In all the words written and spoken about Gordie Howe, not much has been said about Bill Dineen, who was a teammate and close friend of Howe’s on the final two Stanley Cup-winning teams with the Detroit Red Wings in 1954 and 1955.
They played the same position, right wing, and Dineen was slightly younger, but there was no similarity after that. Howe scored 49 goals in his best season; Dineen scored 51 in his career.
Howe had two sons who went to play pro hockey, one, Mark, all the way to the Hall of Fame. Dineen had three hockey playing sons: Kevin, Gord and Peter, who not only played in the NHL but, like their father, two of the boys went on to become successful coaches.