Mr. Hockey passed away at the age of 88. Even though he played for one of the St. Louis Blues chief rivals, it is still a loss for everyone that cares about the sport.
Gordie Howe was hockey for a long period of time. He played long enough to expose himself to several generations of fans to really know who he is. Some players retire at an age that is less than the number of years Howe played (32).
When you play that long and play so well for that long, rivalries almost fall by the wayside. Howe almost transcended it all.
By the time the St. Louis Blues even came into existence, he had already been playing hockey for 24 years. Interestingly enough, the Blues had early success compared to Mr. Hockey.
The Blues immediately made the Stanley Cup Finals in their first three years of existence and the Red Wings actually missed the playoffs those three years too. Now, were not the main cause of that since they were not in the same conferences, but the coincidence is notable.
Howe, as he did with just about every team in the NHL, had some memorable moments against the Blues. In 1979-80, the Hartford Whalers went from the WHA to the NHL and Howe with them.
On February 29, 1980 Howe scored his 800th goal against the Blues. The Whalers won the game by a final of 3-0.
Howe had a pretty special career no matter how you slice it. Clearly his scoring prowess was well documented. He is currently fourth on the all-time scoring list, but he sat at number one for a long time until Wayne Gretzky broke it.
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He was able to play in the NHL and the WHA with his two sons, Mark and Marty. He was also the only player to play in six different decades when he signed on to play one game with the Detroit Vipers of the IHL in 1997.
Long before his death, Howe had already become more legend than man. He was famous for the Gordie Howe hat-trick, which included a goal, assist and fight – embodying every single aspect that makes hockey the sport it is.
The Detroit Red Wings have long been a thorn in the side of the Blues, so it feels weird to glorify one of their great players on a Blues page. However, unlike even the biggest names of other sports, Howe transcended the game.
You can find people that may say Jordan was great, but always hated him. Given the bitterness between teams, Boston fans likely still hold a grudge against Babe Ruth. Howe seems to have risen above them.
He played the bulk of his career for the Red Wings, but he belongs more to the league. He never sought out the cameras or the limelight in his latter years the way some of today’s stars do, but was nevertheless an ambassador for the game.
Sadly, he was in poor health for a good while before the end. He had begun to have memory problems prior to 2009. He suffered a stroke in 2014 and a second one not long after. He had chronic back pain, high blood pressure and dementia.
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It’s always sad to see someone who relied on their mind and body so much have those things fail them in the end. It is comforting thinking he is now playing hockey somewhere on a existential plane.
The fact that he never played for the Blues matters very little at this point. The NHL and the sport itself has lost one of its giants and he will be missed.