Its nice to see a legend and one of the greats like jagr be in admiration of Mario like that. And aside from being the best Mario saved the penguins 3 time. When he entered the nhl , when he made his comeback and when he became part owner of the team. Just amazing!
Jags is a legend. The stories about Lemieux are always incredible. You just know that his son's premature birth was a factor in his retirement. Had he not had the back injuries, the cancer and had his son not been born premature so that Mario could have played most of the games every season til 2006.... he easily scores 1000 goals and tops 3000 points. no doubt in my mind.
Yup. I've always told my son (5 yrs old now) that Lemieux was the best player of all time. The only guy who theoretically could have challenged Gretzky's points record. More points per game than any other star player ever, I believe?
Despite his injuries, Mario was still by far the game's best player for a long, long time. The dude was missing 1/4 seasons in the 90s and still winning scoring titles with relative ease..
Even Gretzky says Mario was the better player of the two. Mario was the complete hockey package... size, speed, finesse, shot, hockey sense... everything.
@@chrisvanderwielen1530 Everything except being able to stay healthy, which is a skill athletes need as well. To me, Gretzky was the better of the 2 because he could stay in the lineup. It's really splitting hairs though, they are 1-2 all time.
Gretzky would have easily scored 3,000 points (possibly 3500) and maybe 1000 goals if Gary Suter had not mangled his back in the 1991 Canada Cup (herniated disc and subsequent back surgery that dropped his production by 40% over night). Not to mention missing half of the 1993 season as a result and the 1995 lockout as well. If not with those issues, Gretz would have had 3200-3500 points.
This is what makes Mario the goat. Cancer, broken back, 4 years retired, comes back mid 30's and INSTANTLY the best hockey player in the game. Even MJ was rusty for a bit and he was still young and uninjured and only took
Amazing player for sure. Top three all time Imho ... But I can't call him the goat... Just like Orr or even Bossy I can't judge players on what might have happened if they stayed healthy. I think Orr and Lemieux were probably the most talented(Mcdavid too) .But Gretzky stands alone as the goat... His stats and longevity can't honestly be matched.
If you didn’t grow up in Pittsburgh watching hockey during the Jags/Lemieux era, you really don’t know what you were missing. The igloo was a thunder dome.
Ive been a pens fan since 86 butblive in Canada. LuckilybI got to the igloo for a round 2 game against wash in 09 and it was awesome! Also made a trip for gm 2 against the sharks in the finals in 16. The new rink is beautiful but pretty tame volume wise to the old low metal dome of the igloo
You talking about 66 " Mario the great I never ever can tell who was greatest Mario ??? Or number 99 Wayne Gretzky and who is number 77 I think greatest defence" and he also best skater Paul Coffee "
@@peterkozak1291 Gretz didn''t even come close to Mario in pure hockey skills...Mario skated better was bigger faster better stick handler better shot more accurate shot...the only category you can put them even at was passing ability other than that Mario had it all over Gretz...Gretz was protected on a team that had more all stars than any other player in the history of the sport had Mario had that it would have been insane the numbers Mario would have put up.
his smile and laugh when he said: ''he didn't sleep for 3 days and scored 8 points'' was like telling an André the giant story, flipping a car or drinking 140 beers, something out of this world
Even till today Jagr is so excited to speak about his idol and team mate Mario and the respect he has for Mario he wouldn’t play for any team during draft day but Pittsburgh cause he idolized Mario Lemieux. Great story!
I think whats crazy is when you have two players or 5 or whatever who are the same level the mutual respect of their game their beauty, what they do is incredible. Like Jagr in 95% of scenarios is light years above, but when you put him and mario together, its beautiful and hearing them talking about each other is amazing its so cool. They are so cool to watch and hear....
The Boston game was on Nov 28, 2000. 4 weeks before Mario came back. Jagr had a slow start that season, only 37 points in 36 games, just a point a game compare to 1.47 points a game average for 4 scoring titles he won the years Mario didnt play. After Mario return Jagr had 84 points in 45 games and Mario had 76 points in 43 games. In a full 82 game season that would be 153 points for Jagr and 145 points for Lemeuix.
Jagr won the art Ross with 121 pts. Sakic was second at 118 and third was elias with 96 for some perspective of how dominant those numbers are for that time
@@crowjones78 What sucks is that Jágr was never truly given the opportunity to show what he was fully capable of doing. We only got to see glimpses of it - during the ‘98-‘99 season & the first half of the ‘99-‘00 season. ‘98-‘99 - he won the Art Ross with 127 points, finishing 20 points ahead of the rest of the league & accomplished something Gretzky never even managed to do at any point in his career. Jágr was involved in 52+% of his team’s goals. At the end of Dec ‘99 - he was on pace to score 70-80+ goals, rack up 170-180+ points and finish almost 50 points ahead of the entire rest of the league in the scoring race. He was putting up those kind of numbers at the height of the Dead Puck Era. But he didn’t get the chance to enjoy that record shattering season. When it resumed in Jan ‘00, it was obvious that the refs had put away their whistles and the league might as well have declared Open Season on him. Thanks to cheap shots by Mike Peca and Dan McGillis, Jaromír suffered injuries that forced him to miss much of the second half of the season. Then in ‘00-‘01 things seemed to fall apart for him. His play was erratic, he appeared severely depressed, even made remarks to the media about retiring. No one understood what was going on. After Jaromír left the NHL the first time to go play in Russia we found out. His father was interviewed and stated that, at some point in 2000, Jaromír was bluntly told that Americans (the translated version of the article didn’t specify if he meant North Americans in general, or the US in particular) DID NOT WANT HIM to be “The Face of the NHL” (Apparently the NHL & the media were already planning to crown Lindros THAT - but it didn’t work out) He was told that the NHL was NEVER going to allow him to play up to his full potential & dominate that league the way Gretzky & Mario had (& the way players like Sid the Kid & McDavid have been allowed to since then) Apparently, it was conveyed to Jaromír that he could TRY, but they’d see to it that his back and legs were broken to the point he’d be driven into retirement faster than Mario. And Jaromír loved hockey & always said he wanted to play until he was 50. And he was also told that the North American media was NEVER going to give him credit for how great/dominant he really was - and they NEVER DID. The other players voted him the MVP of the league 3x, but the media only awarded him the Hart Trophy once. He finished second something like 5-6 times. Virtually every single time they could come up with an excuse to award the Hart to a North American player - they did.
