Wayne Gretzky says the world has lost ‘greatest hockey player ever’

WHL Commissioner Ron Robison released this statement on Friday as well: “The WHL would like to express our heartfelt condolences to the Howe family and all those “Mr. Hockey” touched throughout the course of his remarkable life”, commented WHL Commissioner Ron Robison.

(AP Photo/File). FILE – This is an October 1996 file photo showing Detroit Red Wings hockey player Gordie Howe poses in Detroit, Mich. Gordie Howe, the hockey great who set scoring records that stood for decades, has died.

“It’s a pretty classic number, and a lot of great players have worn it, but what it meant to me was that I got a better night’s sleep”, the then 86-year-old explained.

A 23-time NHL All-Star, Howe held numerous sport’s scoring records until they were broken in the 1990s by Wayne Gretzky.

FDA regulations at the time stated any stem cell treatment to a person who had suffered a stroke must occur six months after said stroke, Maynard explained.

Wayne Gretzky eventually passed Howe for the National Hockey League record for most goals scored – finishing his career with 894 to Howe’s 801. He was a six-time MVP and a six-time Art Ross Trophy victor as the league’s leading scorer.

Wayne Gretzky of the Los Angeles Kings stands with Gordie Howe as they pose with the 1,851 puck that Gretkzy scored with to pass Howe as the all-time point leader in the National Hockey League against the Edmonton Oilers on October 15, 1989 at Northlands Coliseum in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

“They had to drill into his skull”, said his son Mark Howe.

Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale, also a Saskatchewan native, remembered Howe as not just a hockey legend, but as a down-to-earth guy, who did much for his community.

One tribute stood out among the rest, as Wayne Gretzky said Howe was his idol growing up, and he was the nicest man he’d ever met.

“For me, he’s the greatest hockey player who ever played”, Gretzky said on the “Dan Patrick Show”. Given his recent health issues, his passing did not come as a shock to those close to the Howe family, according to Gretzky, but the loss still hit hard. Ilich is a businesswoman, University of MI regent and her family owns the Red Wings team.

“A player like Gordie Howe doesn’t come around very often, a player that plays as well and as long as he did”, said MI coach Red Berenson, who played with and against Howe.

In 2014, Howe’s family moved him to Texas to live with their sister, and shortly after, his condition quickly took a dive. But Howe said he would only sign if some friends from Saskatoon would be there, too.

“If they can pass a little bit of that on to other people as well, I think the world will be a better place for it”.

It was widely known that Gretzky greatly respected Howe, and actually wore #9 in juniors, before switching to No. 99 later.

Gordie Howe was equal parts sharpshooter and street fighter, and remarkably durable to boot.

Howe won the Stanley Cup four times with the Detroit Red Wings and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1972.

Henderson says he remembers skating against Howe in the WHA, with Henderson is his 30s and Howe in his 50s, and Howe owning everybody on the backcheck.

Bobby Baun, who played both against and with Howe during a career that included stints with the Leafs and the Red Wings, called Howe’s death “a tough thing”.

“As a human being, he was incredible”, Holland added. “He was an incredible ambassador for the sport”.