www.sandiegogulls.com
Travis Howe was almost done with hockey.
Before arriving to San Diego midway through the 2022-23 season, Howe had been playing in the ECHL for parts of the last seven seasons with four different teams. Between the long haul of a full hockey season and working full-time during the offseason, the grind was taking a toll on Howe.
That was until he got a shot to stick around with the Gulls.
"I re-fell in love with the game ever since I got the opportunity a couple of years ago," Howe said. "It kind of lit that fire within me again."
Howe played an AHL career-high 44 games in 2023-24, his first full season in the league. Despite a less-than-stellar record, Howe was a key figure in the San Diego locker room and was rewarded with a one-year contract to stay with the Gulls in April.
"I give [the staff] pretty much all of the credit because they gave me an opportunity. They took a chance on me when they called me up and stuck with me," Howe said. "I made it damn near impossible for them to send me back because, at the end of the day, I’m not a young buck anymore."
That contract also earned him a training camp invite by the Anaheim Ducks alongside a few other AHL-contracted players, his first NHL preseason camp.
"I’m extremely blessed and grateful to be here," Howe said. "I’m pinching myself everyday… The fact that these guys even know my name is pretty cool. It’s endless amounts of knowledge [the coaches] have, and they want to share it with everybody. Doesn’t matter if you’re in camp for two days, three weeks or the whole season, they are more than willing to share every bit of knowledge they have. I’m just trying to be a sponge to every human being that I come in contact with."
Howe had the opportunity to step on NHL ice for the first time on Sep. 24 in San Jose. For a player who spent nearly a decade in the Federal Hockey League, Southern Professional Hockey League, ECHL and AHL, that one game symbolized Howe’s tenacity.
"It was just like a little kid moment," Howe said. "I was looking up in the stands, looking up in the rafters and I see Patrick Marleau's number.
"There was literally nothing better than [stepping on the ice for the first time]. A lot of things came to mind. All the hard work, but also all the people who helped me get to where I am now, family, friends. It took a village for sure, and it was just really cool."
Despite not getting on the scoresheet in the game, Howe still managed to get the crowd on their feet in the one fashion that’s made him a fan favorite: a spirited fight with San Jose’s Scott Sabourin in his very first shift of the game.
"There was no chance I wasn’t going to get into a little scrap," Howe said. "I had to get that done."
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