Being a huge 66 fan when he announced he was coming back I vowed to enjoy every moment. 99 is the man but 66 was my favourite player. The 2002 gold. What a player.
I loved that game against St. Louis, after Austin was born. I was up in the nosebleed seats, and you could just tell he had the It factor turned up to max that night. It must have been such a relief and a weight off his shoulders to know both his wife and son were doing well. The man was poetry on ice and it seemed like every bounce went his way.
It is Mario Lemieux - the Magic man! I remember how in childhood in USSR, I saw the game on TV Pittsburgh - CSKA and I been shocked, I never saw canadian size rink before it, I never not saw so intensive, fast game. It be fantastic. And I saw incredible player #66, he be fantastic. I never saw nobody play hockey like him, every time when he get the puck it become some kind of hurricane for opposite team, he passed puck exellent (and what very important he do it "in time" when no earlier and not later); he shoots great, he played phisical hockey too, he be big but he skated great and moving so fast. Mario Lemieux it be miracle for me. I be amazed and he became my favourite player. In what time I watched only soviet hockey league, I loved hockey but no be my favourite player, I just watch games and I not thought what someday I will see hockey player whom will became my favourite player to watch. And Mario come in my hockey life, and in what day I knew about existance of NHL, Canada. I be small 4 or 5 years old, and we lived in USSR, at the evening we watched news on TV. And I have no idea what exist something except USSR. I haved absolutely different wiev on world, I thought what exist only USSR on planet and some mistery place "sector Gazzah". About "sector Gazzah" I thought what it some place on Earth where gas go from ground and whats why people where running with gas-masks. It all what I knew about world before what game. And I started to ask my Dad about this new team (Penguins) what is it and from where it is, what is the NHL... Dad tell me a lot, and about Super Series 72 games, my Dad big Canada hockey fan, but it be secret, because it not be safe to tell anybody about it in Soviet Union. And Dad begin to read me articles from sport Newspapers what be about NHL. In what time existance of so big world opened for me, I been shocked and when I begin to understand difference between USSR and free world, and great lie of communists opens for me, I be upset. But, happened the year 1991 and began "Golden time" of 90's time of great expectations and new hope. Very sad, what we failed what chance, and communists making revenge. And how citizens and how society we not be able to stop it. Now all hope of the world on Ukraine warriors. Thanks to Jaromir Jagr, Mario and Jagr my favourite players. P.S. Sorry, for my poor English. Glory to Ukraine!
Awesome story! Did you hear about the 1987 series when Wayne Gretzky (captain of team Canada) had some of the Russian players over at his parents house for beers?
I'm a Leaf fan since birth, but, Mario was always my favorite. So lucky for me he returned to play my Leafs, and I had the biggest goosebumps of my life when 66 showed up the way he did.
I saw Gretzky/Kurri at their best however Lemieux/Jagr were just more dominant. The day Mario came back, he shown the world he was simply the best of ALL time
Wayne Gretzky 1487 Games Played 894 Goals = 0.60 Goals Per Game Mario Lemieux 915 Games Played 690 Goals = 0.75 Goals Per Game Super Mario would have been the greatest goal scorer ever if he was able to play a full career.
Possibly,but Gretzkys goals per game average was way higher in his first 800-900 games. As they get older an more games played the goals per game average tends to go down. Gretzkys 2nd half of his career he focused on assists an not scoring as much to allow teammates to score. Either way both are legends.❤
Yah you can’t take gretzkeys whole career goal average and compare to Mario’s 900 games. Mario never hit 200 points, got close, but no. Wayne hit 200 points how many times? How many Stanley cups? Cup finals? Thanks
@@qualityonebuildingsolution802 How many times did Wayne himself ever come remotely close to 200 points post 1986?? Mario is the only player to ever avg 2.5 points per game in a season post 1986 (88/89 & 92/93) A 26,27,28,29,30,31 year old 99 never came close to doing it... Wayne also never came close to a 50 goal season after age 28, and never scored more then 25 in a season after age 33... Just saying
Mario and Jagr was my absolute favorite players when I was a kid. I always wanted to wear number 67 when I played hockey to be right between them. When Jagr went to Washington it broke my heart. I didn’t watch again until Sidney was drafted.
@@crowjones78 it was also at a time where I was in college and focused on that. Also at that time you could only watch games on espn/nbc and maybe they aired like 5-6 penguins games a year and it wasn’t like you could buy a season like you can now. And then after I finished college there was a lock out. As soon as that was over I was back in.
@@blammers6739numbers don’t lie. Sorry. 99 is and probably always will be the best hockey player of all time. He’s the only guy that might be better than Jordan, Brady, etc.
The is great. So many nice nuggets here. That the fire was stirred up in Mario to come back when his little boy asked the trainer if his dad played hockey. Mario telling Jagr before the comeback with his sense of humour "I think we can get a guy, he's pretty cheap." And then he doesn't just come back, but immediately shows that he's still the most talented offensive player in the world. That he was in hospital for the birth of his son for 3 days and plays that night with no sleep and the hospital wrist-band and gets 8 points. This is why Spittin' Chiclets is a great hockey podcast. They dig out all these great stories out of former players.
