Gordie and the Other Howe

Here's how legendary Wings coach/manager Jack Adams remembers his first impressions of Gordie Howe:

"We had a flock of young kids in at training camp and I couldn't take my eyes off a big rangy one. I called him over and asked his name. 'Gordon Howe' he drawled back and added, 'But I'm no relation to that other Howe over there.' I told the kid that if he worked hard, some day he might be as good as Syd Howe, one of our best forwards at the time. But honestly, I never dreamed that he'd do it."

When Gordie Howe came to Detroit, no one really knew much about the big kid. The most common question he was asked was "Are you related to Syd Howe?"

The answer is no, they aren't related. But for Gordie at that time, it was quite an honor to be mentioned in the same sentence as the great Syd Howe. Syd retired the summer before Gordie arrived for his first training camp. At the time of his retirement, Syd was the NHL's all time leading scorer.

Here's more on Syd Howe.