A stalwart, stay at home defenceman, in 1967 Howell was the last player in the pre-expansion era to win the Norris Trophy, and famously said that he was glad he won the trophy then, because Bobby Orr would "own" the Norris for some time to come. Howell's playing weight was 195 and he stood 6 foot 1 inches tall. He played seventeen years wearing number 3 for the Rangers then he played another eight years in professional hockey; two with Oakland/California Seals, three with the Los Angeles Kings, and one each with three World Hockey Association teams: New York Golden Blades/Jersey Knights, San Diego Mariners, and ending his playing career with the Calgary Cowboys. Howell first moved into team management while still a player. After just seven games with the New York Golden Blades, on November 21, 1973, Howell was elevated to player-coach when the team was moved and became the Jersey Knights for the remainder of the season. At the end of that season, the Knights moved and became the San Diego Mariners, with Howell still performing double duty as player-coach. Howell was strictly a player during his season with the Calgary Cowboys. Howell played 1411 NHL games and 170 WHA games, scoring 101 goals and 360 assists for 461 points. He was named a First Team All-Star in 1967, and played in All-Star Games in 1954, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1967, 1968 and 1970. When he left the NHL, Howell had played more games as a defenseman than anyone else, and remains sixth in all time games played as a defenseman. He also holds the record for most games played for New York Rangers: 1,160. After retiring as a player, Howell became General Manager of the Cleveland Barons for the 1977–78 NHL season. The Barons were in dire financial circumstances, and merged with the equally challenged Minnesota North Stars at the end of that season. Howell became head coach of the merged Minnesota North Stars for the season. Howell was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1979. In 1990, he finally won the Stanley Cup as a member of the Edmonton Oilers where he served as a scout. Howell's #3, along with Andy Bathgate's #9, was retired by the New York Rangers during a special ceremony prior to the February 22, 2009 match versus the Toronto Maple Leafs. In the 2009 book 100 Ranger Greats, the authors ranked Howell at No. 10 all-time of the 901 New York Rangers who had played during the team's first 82 seasons.