Its hard to believe that yags was still playing in 2022 for his team in check he is WITHOUT A DOUBT THE IRONMAN OF ALL TIME IN HOCKEY,the 90s inpittsburgh were great to watch these 2 nothing compares to it just magnificent
@@ryanflett4613 Sorry, but a lot of North Americans cling to the NHL as being the Alpha & Omega of hockey cos that’s all you’ve got - and it’s the only arena North American players could dominate and be successful in for a long time. As far as all time records go - Jaromír has beaten them both. He’s broken Howe’s record for having the longest uninterrupted career playing professional hockey. And Jaromír broke Gretzky’s record as well because last year he scored his 1,099 goal in professional hockey. You’ll whine and say none of this means shit - because fanboys like you love to cherry pick records and facts, but the second any North American (especially if that player is from Cana-duuuh) looks like he’s going to overtake Jágr -THEN you’ll scream & cry that those numbers are legit 😂
@@siobhanofarrell4646 sorry man but if you don’t understand that the NHL is the pinnacle of hockey then I honestly can’t help you. You would have to know so little about the Sport that we would be speaking different languages. Also, the NHL is not even close to the only league on the continent. The AHL farm teams, NCAA, junior hockey across Canada, university hockey in Canada… There’s just so much hockey on the continent that I don’t understand what you’re saying. I don’t think you have any idea what you’re talking about. If you’re gonna include Jagr’s career after the NHL then that’s fine… I’m gonna include all of Wayne Gretzky‘s goals from the time he was five years old. He played against stiffer competition as a 10-year-old than Jagr plays against now.
Jagr and Super Mario on the same line was like a cheat code. The best offensive duo in the history of the NHL. These were two of the largest men to ever play in the NHL, but they were both also fast finesse players at the same time.
That really shows you how much Jaromir has always idolized Mario and respected him (I find it bizarre when I see people commenting online that they think he was jealous of him when he came out of retirement, etc.) that smile on his face and the way he says “I remember everything about Mario”
Nobody's been the game's best player for longer then Lemieux was. 15 years after winning his 1st scoring title, a banged up 37 year old Lemieux was still dominating the NHL in 2002/03..
March 26, 1996, Mario scores the first goal of the game for his 59th of the year 3 minutes into the game. Few minutes goes by gets an assist, 10 minutes later his 60th of the year ends the first period. Second period Mario Lemieux of course scores his 61st and 62nd goal of the season and then in the 3rd period gets his 63rd and another assist that gave him 800 at the time and ended the game with 5 goals and 2 assist in an 8-4 win against the St. Louis Blues. The craziest part is Mario Lemieux was also wide open on Petr Nedvěd goal that made it 8-4 the game is on youtube, that's probably why Jagr thinks he had 3 assists.
Jags and Mario were one of the best duos of all time! Like using a cheat-code on the ice! I am not a big Pens fan, but I do respect talent. And they were some of the best!
Super Mario one of the best ever to play the game...I'd put Mario and Bobby Orr tied for #1...there's no doubt in my mind had Mario had no health issues and played on a team when he came into the league like the Oilers his stats would have been untouchable imo...Gretzski didn't even come close to Mario in pure hockey talent.
The mutual respect between Jagr and Lemieux was instant chemistry and was faith. Jagr would only play with Mario and he idolized Mario as a kid. He still idolizes now even as the second highest scorer of all time. Very humbling.
This is one of the only episodes from these guys, where the stories and greatness involved, left them speechless, because there is nothing they can say to relate. Not knocking them, but it was just interesting to see that dynamic. Wicked story.
I was at the game Mario returned and I was amazed the igloo was still standing after he scored that goal. It was the best atmosphere I'd ever been apart of including the original winter classic in buffalo
I just watched this clip and can hardly wait to get home after work and watch the whole interview. Jagr is one of the all time greats and seems to have a great personality after all these years.
@@CasuallyCommentingBaseThingsSo your shtick is making meaningless negative comments on every post? Log off. Touch grass. Maybe have some kids like OP.
Jagr is the bomb!. I only played pick up hockey for a couple years, but this guy, is who I tried to emulate on the ice, with my Pittsburgh Jersey and mullet lol. Gretzky was awesome, Lemieux too, but as far as hard work and great hair getting you there!, Jagr is the man, great career dude, loved this story.
To answer Jagr’s question about which athlete could come back after 3 1/2 years and dominate to such a level, I’d say GSP is the closest example that comes to mind
@@Dremin2009 He won a bunch of fights by decision but he dominated the vast majority of them. KO is just one way to win a fight and he knew it well. He’s not considered one of the goats for nothing
66# Mario Lemieux, 68# Jaromir Jagr, 10# Ron Francis, 55# Larry Murphy, 77# Paul Coffey. You had these Pens out and no team could stop you!!! Just to bad that Coffey was traded so we never could see this formation in the middle 90''s And then they got rid of Murphy afterwards...dang I would have loved to see this starting line-up at there best. Of course Kevin Stevens was also awesome!
Look at it this way. Steve Yzerman, an undisputed, universally regarded Legend of the game, has exactly 32 more career points than Mario (2 G, 30 A) yet Stevie Y also has exactly 599 more career games played than Lemieux. That's equivalent to a little more than 7 full seasons. This is incredible!! To me this little stat illustrates better than any other just how truly, ridiculously dominant Mario Lemieux really was. Best ever. I rest my case.
