How physical was Gordie Howe?

[Eye of Ra]

Was his tough style exaggerated? Did he hit alot?

Click to read more...

 

[Moose Head]

More Messier than Cam Neely. He was called ‘Elbows’ for a reason. He was very physical for a star player, but a bit dirty.

 

[The Panther]

It seems that Gordie Howe rarely fought. And his hitting wasn't huge open-ice body-rockers than stunned the crowd.

I think (based on what I've read, recollections by opponents, etc.) is that Howe was the master of the subtle (unseen by referee) painful revenge-elbow, hit, butt-end, push, etc.

 

[NyQuil]

He was very dirty because he was his own enforcer.

If anyone ever took liberties with him, he’d get them back with a stick or an elbow when the refs weren’t looking.

With no instant replay, he would usually get away with it, and would wait patiently for the opportunity, even months or seasons later.

In general, he would rarely initiate but rather retaliate in kind. An exception was rookies where he would usually challenge them in their first game to test their mettle with some intimidating conversation or stick jabs.

He was a pretty solid player physically so trying to hit him was always going to be challenging.

But there are plenty of stories of him sticking guys in the face which seems pretty insane by today’s standards but was fairly common in those days.

 

[Sadekuuro]

From what I've read, he was wild as a youngster, but by the time he acquired his reputation as a top predator he was given a wide berth without actually having to engage very often.

 

[mobilus]

After he called to tell his parents that he made Red Wings, his mother said, “I’m worried.” His father answered, “Don’t worry, Gordie can take care of himself.” His mother replied, “I’m not worried about Gordie, I mean the other players.”

 

[Davenport]

Check out Gordie Howe's book: Mr. Hockey: Gordie Howe, My Story (Penguin, 2014). He is quite honest about how his elbows and stickwork were all about earning himself time and space on the ice.

 

[Crosby2010]

Here is a quick video that shows a couple of hits


And just for the heck of it, here is Howe on "What's My Line" and they guessed who he was pretty quickly.


What a gentleman off the ice though. Humble. Still a shy small town boy. The thing with Howe is that at 6'1" 200lbs. he was for sure above average when he played, but he was so strong, farm strong. He'd be similar today because he had no fear and he had that obscure natural strength. We are talking about two different athletes here, but Babe Ruth and Gordie Howe both had strength to them without looking like they were the biggest people in their sport. Like Ruth, Howe was born to play his sport as well as he did. This is why it is hard to explain why Howe was good. We know with Orr it was the skating, Gretzky the vision, Mario the size and skill, but Howe it was just the natural strength and freak of nature body type that was durable. If you compare him to anyone it could be Tom Brady who was another durable player who played far longer than you would think he could have. But Howe was definitely stronger.

 

[VanIslander]

After he called to tell his parents that he made Red Wings, his mother said, “I’m worried.” His father answered, “Don’t worry, Gordie can take care of himself.” His mother replied, “I’m not worried about Gordie, I mean the other players.”

1. It has been said that she thought he might kill somebody someday.

2. I read an account of how he could hold the end of the stick with one hand - while the other hand on the backchecker - and have the strength to raise the stick and shoot the puck top shelf!!! If you have a stick, try it. With two hands at the end it is very nearly impossible.

3. He was vengeful and retaliated at every slight. Even if it took years.

4. He pancaked a goon's nose and everyone knew about it. Who'd want a piece of that?