Gordie Howe’s name is on a Saskatoon bridge, a rink and a football field, but you soon won’t find it on the Stanley Cup.

The oldest of the engraved rings attached to Lord Stanley’s mug have to be removed every 13 years in order to keep the trophy at a manageable size.

The ring bearing the names of cup-winning squads from 1954 to 1965 will be peeled off this spring. From there, it will be flattened out and sent to the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto to join previously retired rings from 1927-40 and 1941-53.

Howe was part of a Detroit Red Wings dynasty that won four Stanley Cup Finals between the 1949-50 and 1954-55 seasons. Along with the playoff success, his teams finished first overall in the NHL regular season for seven years in a row.

He also collected six Art Ross trophies as the league’s highest point-scorer and six Hart Memorial trophies as the league’s most valuable player through the 50s and early 60s.

Other legends whose names will disappear from the Stanley Cup this year include Maurice Richard and Bobby Hull.

– Saskatoon CKOM News – April 04, 2018