I remember ML getting an assist on a goal by JJ on their first shift together in that game against Toronto. Poor Curtis Joseph didn't stand a chance that night! I was house-sitting for a friend from Pittsburgh that night and I called her right away to hoot and holler together on the phone.
Mario was the best Hockey Player in the World let's not forget also when he was Capatain of Team Canada and i knew we would win gold with him playing in Salt Lake City and then we where World Cup Champions with him as Captain again right after that in Toronto. Everything he touches turns to Gold in Hockey!!
The great ones bring it to a level that mortals can't. This story of Mario or Bobby Orr winning MVP of the Canada Cup on one good leg. These guys are just different.
That’s the single best nhl story I have ever listened to. Mario was the man if he had a all star team around him like Wayne did he would have blown him away.
People forget how much better than everyone Mario was. There’s no debate in my mind who the best player ever is. People can say this and that about Gretzky being the greatest, but Mario was the better player. There’s a difference.
They both saw and thought the game at a god-like level, but Mario was simply a bigger and stronger man. I know it's a tired argument but if not for his injuries and illness, he'd have a few of Wayne's records.
@@Whitesquall123 are you high? 😂 There's NO WAY Mario would have had ANY of Wayne's records. IF Mario didn't have cancer, IF Mario didn't have a bad back..... IF, IF, IF. If Mario was SO GREAT then why couldn't he pick HIS OWN NUMBER? Just EXACTLY HOW did Mario come up with #66? He went to his agent Gus Bedali (who was WAYNE'S first agent) and said, I want a number that nobody else is wearing." Gus told him to take WAYNE'S #99 AND TURN IT UPSIDE DOWN. If Mario was SO GREAT, then why hasn't the NHL retired #66 LEAGUE WIDE? He didn't have the same impact on the sport that Wayne did. CASE CLOSED.
@@goalscorerlajon look at his goals/game. Extrapolate that for the same number of games played as Wayne. I rest my case. Have a good day. Don't forget tomorrow's homework.
He deserved the one for the ‘99-‘00 season too; after he left the NHL the first time to play in Russia, his dad spoke to someone in the Czech media. He said that back in 2000 Jaromír was bluntly told that Americans (the translated article didn’t specify if it meant North Americans in general or people from the US in particular) DID NOT WANT HIM to be the “face” of the NHL, that he was NEVER going to be allowed to play up to his full potential or dominate that league the way Gretzky & Mario had (& the way Sid the Kid & McDavid have been allowed to) because they DIDN’T WANT HIM TO BEST PLAYER IN THE LEAGUE & he was told that the North American media was NEVER going to give him the credit he deserved for how great/dominant of a player he was. And they NEVER did. The other players voted him league MVP - 3 times. But the media only awarded him the Hart - ONCE. He finished 2nd in the voting a good 5 times - I think. Virtually every single time they could find an excuse to award the Hart to a North American player - they DID. It’s no coincidence that the only season Jaromír was awarded it - was when the top 3 finalists were ALL Euros: Jarda, Hasek & Alexei Yashin
Dude, no, Gretzky was like 160lbs soaking wet. He would get smashed into pieces. Lemieux had the size, but not the speed. I’m a diehard Pens fan. Lemieux was my favorite player growing up. He was a smoker when he was drafted. It’s just night and day how different the league is. You can disagree. That’s fine. I get why you say this, but it’s not even close. Out Ovechkin back in the 80s and he’s ripping 300 goals a year. It’s not even close. Those standup goalies were brutal.
@@EAchank Oh stop. You people on the internet sit here behind your keyboard calling NHL players soft, meanwhile they're blocking 100mph slap shots, breaking bones, running into each other at collision speeds of like 40mph... ......and what is it that you're doing, EAchank, that makes you the arbiter of toughness? I would wager that those "faeries" would win in a fight against you 100 times out of 100. I'm not even calling you a pussy or anything. These dudes are hockey players. They're not soft.
Mario Lemieux is the only player that would have been capable of beating Gretzky's records if he was healthy. And most of the time he was not and still was better than everyone else. Scary to think how he would have been had he worked out more & had been healthy. Mike Bossy and a few other come to mind around 3-4th in the offensive category.
Mario didn't sleep for 3 days and he scored 5 goals and 3 assists. Thats just incredible yet it's not surprising at all. Mario' whole career is full of stories like this.
Incredible story. I think it's well known that Lemieux returned so his youngest son could watch him play, but I've never heard that story about not recognizing his dad in the poster.
We had a 2lb baby, our first child... there's always a reason why it happened and there's always a point you think you're loosing both mother and child... it's enough to put career in perspective.
I was a kid there was a annual hockey convention at Plac des Arts in Montreal and that weekend the Pens were playing the Habs so we went. I was probably a squirt? Mario and Jaromir scored a stupid amount of points that game. It was probably the only game I made at the Forum. I should research it better..
I’m old enough to have seen Jagr play in his rookie season and his final season in the nhl , classic! One of my all time favourite players
I see you're Canadian.
@@pilbomags488 facts
@@TheBeegle77 Jagr has a permanent sprained wrist from getting high fives from teammates with the amount of chicks he’s smashed
absolutely, me too. he is awesome, i could argue top 3 all time
I am only 37 and saw his debut .
Its nice to see a legend and one of the greats like jagr be in admiration of Mario like that. And aside from being the best Mario saved the penguins 3 time. When he entered the nhl , when he made his comeback and when he became part owner of the team. Just amazing!
Can't argue. He is everything to the city of Pittsburgh.
I'd argue he's the most important figure in Pittsburgh sports history, and there are some big names up there.
I really wish he would have had his jersey retired before Mario sold the team....
