Mario Lemieux
Mario Lemieux (born October 5, 1965) is a pro hockey player. Nicknamed "Le Magnifique" and "Super Mario," his surname literally means "the best." Born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the same day as fellow legend Patrick Roy, Lemieux is 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) and weighs 230 lb (104 kg). His jersey number is 66.
Lemieux was selected 1st overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the in the 1984 NHL Entry Draft. He went on to win the Calder Memorial Trophy as best rookie, scoring 100 points. He has won the Art Ross Memorial Trophy six times as the league's leading scorer, the Hart Memorial Trophy three times as the league's most valuable player, and has been named to the NHL First All-Star team five times. Lemieux has topped the 100 point mark in a season 10 times, including a 199-point season in 1988-89.
Mario Lemieux led the Penguins to both of their Stanley Cup titles in 1990-91 and 1991-92 and was named the Conn Smythe Trophy winner in both of those years.
Lemieux was diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease in 1993. Amazingly, he returned to play two months after his diagnosis. However, he was retired during the 1997-98, 1998-99 and 1999-00 seasons due to various injuries.
On September 3, 1999, a U.S. Bankruptcy Court approved Lemieux's reorganization plan to save the Penguins from bankruptcy, making the then-retired star, who deferred millions in salary he was owed, the first former player to become majority owner of his former team. He is also Chairman of the Board, CEO, and President.
He returned to the NHL in December 27, 2000. In his first game, he got an assist 33 seconds into his first shift. Despite playing in little more than half of the Penguins' games in 2000-01, he was one of the three finalists for the Hart Memorial Trophy. A member of the Canadian Men's Olympic Gold Medal hockey team in 2002, Lemieux was second on the team with six points in six games.
Lemieux is widely considered to be one of the five greatest players of all time. Following his sudden retirement in 1997, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, as the usual three-year waiting period was waived.
He married teenage sweetheart Nathalie Asselin on June 26, 1993. They have 4 children, Lauren, Stephanie, Austin, and Alexa.
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | Playoffs GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1981-82 | Laval Voisins | QMJHL | 64 | 30 | 66 | 96 | 22 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1982-83 | Laval Voisins | QMJHL | 66 | 84 | 100 | 184 | 76 | 12 | 14 | 18 | 32 | 18 |
| 1983-84 | Laval Voisins | QMJHL | 70 | 133 | 149 | 282 | 92 | 14 | 29 | 23 | 52 | 29 |
| 1984-85 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 73 | 43 | 57 | 100 | 54 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1985-86 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 79 | 48 | 93 | 141 | 43 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1986-87 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 63 | 54 | 53 | 107 | 57 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1987-88 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 77 | 70 | 98 | 168 | 92 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1988-89 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 76 | 85 | 114 | 199 | 100 | 11 | 12 | 7 | 19 | 16 |
| 1989-90 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 59 | 45 | 78 | 123 | 78 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1990-91 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 26 | 19 | 26 | 45 | 30 | 23 | 16 | 28 | 44 | 16 |
| 1991-92 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 64 | 44 | 87 | 131 | 94 | 15 | 16 | 18 | 34 | 2 |
| 1992-93 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 60 | 69 | 91 | 160 | 38 | 11 | 8 | 10 | 18 | 10 |
| 1993-94 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 22 | 17 | 20 | 37 | 32 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 2 |
| 1995-96 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 70 | 69 | 92 | 161 | 54 | 18 | 11 | 16 | 27 | 33 |
| 1996-97 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 76 | 50 | 72 | 122 | 65 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 4 |
| 2000-01 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 43 | 35 | 41 | 76 | 18 | 18 | 6 | 11 | 17 | 4 |
| 2001-02 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 24 | 6 | 25 | 31 | 14 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2002-03 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 67 | 28 | 63 | 91 | 43 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2003-04 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 10 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 6 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Pittsburgh Penguins Captains | ||
| Preceded by: Mike Bullard and Terry Ruskowski | First time (1987-1994) (with Dan Frawley until 1988) | Followed by: Ron Francis |
| Preceded by: Ron Francis | Second time (1995-1997) | Followed by: Ron Francis |
| Preceded by: Jaromir Jagr | Third time (2001- to present) | Followed by: (current captian) |