When Gordie Howe went on a secret vacation in the middle of the regular season right before retiring from the NHL

Gordie Howe was one of the most successful players in NHL history. However, when he retired from ice hockey for the first time in 1971, it was after a strange season. He had to switch positions, battle an injury, and take a mysterious “vacation”. Many believe his vacation was the reason for his retirement.

Ned Harkness was the coach and general manager of the Detroit Red Wings at the time, and he is not remembered fondly in Detroit. One of the strangest ideas to spring from the mind of Harkness proved to be the catalyst for a controversial season for the Detroit hockey club. It was his idea to take Gordie Howe and make a defenseman out of him.

In the summer of 1970, he had the idea to use Howe’s superior skills on the blue line. Management reluctantly approved the idea, but Howe had to be on board as well, of course. At first, he wasn’t too keen on it, but Harkness explained that he wanted Howe to be aggressive. And not ignore his natural scoring tendencies just because he was playing defense.

In the first three games of the year, Howe looked like a veteran defender, scoring five points with two goals and three assists. He was also in action as Detroit’s man on the point in the power play. Harkness also used him on the penalty-killing team.

The GM was forced to put Gordie back as a right-wing. Ironically, Howe said he felt a little “out of it” in his first shifts back on offense. The season only got more challenging for the Detroit veteran.

In January, things got even more complicated. With Howe still healing an injury (wearing a corset under his uniform to protect his injured rib), he took a secret vacation in Texas. According to the Detroit Free Press, the vacation was “to settle a business deal.” However, many believe that the vacation was the reason for Howe's retirement.

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A look at how Gordie Howe was shaped into the Hockey star he became later

Growing up, Gordie Howe was mildly dyslexic, which made it challenging for him to read and write. However, he compensated for this by being physically advanced beyond his years, reaching a height of six feet in his mid-teens. This caused some concern among doctors, who feared that Howe might have a calcium deficiency. As a result, they advised him to do chin-ups to strengthen his spine.

At the age of eight, Howe started playing organized hockey, which quickly became his passion. However, during the Great Depression, he had to quit school to work in construction to help support his family. Howe's love for the sport never wavered, and he left at the age of 16 to pursue his hockey career.

Gordie Howe's professional hockey career began in 1946 when he joined the Detroit Red Wings.