Jags is a legend. The stories about Lemieux are always incredible. You just know that his son's premature birth was a factor in his retirement.
Had he not had the back injuries, the cancer and had his son not been born premature so that Mario could have played most of the games every season til 2006.... he easily scores 1000 goals and tops 3000 points. no doubt in my mind.
Yup.
I've always told my son (5 yrs old now) that Lemieux was the best player of all time. The only guy who theoretically could have challenged Gretzky's points record. More points per game than any other star player ever, I believe?
Despite his injuries, Mario was still by far the game's best player for a long, long time. The dude was missing 1/4 seasons in the 90s and still winning scoring titles with relative ease..
Even Gretzky says Mario was the better player of the two. Mario was the complete hockey package... size, speed, finesse, shot, hockey sense... everything.
@@chrisvanderwielen1530 Everything except being able to stay healthy, which is a skill athletes need as well. To me, Gretzky was the better of the 2 because he could stay in the lineup. It's really splitting hairs though, they are 1-2 all time.
Gretzky would have easily scored 3,000 points (possibly 3500) and maybe 1000 goals if Gary Suter had not mangled his back in the 1991 Canada Cup (herniated disc and subsequent back surgery that dropped his production by 40% over night). Not to mention missing half of the 1993 season as a result and the 1995 lockout as well. If not with those issues, Gretz would have had 3200-3500 points.
This is what makes Mario the goat. Cancer, broken back, 4 years retired, comes back mid 30's and INSTANTLY the best hockey player in the game. Even MJ was rusty for a bit and he was still young and uninjured and only took
Mario's ability to overcome adversity is legendary
and MJ wasn't getting driven into the boards and dodging stray pucks and sticks all the while😂
Amazing player for sure. Top three all time Imho ... But I can't call him the goat... Just like Orr or even Bossy I can't judge players on what might have happened if they stayed healthy. I think Orr and Lemieux were probably the most talented(Mcdavid too) .But Gretzky stands alone as the goat... His stats and longevity can't honestly be matched.
If you didn’t grow up in Pittsburgh watching hockey during the Jags/Lemieux era, you really don’t know what you were missing. The igloo was a thunder dome.
Ive been a pens fan since 86 butblive in Canada. LuckilybI got to the igloo for a round 2 game against wash in 09 and it was awesome! Also made a trip for gm 2 against the sharks in the finals in 16. The new rink is beautiful but pretty tame volume wise to the old low metal dome of the igloo
I know... I was stuck growing up in Edmonton during the 80's... I missed out
The loudest I heard is was the 7th game against New Jersey for their first cup!
@@adamrichmond6348agreed. Doesn’t help everyone is buried in their phone instead of living in the moment
@@weissblitz100sucks to suck
You love to see a legend and a superstar tell this story with such warmth and affection for his friend.
I had the privledge of watching 66,68, 77, and those great early 90 teams. 66 was a force of nature that at times was unstoppable!!
You talking about 66 " Mario the great I never ever can tell who was greatest Mario ??? Or number 99 Wayne Gretzky and who is number 77 I think greatest defence" and he also best skater Paul Coffee "
@@peterkozak1291 Gretz didn''t even come close to Mario in pure hockey skills...Mario skated better was bigger faster better stick handler better shot more accurate shot...the only category you can put them even at was passing ability other than that Mario had it all over Gretz...Gretz was protected on a team that had more all stars than any other player in the history of the sport had Mario had that it would have been insane the numbers Mario would have put up.
his smile and laugh when he said: ''he didn't sleep for 3 days and scored 8 points'' was like telling an André the giant story, flipping a car or drinking 140 beers, something out of this world
The admiration of a friend and teammate is the best
What a wonderful man this guy is.
All business on the ice but a softy off the ice.
Just wonderful listening to his stories.
Even till today Jagr is so excited to speak about his idol and team mate Mario and the respect he has for Mario he wouldn’t play for any team during draft day but Pittsburgh cause he idolized Mario Lemieux. Great story!
I think whats crazy is when you have two players or 5 or whatever who are the same level the mutual respect of their game their beauty, what they do is incredible. Like Jagr in 95% of scenarios is light years above, but when you put him and mario together, its beautiful and hearing them talking about each other is amazing its so cool. They are so cool to watch and hear....
The joy in his face talking about the greatest, his friend
The Boston game was on Nov 28, 2000. 4 weeks before Mario came back. Jagr had a slow start that season, only 37 points in 36 games, just a point a game compare to 1.47 points a game average for 4 scoring titles he won the years Mario didnt play. After Mario return Jagr had 84 points in 45 games and Mario had 76 points in 43 games. In a full 82 game season that would be 153 points for Jagr and 145 points for Lemeuix.
In one of the lowest scoring seasons in modern day NHL
Jagr won the art Ross with 121 pts. Sakic was second at 118 and third was elias with 96 for some perspective of how dominant those numbers are for that time
@@crowjones78 What sucks is that Jágr was never truly given the opportunity to show what he was fully capable of doing. We only got to see glimpses of it - during the ‘98-‘99 season & the first half of the ‘99-‘00 season.
‘98-‘99 - he won the Art Ross with 127 points, finishing 20 points ahead of the rest of the league & accomplished something Gretzky never even managed to do at any point in his career. Jágr was involved in 52+% of his team’s goals.
At the end of Dec ‘99 - he was on pace to score 70-80+ goals, rack up 170-180+ points and finish almost 50 points ahead of the entire rest of the league in the scoring race. He was putting up those kind of numbers at the height of the Dead Puck Era.
But he didn’t get the chance to enjoy that record shattering season. When it resumed in Jan ‘00, it was obvious that the refs had put away their whistles and the league might as well have declared Open Season on him.
