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#9 Would Have Had To Wear Another Number
by Paul on 10/11/09 at 04:45 PM ET
Comments (6)
from MontrealCanadiens.com,
Ever wonder what would have happened had Gordie Howe played for the Canadiens alongside the likes of Maurice Richard and Jean Beliveau? Believe it or not, it almost became a reality in the fall of 1946.
During a scouting trip that year that included a look at the Red Wings’ affiliate in Omaha, Canadiens general manager Frank Selke was blown away by the performance of a promising young prospect named Gordie Howe. After doing a little digging, Selke discovered that Howe had been left off the Red Wings’ negotiation list by Knights coach Tommy Ivan, making the future Mr. Hockey available for any NHL club wishing to claim him.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Gordie+Howe,
Comments
socalwingnut, oh yes, I am aware of that. Just saying, just imagine how history would have changed without Gordie wearing #9.
Posted by Paul from Motown Area on 10/11/09 at 07:32 PM ET
Paul, how exactly would history have changed if Howe didn’t wear #9? My hockey history knowledge is pretty weak.
Posted by Drake on 10/11/09 at 08:06 PM ET
Drake, the first thing that comes to mind is Gretzky. Gordie was Wayne’s idol (mine too) so who knows what number Wayne would have worn since he wore 99 for Howe.
Plus, if he played for Montreal, would Wayne have gone with another idol?
Also, #9 was worn by many of the greats in hockey. Not only Godie, but The Rocket wore 9 before him and Bobby Hull wore it too.
Many players avoided wearing number 9 for fear of any comparision to the greats that did wear it.
The history of that number sure would have changed without Gordie wearing it.
Posted by Paul from Motown Area on 10/11/09 at 08:11 PM ET
My son and I were talking about the Gretzky thing the other day. What if he had chosen 17 in honor of Gordie (assuming Gordie had stuck with 17)? Maybe he’d have worn 71? Does Lemieux even start wearing 66 if Gretzky wasn’t 99? Fun topic for thos of us who have no lives. 
Posted by socalwingnut on 10/11/09 at 09:48 PM ET
This is off-season talk - the kind of topic to fill the dead air waiting for the season to start. Game On!
Posted by Seriously? from the thumb of the mitten on 10/12/09 at 12:19 AM ET
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Howe started with #17, so maybe it wouldn’t have been an issue. He switched to #9 because it got him a better berth on train trips.
Posted by socalwingnut on 10/11/09 at 07:09 PM ET