Born in Randolph, Ontario, Howard moved to Sault Ste. Marie when he was 12 years old. Along with George, he joined the Halifax Crescents in the Maritime Professional Hockey League in 1911–12, thus forming the "Dynamite Twins". The pair were unusually large for players of that era and formed a formidable defensive pair. Howard moved on to become captain of the Montreal Canadiens of the NHA when they won their first Stanley Cup in 1916. McNamara played in an exhibition series in 1912–13 with the Toronto Tecumsehs.