Thanks to cheap shots by Mike Peca and Dan McGillis, Jaromír suffered injuries that forced him to miss much of the second half of the season.
Then in ‘00-‘01 things seemed to fall apart for him. His play was erratic, he appeared severely depressed, even made remarks to the media about retiring. No one understood what was going on.
After Jaromír left the NHL the first time to go play in Russia we found out. His father was interviewed and stated that, at some point in 2000, Jaromír was bluntly told that Americans (the translated version of the article didn’t specify if he meant North Americans in general, or the US in particular) DID NOT WANT HIM to be “The Face of the NHL”
(Apparently the NHL & the media were already planning to crown Lindros THAT - but it didn’t work out)
He was told that the NHL was NEVER going to allow him to play up to his full potential & dominate that league the way Gretzky & Mario had (& the way players like Sid the Kid & McDavid have been allowed to since then)
Apparently, it was conveyed to Jaromír that he could TRY, but they’d see to it that his back and legs were broken to the point he’d be driven into retirement faster than Mario. And Jaromír loved hockey & always said he wanted to play until he was 50.
And he was also told that the North American media was NEVER going to give him credit for how great/dominant he really was - and they NEVER DID.
The other players voted him the MVP of the league 3x, but the media only awarded him the Hart Trophy once. He finished second something like 5-6 times. Virtually every single time they could come up with an excuse to award the Hart to a North American player - they did.
Being a huge 66 fan when he announced he was coming back I vowed to enjoy every moment. 99 is the man but 66 was my favourite player. The 2002 gold. What a player.
I loved that game against St. Louis, after Austin was born. I was up in the nosebleed seats, and you could just tell he had the It factor turned up to max that night. It must have been such a relief and a weight off his shoulders to know both his wife and son were doing well. The man was poetry on ice and it seemed like every bounce went his way.
It is Mario Lemieux - the Magic man! I remember how in childhood in USSR, I saw the game on TV Pittsburgh - CSKA and I been shocked, I never saw canadian size rink before it, I never not saw so intensive, fast game. It be fantastic. And I saw incredible player #66, he be fantastic. I never saw nobody play hockey like him, every time when he get the puck it become some kind of hurricane for opposite team, he passed puck exellent (and what very important he do it "in time" when no earlier and not later); he shoots great, he played phisical hockey too, he be big but he skated great and moving so fast. Mario Lemieux it be miracle for me. I be amazed and he became my favourite player. In what time I watched only soviet hockey league, I loved hockey but no be my favourite player, I just watch games and I not thought what someday I will see hockey player whom will became my favourite player to watch. And Mario come in my hockey life, and in what day I knew about existance of NHL, Canada. I be small 4 or 5 years old, and we lived in USSR, at the evening we watched news on TV. And I have no idea what exist something except USSR. I haved absolutely different wiev on world, I thought what exist only USSR on planet and some mistery place "sector Gazzah". About "sector Gazzah" I thought what it some place on Earth where gas go from ground and whats why people where running with gas-masks. It all what I knew about world before what game. And I started to ask my Dad about this new team (Penguins) what is it and from where it is, what is the NHL... Dad tell me a lot, and about Super Series 72 games, my Dad big Canada hockey fan, but it be secret, because it not be safe to tell anybody about it in Soviet Union. And Dad begin to read me articles from sport Newspapers what be about NHL. In what time existance of so big world opened for me, I been shocked and when I begin to understand difference between USSR and free world, and great lie of communists opens for me, I be upset. But, happened the year 1991 and began "Golden time" of 90's time of great expectations and new hope. Very sad, what we failed what chance, and communists making revenge. And how citizens and how society we not be able to stop it. Now all hope of the world on Ukraine warriors.
Thanks to Jaromir Jagr, Mario and Jagr my favourite players. P.S. Sorry, for my poor English.
Glory to Ukraine!
Awesome story! Did you hear about the 1987 series when Wayne Gretzky (captain of team Canada) had some of the Russian players over at his parents house for beers?
as a sour leaf fan i remember that game vividly as a kid when he came back to toronto
I remember in 1991. I was a kid and I watched their first Stanley cup win. Jagr and Lemieux were fun to watch.
The best..............
I'm a Leaf fan since birth, but, Mario was always my favorite. So lucky for me he returned to play my Leafs, and I had the biggest goosebumps of my life when 66 showed up the way he did.
I saw Gretzky/Kurri at their best however Lemieux/Jagr were just more dominant. The day Mario came back, he shown the world he was simply the best of ALL time
Mr Jagr doesn't BS ! Jagr is respected by everyone in the NHL . That was an awesome interview :)
Wayne Gretzky
1487 Games Played
894 Goals
= 0.60 Goals Per Game
Mario Lemieux
915 Games Played
690 Goals
= 0.75 Goals Per Game
Super Mario would have been the greatest goal scorer ever if he was able to play a full career.
Mario was the best goal scorer the game has ever seen.. No one could pick top corners with such ease like Lemieux ..
Possibly,but Gretzkys goals per game average was way higher in his first 800-900 games. As they get older an more games played the goals per game average tends to go down. Gretzkys 2nd half of his career he focused on assists an not scoring as much to allow teammates to score. Either way both are legends.❤
Yah you can’t take gretzkeys whole career goal average and compare to Mario’s 900 games.
Mario never hit 200 points, got close, but no.
Wayne hit 200 points how many times?
How many Stanley cups?
Cup finals?
Thanks
@@qualityonebuildingsolution802 How many times did Wayne himself ever come remotely close to 200 points post 1986?? Mario is the only player to ever avg 2.5 points per game in a season post 1986 (88/89 & 92/93) A 26,27,28,29,30,31 year old 99 never came close to doing it...
