I imagine like most sports blogs this one will not generate much interest.  Nonetheless, there are times where tribute is more important than popularity.

On Sunday, at the hard-fought age of 86, the legendary Gordie Howe suffered a stroke.  While he did survive, he suffered damage to the right side of his body, but rumor has it the stroke got the worst of the exchange.  I was only old enough to see Gordiw Howe at the end of his career.  As a kid, watching Gordie playing in the NHL at the incredible age of 52 alongside his sons with the Hartford Whalers was incredible.  At that point, he was more of a relic and an inspiration.  Make no mistake however, some still consider him to be the greatest hockey player of all-time.

The key member of the famed "Production Line", he was the league MVP six times, led the league in scoring six times and won four Stanley Cups in his career.  He still holds the record for most games played in his NHL career, even though back in the 50's and 60's they played fewer games in a season.  It is a record that is unlikely to be broken.  He was the all-time leading NHL Scorer for the longest time before having his records beaten by the Great One, Wayne Gretzky (who of course played in an era where goals were scored with much more frequency).

Perhaps the most impressive memory of Gordie Howe was in 1959 when he faced LouFontinato of the NY Rangers.  Fontinato had cut Howe intentionally with a high stick in the previous game and Howe was intent on justice.  Fontinato had earned the clear-cut reputation as the toughest player in the league, making the rounds and defeating al takers.  Howe cornered him and they squared off in one of the bloodiest, most memorable and most one-sided fights in NHL history.  Howe pummeled him breaking/dislocating/reditributing (choose your adjective) his nose and forevermore, Howe would be considered hockey's toughest player as well as its greatest player.  Howe, in describing the event, declared that they were both doing their jobs, and one of them was going to get hurt.  He and Fontinato would later become friends off the ice.

I know some are cringing, but hockey fans are not.  Hockey players are throwbacks to a different time and culture when people were a hell of a lot tougher than they are now (if you don't believe me, ask any doctor or dentist about the pain threshold of hockey players).  Gordie was born in 1928, the 6th of 9 children.  His mom was out chopping wood when she began feeling labor pains.  She delivered Gordie, cut her own umbilical cord and waited for her husband to come home.  To this day, although fighting is significantly reduced in hockey and almost eliminated in youth hockey, even kids still joke about the famed "Gordie Howe Hat Trick," getting a goal, an assist and a fight in one game.

Mr. Hockey, his trademarked nickname (as if anyone else would dare touch it), accumulated 975 professional goals, including 27 straight season with 20 or more.  In fact, in his last year in the NHL at age 52, he still netted 15 over a full 80 games.  He amassed 15 broken noses and over 300 stitches to his face over the course of his career.  Gordie Howe, more than any athlete in any sport ever, is literally a part of the culture, part of the fabric that adorns every young hockey player as he or she pull their sweater over their equipment before they step out onto the ice even today.  Hockey players of all ages forever swell with pride and the rich tradition of the game, a great deal of which is due to the contributions of the great Gordie Howe.