Despite his condition, Lemieux ended up missing only two months of action and returned to finish the season.  Without Lemieux in the line-up, the Penguins struggled.  But when he returned, they went on to win 17 straight games, which still stands as an NHL record.  Although he only played in 60 games, Mario still wound up winning the Art Ross Trophy for the most points in the regular season, with 160 (69 goals, 91 assists).  In addition to the Art Ross, Lemieux was also awarded his second Pearson Trophy and his first Bill Masterton Trophy, which is given to the player who best exemplifies perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey.

Mario Lemieux is considered by many to be one of the greatest hockey players to ever play the game.  One can only imagine what he would have accomplished if he was able to stay healthy throughout the course of his career.

Here are some of Lemieux’s greatest goals.

Notable Birthdays

Bobby Crosby, MLB – Born January 12th 1980 (age 32) in Lakewood, California

Dan Klecko, NFL – Born January 12th 1981 (age 31) in Chester, Pennsylvania

Dontrelle Willis, MLB – Born January 12th 1982 (age 30) in Oakland, California

Lemieux became the first, and remains the only, player to accomplish this impressive feat.  Along with scoring the five goals, Lemieux also recorded three assists to record a career high eight points in the Penguins 8-6 win over the New Jersey Devils.  Later that year in the playoffs, Lemieux had another five goal and three assist game against the Philadelphia Flyers.  In that game he tied the NHL record for most goals and points in a playoff game, most goals in a playoff period with four, and most assists in a post-season period with three.

Mario Lemieux is considered one of the greatest hockey players of all-time and this game proved his dominance in all facets of the game.  Whether it was on the power-play, short-handed, even strength or at the end of the game, Lemieux’s coaches and teammates can always count on #66 to perform at a high-level.

Here are Lemieux’s 5 goals in 5 different ways.

Notable Birthdays

Bryon Russell: NBA – Born December 31st 1970 (age 40) in San Bernardino, California

Brent Barry: NBA – Born December 31st 1971 (age 39) in Hempstead, New York

Jason Campbell: NFL – Born December 31st 1981 (age 29) in Laurel, Mississippi

Source: (Medical Insurance Blog)

According to NHL regulations the record must occur in the teams first 50 games of the season, not the players first 50 games.  With the change in the style of play in the NHL and the quality of players and goaltenders this record may become simply a forgotten thing of the past, as players struggle to simply remain healthy and play an entire 82 game season.  However, there are two players currently on pace to reach 50 in 50 : Alexander Ovechkin (11 goals in 11 games) and Ilya Kovalchuk (9 goals in 8 games).

Wayne Gretzkey holds the record as the fastest player to meet the mark of 50 goals in 50 games.  Gretzky reached the milestone in the Oilers 39th game during the 1981-1982 season.  Gretzky scored an incredible 9 goals in two games to complete this record, and had 50 goals before anyone else in the league even reached 30.  Its safe to assume that Gretzky’s record will never be broken.  Simply put Gretzky was a player ahead of his time.  Not to take anything away from “The Great One”, but if either of the two players currently on pace to reach 50 in 50 (Ovechkin, and Kovalchuk) played in the 80’s they to, would have been able to put up the same type of numbers, guaranteed.  Goalies and players then were simply not at the same caliber as they are now.  It is for this reason that if a player were to reach the 50 in 50 milestone again, they should be held at a higher standard than those who previously met the mark.

In todays NHL it is rare that players are able to score 50 goals in even 82 games, as last season only one player scored 50 or more (Ovechkin had 56 goals in 79 games).  It is hard to imagine that a player in this era of hockey will ever be able to complete the sought after 50 in 50 mark again…but one can dream.

The two Penguin players, with the help of full-time weather man Jon Burnett, gave their best attempt at giving us this week’s weather, and it was anything but smooth.  Letang did, however, give it a go in french, but it seems Burnett was enjoying that just a little too much.