Wayne also never came close to a 50 goal season after age 28, and never scored more then 25 in a season after age 33... Just saying
@@dwade6322 99 tho never came close to a 50 goal campaign after age 28 (1988/89 ), and he never scored more then 25 in a season after age 33
I don’t care what anyone says super Mario is the greatest
He made offense look so easy.
EXACTLY ❤❤❤❤
For me it’s Wayne and he are the greatest and I don’t have to choose because I can’t but they both are 1 and 1
@@marksibley4546 that’s fair
Troybarton3515, I'm totally with you on that".....
Oh my goodness, I got goosebumps hearing Jagr tell that story. Awesome!
Mario and Jagr was my absolute favorite players when I was a kid. I always wanted to wear number 67 when I played hockey to be right between them. When Jagr went to Washington it broke my heart. I didn’t watch again until Sidney was drafted.
At least you admit you’re a fairweather
@@crowjones78 it was also at a time where I was in college and focused on that. Also at that time you could only watch games on espn/nbc and maybe they aired like 5-6 penguins games a year and it wasn’t like you could buy a season like you can now. And then after I finished college there was a lock out. As soon as that was over I was back in.
Bandwagoner lol
Personally, I think Mario was the best hockey player of all time. He was that much better than all the other players of his era.
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
@@gladlawson61what are you laughing at? this is a completely reasonable take. gretzky himself would agree.
Mario is the best. He never had the protection that Gretzky had.
@@blammers6739numbers don’t lie. Sorry. 99 is and probably always will be the best hockey player of all time. He’s the only guy that might be better than Jordan, Brady, etc.
@@ryanflett4613 "numbers don't lie" mentions MJ who dosn't have the best numbers.
The is great. So many nice nuggets here. That the fire was stirred up in Mario to come back when his little boy asked the trainer if his dad played hockey. Mario telling Jagr before the comeback with his sense of humour "I think we can get a guy, he's pretty cheap." And then he doesn't just come back, but immediately shows that he's still the most talented offensive player in the world. That he was in hospital for the birth of his son for 3 days and plays that night with no sleep and the hospital wrist-band and gets 8 points.
This is why Spittin' Chiclets is a great hockey podcast. They dig out all these great stories out of former players.
Its hard to believe that yags was still playing in 2022 for his team in check he is WITHOUT A DOUBT THE IRONMAN OF ALL TIME IN HOCKEY,the 90s inpittsburgh were great to watch these 2 nothing compares to it just magnificent
His comeback and career were amazing. But Gretz was the greatest and the Ironman award goes to Gordie. Sorry.
@@ryanflett4613 Sorry, but a lot of North Americans cling to the NHL as being the Alpha & Omega of hockey cos that’s all you’ve got - and it’s the only arena North American players could dominate and be successful in for a long time.
As far as all time records go - Jaromír has beaten them both. He’s broken Howe’s record for having the longest uninterrupted career playing professional hockey.
And Jaromír broke Gretzky’s record as well because last year he scored his 1,099 goal in professional hockey.
You’ll whine and say none of this means shit - because fanboys like you love to cherry pick records and facts, but the second any North American (especially if that player is from Cana-duuuh) looks like he’s going to overtake Jágr -THEN you’ll scream & cry that those numbers are legit 😂
@@siobhanofarrell4646 sorry man but if you don’t understand that the NHL is the pinnacle of hockey then I honestly can’t help you. You would have to know so little about the Sport that we would be speaking different languages. Also, the NHL is not even close to the only league on the continent. The AHL farm teams, NCAA, junior hockey across Canada, university hockey in Canada… There’s just so much hockey on the continent that I don’t understand what you’re saying. I don’t think you have any idea what you’re talking about.
If you’re gonna include Jagr’s career after the NHL then that’s fine… I’m gonna include all of Wayne Gretzky‘s goals from the time he was five years old. He played against stiffer competition as a 10-year-old than Jagr plays against now.
Mario's first goal after he came out of retirement... A beauty feed from jagr... An absolute all time highlight goal.
Jagr and Super Mario on the same line was like a cheat code. The best offensive duo in the history of the NHL.
These were two of the largest men to ever play in the NHL, but they were both also fast finesse players at the same time.
That really shows you how much Jaromir has always idolized Mario and respected him (I find it bizarre when I see people commenting online that they think he was jealous of him when he came out of retirement, etc.) that smile on his face and the way he says “I remember everything about Mario”
Mario is the best. Never had the protection that Gretzky had.
Jaromir found the fountain of youth as he still looks like a rookie. Such a great player and great story
Banging 24 yr old hotties will do that 😂
hours of cardio everyday, wealth, it can be good for health.
Him and Lemieux were such a dynamic duo. A shame Lemieux didn’t stay healthy, and that Jagr couldn’t have stayed in Pittsburgh his whole career.
Nah Jagr leaving contributed to pens getting Crosby.
@@rickchristie99 it absolutely did.
YAGR DIDNT LEAVE THE PENS COULDNT AFFORD TO KEEP HIM
@@johnrencheck2283
What you mean is “Jagr left the Pens BECAUSE they couldn’t afford to keep him”
@@johnrencheck2283 yes, I know. Does not change that it’s a shame he could not have spent his whole career in Pittsburgh.
Mario & Jagr Unreal...
Nobody's been the game's best player for longer then Lemieux was. 15 years after winning his 1st scoring title, a banged up 37 year old Lemieux was still dominating the NHL in 2002/03..
