Found this binder and it brought back all the memories. Not just wanting to see the Pens win but to watch Mario do something special night in and night out.
natty-broski
So special! And fun to see “Devils rookie Petr Sykora”
involmasturb
Little did Sykora know his career would take him to Pittsburgh to win a Cup, score a dramatic 3OT goal and be an employee of Lemieux’s company.
tsmittycent
Likewise
epanek
Me too. I wrote a high school essay in 1984 about how had more potential than Gretzky. Cancer and his back stopped that though
seandamon211pgh
He’s literally a hero to this franchise as a player and then as a owner. Sucks that he had the health issues because without them he would have surpassed all Gretzky records easily.
Ironmancal2131
My favorite athlete of all time, but I also get sad when I think about how much greater his career could have been. I’ve gotten over the Steelers losing to the Cowboys in SB XXX and Bonds failing to throw out Bream. I’ll never stop wishing this was a universe where Mario was able to play full seasons in his prime.
I guess that makes his story even greater, but seeing him pass up 200 pts a season a few times would have been awesome. His 92-93 season will always be the GOAT for me, either way.
HanTrollo710
I was born on the day Mario was drafted. I won tickets from my school to see a free Pens game, and it happened to be his first home game after the cancer.
I got tickets as a Christmas gift one year that happened to be his comeback game, and I randomly ended up tickets to his last home game.
My dad always said I was destined to be a Mario fan.
His devotion to the franchise and the city have always been admirable. But his tireless dedication to cancer research and the Austin’s Playroom charitable projects have made him yet another part of Pittsburgh’s proud tradition of Hall of Fame human beings.
I’m proud to be a fan of a man who has rightfully ascended to the level of local legends like Fred Rogers, Arnold Palmer, and Roberto Clemente as people who used their resources and influence to leave the world a better place than they found it.
flyfishiefly
Very cool read. Thanks for sharing.
osocinco
He is the reason why I played hockey my whole life growing up in Florida. I read a non-fiction/biography kids chapter book about him when I was like 8 years old and he was my favorite player after that. Penguins have always been my favorite team.
Beggarsfeast
When people say things like, “They embodied greatness”, this applies to Mario. It’s no exaggeration to say he changed my life, because when you are a kid, starting around age 6, you are learning about how sometimes you lose, and you can’t make all the shots, etc. Mario Lemieux stats will show that when he had the puck, there was a higher chance of him scoring by leaps and bounds. I was young enough to learn the concept that sometimes you say, “I really want to make this shot, I think I got this!”, but if you want to be really great, you almost just will it to happen. It helped shape my approach to anything involving skill. I realized you have to push, and be focused, but also trust yourself that you’ll do it. There were many times when I saw Lemieux get the puck and I simply knew he was going to score, and every time that happened I felt this weird spiritual kinship with what skill is, like I couldn’t believe I saw it happen, while also I knew it was going to happen. That’s important when it comes to having confidence and focus in any sport or skill, even if it doesn’t mean you are great at it, it helps you get better as you go. Having someone like Mario Lemieux to watch was once in a lifetime for me.
xShadyMcGradyx
Thats awesome. Another thing lost in time I realize is keeping physical copies of print.
Steaknkidney45
He’s my man. Favorite athlete, hands down, in all of sport. His impact to the game of hockey and the city of Pittsburgh is immeasurable. Mike Lange even said it himself, upon first meeting him in 1984, that he had a regal air about him.
lawvas
Me too man. I like to tell people I am old enough to remember when the Penguins weren’t good, meaning pre-Mario. I was born in 77 and have been a Pens fan since as long as I can remember.
Ghostrider5588
Same here. He was was and still is my favorite athlete ever. Remarkable player.
Mikeyg808
He is my favorite athlete of all time. He is so inspirational. Thank you for sharing this.
darts4life_11
When I was 15 years old (1993), I sent Mario and Nathalie a wedding card with a very nice message about how much I appreciated him and how happy I was for him and Nathalie. Along with the wedding card I sent a hockey card for Mario to sign(and return) to me if he so chose to. I’m sure Mario had a lot of these requests and had zero expectations to get a signed card back. A few months later the signed card came via mail signed and a note how appreciated my sentiments were.