After the first segment was complete, Letang and Kennedy were given another go at it, but nothing seemed to change.  If you were wondering whether the weather would be nice enough for another Mario Lemieux pool party, you wont find that out here.  My suggestion to the two…Stick to your day jobs!

Hat Tip Video – [P.S.A.M.P]

Pictures leaked just days after the Penguins won the Stanley Cup.  Teammates photographed Sidney Crosby sleeping with the cup, also snuggling up with it!  He is one classy captain and hockey player, and after seeing this, all you ladies out there might want to snuggle up with Sidney after seeing him snuggling with the Cup.  It looks like he spoons really well!

A life time dream of Sidney Crosby’s, these pictures actually show what winning the Stanley Cup means to hockey players.  If you don’t believe us just take a look at the party pcitrues at team owners Mario Lemieux’s house.  The Penguins had the Stanley Cup in the swimming pool like it was one of the boys!

Is there any doubt now that the Stanley Cup is one of the most sought after trophies in the world?

Interested In seeing the Pittsburgh Penguins Swimming with the Stanley Cup, Click here

Hat Tip Photo – [DeadSpin]

If the change of location wasn’t strange enough, the actual event had the feel of a 1980s game show.  Weird lights and creepy music made you wonder whether Bob Barker would be presenting the next trophy.  Speaking of trophies, the Stanley Cup was in attendance.  Luckily it was fished out of Mario Lemieux’s pool in time.

There was also the excessive reading which was only made worse by the fact that presenters were expected to say so much.  The biggest victim was Jeremy Roenick, who was stumbling early and had to restart at one point as his word-juggling became too apparent that he couldn’t even make sense of it anymore.  The random man beside him seemed to enjoy it.  He was probably thinking, “if only J.R. would have given me some lines, he wouldn’t have to say so much.”

When it was all said and done, Alex Ovechkin made his presence felt, taking home the Hart (MVP), Richard (most goals) and Pearson (MVP voted by the players) trophies.  The Bruins also did well, with Claude Julien, Zdeno Chara and Tim Thomas receiving honors as the best coach, defenseman and goalie respectively.  Thankfully the choices for the awards were not as out-of-whack as the actual event itself.

Here is the clip of Roenick’s not-so-smooth moment.

At his unbelievable mansion in Siwickley, Pa, Lemieux threw a party for the team and judging by the pics it looks as though it was one hell of a time.  How many people can say they have swam with the Stanley Cup? The players as well as family and friends showed up at the bosses place to celebrate the victory and among the pictures which have surfaced are some with players and family in the pool with the Cup, a great view of the mansion and Mario’s wine cellar.

After winning the NHL’s coveted trophy on Friday, the Pens have since hoisted it on the bus from Detroit to Pittsburgh, show it off (among other things) at their hometown parade, and now this.  We also hear that due to Crosby’s request, there was no reception line.

Here are the pics from the party. [Deadspin]

We have to say that Mario Lemieux’s goal against the Boston Bruins is our favorite.

Lets take a look at some of the best of the best since the early 90′s.

The NHL was gaining popularity in the US in the 1990’s.  The league was scrambling to create a stronger following.  The league signed a multi-million dollar TV contract with Fox.  ESPN launched National Hockey Night.  Also, many teams were searching for fans that may not be reached.  Struggling teams searched for a new home.  A successful move was when the Minnesota North Stars moved from snowy Minneapolis to Dallas in 1993.  The North was dropped from the name and the Dallas Stars have become one of the league’s most successful franchises with a strong fan base.  However, the move left fans in the state of 10,000 lakes out in the cold.  Minnesota was granted an expansion franchise, the Minnesota Wild in 2000.  The franchise even made a Stanley Cup run in the 2003-2004 season.

