No way gnu. Ferguson picked his opponents. When Eric Nesterinko, who was rated #1 tough guy in his day, took on Howe it was a one punch knock out. After that the tough guys left Howe alone. Howe was not a fighter on the ice because in his younger days he was feared and in later years so highly respected that he didn't have to be. Howe had his own space on the ice. People entered it at their peril. Opposing Howe you would play the puck, not the body and wait politely for him to come out of the corners. Only Tim Horton and Bobby Hull were nearly as strong as Howe, but he was regarded as the strongest in his day. Messier was probably the one closest to matching his skill and strenth combination. Howe could do things that nobody else could though. He had a wrist shot that was deadly hard and accurate and could shoot right or left. More than anything else he could set the speed of the game to his liking.