Marleau received the stick Howe used as a member of the Hartford Whalers in the Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Montreal Canadiens on April 11, 1980. Howe also scored his final NHL goal with the stick in Game 2 of their playoff series that year.
"Oh boy, I was blown away, I was speechless," Marleau said Thursday. "The more I think about it, it's crazy that they gifted that to me and I'm just very thankful and appreciative of the gift but also the meaning behind it and yeah, still kind of speechless. It's very special."
Marleau passed Howe on the NHL's all-time games-played list when he played in his 1,768th on April 19. Marleau's stick from that game, against the Vegas Golden Knights, has been sent to be displayed at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.
The Sharks also gave Marleau an exceptional gift, commemorating the milestone season with a custom piece of artwork created by a LucasFilm and Disney Master Artist. The piece, done by Kevin-John Jobczynski, was a watercolor painting that features images of Marleau and Howe. Current and past Sharks players got the painting for him.
"I know Patty will definitely cherish that gift from the NHLPA and I hope he likes the painting we got him," forward Logan Couture said Thursday. "I don't know if it was out there, but a lot of former teammates chipped in to pay for that painting, guys who played with him 10, 7, 5 years ago. It shows how much guys respect Patty, so pretty cool moment."