Hockey will always maintain popularity in Canada.  Our neighbors to the north flock to games filling the arenas like Americans travel to football games in drones.  However, declining revenue for smaller Canadian cities has caused teams from smaller communities to abandon their homes in the great white north for greener pastures south of the border.  One example is the exodus of the Quebec Nordiques to Denver to form the eventual Stanley Cup Champion, Colorado Avalanche.  The other and less popular move was the midnight departure of the Winnipeg Jets in 1996.  The hockey world wondered why the Jets would leave the winter wonderland of Winnipeg for the high desert of Phoenix.  Many players have remarked that the Coyote’s home ice; The Jobing.com arena is the worst in the league.

The Hartford Whalers, tired of being in the shadows of the Rangers and Bruins left Connecticut for North Carolina.  These moves, combined with expansions to San Jose, Anaheim, Miami, Tampa and Atlanta caused the average attendance figures to drop 24% in 2001.  This lack of attendance is because the new venues do not have a strong hockey tradition and support.

The height of the NHL’s popularity was 15 years ago.  In 1994, the Stanley Cup finals rated higher in TV rankings than the previous year’s World Series.  Average attendance tripled from the 1987-88 season to 1993-94.  Since then, the league has gone down hill.  The player’s began demanding higher pay and smaller franchises could not compete with the larger markets like New York, Montreal and Toronto.  To make matters worse, the players were locked out due to failed negotiations between the Players’ Association, owners and the league over salary caps, changes in rules, profit sharing and a collective bargaining agreement in 2004.  The lock out negated the 88th season of NHL hockey and led to the cancellation of the Stanley Cup.  At the time of the lock out, teams had more than 76% of revenues invested in player salaries.  Since then 4 teams have even filed for bankruptcy.  The Pittsburgh Penguins have done it twice.

It is evident that the NHL is scrambling to improve its image and regain fans.  Several rule changes were put into place that increased scoring numbers, eliminated ties and made the game more in line with international rules, like those used in Olympic competition.  More rule changes may be on the way.

The League is considering eliminating fighting and cut down on roughing penalties.  You can see the reasoning behind the decision.  Several players have been severely injured in fights and other on-ice extra-curricular activities.  But, if you talk to fans, fights are a part of the game that attracts them to the arena and stops their TV on hockey games.  If you ask players, it is an important part of the game that protects prolific players and changes momentum.  This move may cause popularity to decline even further.

As for hockey on television, the sport was once carried by 3 major networks is down to one game a week on NBC, regional sports networks and random games on the secondary cable network:  Versus.  Average attendance at the local Arena has dropped to an average just above 17,000 fans.  Down from just under 22,000 prior to the lock out.  Whether, it’s on TV or live, fans just aren’t getting the exposure to stay interested.

The league is scrambling to improve the game’s popularity.  The NHL in conjunction with NBC has created a unique sports experience.  The league and network has conjured the idea of playing a New Year’s Day game outside at major sports venues.  This season’s game was at the storied Wrigley Field in Chicago.  That is a clever idea. But it just hasn’t caught on.  Maybe it’s because the weather in the northern regions of North America isn’t ideal for watching a sporting event.  Except for maybe football, which resembles cannibalism in these parts of the country.

Other contributing factors to the decline is the value of the Canadian Dollar to the American Dollar which was a reason for Canadian teams crying for market sharing in the first place.  Also, if you are close enough to the ice you hear 3 or 4 different languages being spoke, the least of which is English.  Finally, where are the superstars of old like Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux.  For the NHL to gain steam again, marketing may be a key ingredient to reaching sports fans and start making money again.

To make a long story short, Gary Bettman has a tough job.  He is on a sinking ship and he is almost out of fingers to stick in the holes.  Mr. Bettman is working with networks on new TV packages.  He is also working with team owners to get promotions pointed in the right direction.  I hope the league can be back on the right track.  Hockey is uniquely North American and needs to be spread throughout the masses.  Help is also needed from fans that should forgive and forget and get involved with a sport you loved so much just 15 short years ago.  It has changed it’s image, but when the puck drops, it is still the same rough around the edges competitive game it has always been.