980 Stanley Cup playoffs]], where Montreal eliminated Hartford 4–3 at the Civic Center.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://montrealgazette.com/sports/hockey/nhl/legends-beliveau-howe-were-great-rivals-but-greater-friends|title=Legends Béliveau, Howe were great rivals but greater friends|work=Montreal Gazette|date=April 1, 2007|access-date=March 16, 2021}}</ref>