Mark Howe was born with one of the most famous last names in hockey, but was able to create a legacy all his own.

Howe, the son of Mr. Hockey, Gordie Howe, began forging his own path by winning a silver medal with the United States at the 1972 Sapporo Olympics as a 16-year-old, and then he helped the Toronto Marlboros of the Ontario Hockey Association win the Memorial Cup in 1973.

He joined the Houston Aeros of the World Hockey Association in 1973-74, playing on a line with his brother, Marty, and his father, who came out of retirement. Mark also was a defenseman at times.

Howe won the Lou Kaplan Trophy as the league's best rookie with 79 points (38 goals, 41 assists) while Houston the first of two consecutive Avco Cups. In 1975 he had 22 points (10 goals, 12 assists) in 13 games to lead the WHA in playoff scoring.

The Howes played six seasons together in the WHA, with Houston and New England, and Mark had 504 points (208 goals, 296 assists) in 426 games.

When the NHL absorbed four teams from the WHA in 1979, Howe joined the Hartford Whalers and became a full-time defenseman.

His career changed during a game against the New York Islanders on Dec. 27, 1980. Howe crashed into the goal feet first. The impact lifted the goal off the ice and the elevated point that secured the center of the back of the goal to the ice pierced his buttock.

Howe said doctors told him, "An inch one way and (the metal) could have gone into my spinal cord; an inch the other way it would have pierced my sphincter muscle and I would have been walking around with a colostomy bag."

He returned to play that season but not at the same level, and was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers on Aug. 19, 1982, along with a third-round pick in the 1983 NHL Draft for Greg Adams, Ken Linseman, and a first- and third-round pick in the 1983 draft.

In 10 seasons with Philadelphia he became the Flyers' all-time leading scorer among defensemen with 480 points (138 goals, 342 assists) in 594 games. He helped the Flyers reach the Stanley Cup Final in 1985 and 1987, but they lost to the Edmonton Oilers each time.

Howe was a First-Team NHL All-Star three times (1983, 1986, 1987). He finished second in voting for the Norris Trophy three times, including 1985-86, when he had an NHL-best 82 points (24 goals, 58 assists), which tied for second among the League's defensemen (Paul Coffey, 138), led the NHL with a plus-87 rating and finished third in voting for the Hart Trophy, behind Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux.

Howe signed with the Detroit Red Wings in 1992 and played three final seasons, including two games against the New Jersey Devils in the 1995 Stanley Cup Final, which the Red Wings lost.

He finished his NHL career with 742 points (197 goals, 545 assists) in 929 regular-season games and 61 points (10 goals, 51 assists) in 101 playoff games.

Howe has worked in scouting for the Red Wings since retiring and joined his father on the Stanley Cup after Detroit victories in 1997, 1998, 2002 and 2008. He then joined him in the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2011.