To this day I still have the card and am grateful that my favourite athlete growing up, spent just a moment of his career/life replying to a heartfelt message.
Holy-shit69420
Mario was a hero to me too and now Sidney is the hero for the next generation
18 Comments
Found this binder and it brought back all the memories. Not just wanting to see the Pens win but to watch Mario do something special night in and night out.
So special! And fun to see “Devils rookie Petr Sykora”
Little did Sykora know his career would take him to Pittsburgh to win a Cup, score a dramatic 3OT goal and be an employee of Lemieux’s company.
Likewise
Me too. I wrote a high school essay in 1984 about how had more potential than Gretzky. Cancer and his back stopped that though
He’s literally a hero to this franchise as a player and then as a owner. Sucks that he had the health issues because without them he would have surpassed all Gretzky records easily.
My favorite athlete of all time, but I also get sad when I think about how much greater his career could have been. I’ve gotten over the Steelers losing to the Cowboys in SB XXX and Bonds failing to throw out Bream. I’ll never stop wishing this was a universe where Mario was able to play full seasons in his prime.
I guess that makes his story even greater, but seeing him pass up 200 pts a season a few times would have been awesome. His 92-93 season will always be the GOAT for me, either way.
I was born on the day Mario was drafted. I won tickets from my school to see a free Pens game, and it happened to be his first home game after the cancer.
I got tickets as a Christmas gift one year that happened to be his comeback game, and I randomly ended up tickets to his last home game.
My dad always said I was destined to be a Mario fan.
His devotion to the franchise and the city have always been admirable. But his tireless dedication to cancer research and the Austin’s Playroom charitable projects have made him yet another part of Pittsburgh’s proud tradition of Hall of Fame human beings.
I’m proud to be a fan of a man who has rightfully ascended to the level of local legends like Fred Rogers, Arnold Palmer, and Roberto Clemente as people who used their resources and influence to leave the world a better place than they found it.
Very cool read. Thanks for sharing.
He is the reason why I played hockey my whole life growing up in Florida. I read a non-fiction/biography kids chapter book about him when I was like 8 years old and he was my favorite player after that. Penguins have always been my favorite team.
When people say things like, “They embodied greatness”, this applies to Mario. It’s no exaggeration to say he changed my life, because when you are a kid, starting around age 6, you are learning about how sometimes you lose, and you can’t make all the shots, etc. Mario Lemieux stats will show that when he had the puck, there was a higher chance of him scoring by leaps and bounds. I was young enough to learn the concept that sometimes you say, “I really want to make this shot, I think I got this!”, but if you want to be really great, you almost just will it to happen. It helped shape my approach to anything involving skill. I realized you have to push, and be focused, but also trust yourself that you’ll do it. There were many times when I saw Lemieux get the puck and I simply knew he was going to score, and every time that happened I felt this weird spiritual kinship with what skill is, like I couldn’t believe I saw it happen, while also I knew it was going to happen. That’s important when it comes to having confidence and focus in any sport or skill, even if it doesn’t mean you are great at it, it helps you get better as you go. Having someone like Mario Lemieux to watch was once in a lifetime for me.
Thats awesome. Another thing lost in time I realize is keeping physical copies of print.
He’s my man. Favorite athlete, hands down, in all of sport. His impact to the game of hockey and the city of Pittsburgh is immeasurable. Mike Lange even said it himself, upon first meeting him in 1984, that he had a regal air about him.
Me too man. I like to tell people I am old enough to remember when the Penguins weren’t good, meaning pre-Mario. I was born in 77 and have been a Pens fan since as long as I can remember.
Same here. He was was and still is my favorite athlete ever. Remarkable player.
He is my favorite athlete of all time. He is so inspirational. Thank you for sharing this.
When I was 15 years old (1993), I sent Mario and Nathalie a wedding card with a very nice message about how much I appreciated him and how happy I was for him and Nathalie. Along with the wedding card I sent a hockey card for Mario to sign(and return) to me if he so chose to. I’m sure Mario had a lot of these requests and had zero expectations to get a signed card back. A few months later the signed card came via mail signed and a note how appreciated my sentiments were.
To this day I still have the card and am grateful that my favourite athlete growing up, spent just a moment of his career/life replying to a heartfelt message.
Mario was a hero to me too and now Sidney is the hero for the next generation