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‘Sounds pretty good to me’: Gordie Howe honoured by bridge namesake

May 15, 2015 | 7:06 AM

A new bridge between Windsor, Ont., and Detroit will be named after hockey legend Gordie Howe.

The still-to-be built Gordie Howe International Bridge is expected to be operational in 2020.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper made the announcement today along with Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder at the river separating Canada and the U.S.

Members of Howe’s family were on hand for the announcement.

“It’s a perfect title,” said son Murray Howe. “Dad is such an ambassador between the United States and Canada. He is such a great symbol of the bond between the two countries.”

Despite the hockey legend’s recent health issues following a series of strokes he suffered last year, Murray said his dad is still able to understand the significance of the recognition and was thrilled when he phoned to tell him the news.

“I called him right away and just said, ‘Dad they’re naming that new bridge after you.’ (He replied,) ‘Wow, that sounds pretty good to me,’” Howe said according to Murray.

“We were beyond thrilled for dad. It’s just a tremendous honour.”

Howe, who is now 87, was born in Floral, Sask., and came to be known as “Mr. Hockey.” He played 25 seasons in the NHL winning four Stanley Cups with the Detroit Red Wings. When he retired from pro hockey in 1980, he held the NHL record for most career points until he was later passed by Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier.

Murray said his dad has always been humble about his accomplishments in hockey.

“He tends not to dwell on his awards or trophies too much. As excited as gets with anything, he was truly, truly thrilled… that they would think of doing something like that for him.”

The hockey legend was honoured in Saskatoon in February at the Kinsmen Sports Celebrity Dinner. As part the trip, the city renamed the Kinsmen Arena after him. Murray said his dad’s health remains about the same since the visit.  He is walking, helping with household chores and has even been out fishing.

Next month the family will take him to San Diego for another stem cell treatment. Murray said they’re hoping the treatment will maintain or improve his quality of life.

“We hope to take some little trips with him so we may just bring him down to the river front to say, ‘Well, this is where it will be dad.’ I think that will be big thrill for him as well as for us,” he said.

In 2005, the city of Saskatoon, where Howe moved as an infant, and the province of Saskatchewan honoured him by naming the street in front of the city’s largest arena “Mr. Hockey Gordie Howe Lane.”

panews@jpbg.ca

On Twitter @brentbosker