March 26, 1996, Mario scores the first goal of the game for his 59th of the year 3 minutes into the game. Few minutes goes by gets an assist, 10 minutes later his 60th of the year ends the first period. Second period Mario Lemieux of course scores his 61st and 62nd goal of the season and then in the 3rd period gets his 63rd and another assist that gave him 800 at the time and ended the game with 5 goals and 2 assist in an 8-4 win against the St. Louis Blues. The craziest part is Mario Lemieux was also wide open on Petr Nedvěd goal that made it 8-4 the game is on youtube, that's probably why Jagr thinks he had 3 assists.
Jags and Mario were one of the best duos of all time! Like using a cheat-code on the ice!
I am not a big Pens fan, but I do respect talent. And they were some of the best!
How on Earth could you not be a Pens fan during that era.....it was incredible!
Jags is such a gentlemen and class act. Same with Super Mario.
It was a great time to be a fan of hockey.
Super Mario one of the best ever to play the game...I'd put Mario and Bobby Orr tied for #1...there's no doubt in my mind had Mario had no health issues and played on a team when he came into the league like the Oilers his stats would have been untouchable imo...Gretzski didn't even come close to Mario in pure hockey talent.
The mutual respect between Jagr and Lemieux was instant chemistry and was faith. Jagr would only play with Mario and he idolized Mario as a kid. He still idolizes now even as the second highest scorer of all time. Very humbling.
This is one of the only episodes from these guys, where the stories and greatness involved, left them speechless, because there is nothing they can say to relate. Not knocking them, but it was just interesting to see that dynamic. Wicked story.
What a cool story !
Love these types of stories
Mario has always been the GOAT for me.
I was at the game Mario returned and I was amazed the igloo was still standing after he scored that goal. It was the best atmosphere I'd ever been apart of including the original winter classic in buffalo
Even tho it was short but I was so happy and proud that he chose to put on a Calgary Flames jersey.
I just watched this clip and can hardly wait to get home after work and watch the whole interview. Jagr is one of the all time greats and seems to have a great personality after all these years.
The GOAT MARIO!!
The love he has for Mario
I was cooking lunch for my kids listening to this and I legit held back tears on the Mario's son part .... wow
No you didn’t. Made up story for likes. Typical
@@CasuallyCommentingBaseThingsSo your shtick is making meaningless negative comments on every post? Log off. Touch grass. Maybe have some kids like OP.
@@CasuallyCommentingBaseThings Get out of the closet man, stop being so sad and angry.
Life is beautiful, enjoy it while you can.
Jagr is the bomb!. I only played pick up hockey for a couple years, but this guy, is who I tried to emulate on the ice, with my Pittsburgh Jersey and mullet lol. Gretzky was awesome, Lemieux too, but as far as hard work and great hair getting you there!, Jagr is the man, great career dude, loved this story.
To answer Jagr’s question about which athlete could come back after 3 1/2 years and dominate to such a level, I’d say GSP is the closest example that comes to mind
Didn't GSP win a bunch of close fights by decision? I mean winnings winning, but i wouldn't call that dominating.
@@Dremin2009 He won a bunch of fights by decision but he dominated the vast majority of them. KO is just one way to win a fight and he knew it well. He’s not considered one of the goats for nothing
GSP ???????
I cant even think 2 compare MARIO LEMIEUX whit a guy like GSP lol
MARIO LEMIEUX IS THE ONLY 1 HE WAS SENT FROM ANOTHER PLANET 2 SHOE THE HUMANS HOW 2 PLAY ISHOCKEY
66# Mario Lemieux, 68# Jaromir Jagr, 10# Ron Francis, 55# Larry Murphy, 77# Paul Coffey.
You had these Pens out and no team could stop you!!! Just to bad that Coffey was traded so we never could see this formation in the middle 90''s
And then they got rid of Murphy afterwards...dang I would have loved to see this starting line-up at there best.
Of course Kevin Stevens was also awesome!
This story was in the 66 minutes of goals dvd that came with tickets to a 2005 Pitt game
Yes it was, great dvd with little stories like this and glorious Mike Lange calls
This story makes me tear up, especially hearing it through jagrs voice
And he had 35 goals and 41 assists in 43 games that year after not playing for 4 years he was/is a unique man and player.
Look at it this way. Steve Yzerman, an undisputed, universally regarded Legend of the game, has exactly 32 more career points than Mario (2 G, 30 A) yet Stevie Y also has exactly 599 more career games played than Lemieux. That's equivalent to a little more than 7 full seasons. This is incredible!! To me this little stat illustrates better than any other just how truly, ridiculously dominant Mario Lemieux really was. Best ever. I rest my case.
After orr
@@weskentner8037no.
I remember ML getting an assist on a goal by JJ on their first shift together in that game against Toronto. Poor Curtis Joseph didn't stand a chance that night!
I was house-sitting for a friend from Pittsburgh that night and I called her right away to hoot and holler together on the phone.
4:26 guy is sleeping. How could you fall asleep when a legend is telling you a story about another legend.
Mario was the best Hockey Player in the World let's not forget also when he was Capatain of Team Canada and i knew we would win gold with him playing in Salt Lake City and then we where World Cup Champions with him as Captain again right after that in Toronto. Everything he touches turns to Gold in Hockey!!
Wow. I really love this story. What a great man. Thx to Mr Jagr for sharing this with us.
The great ones bring it to a level that mortals can't. This story of Mario or Bobby Orr winning MVP of the Canada Cup on one good leg. These guys are just different.
Retire 68 in Pittsburgh
i remember the first game he came back and they played the Leafs......he killed the Leafs in his first game back after 44 months....Super Mario he was
Images if this story wasn’t said in English!
Well done Jagor. One of my all time favourites
When Mario had the puck it was like magical, nobody knew exactly what would happen. His passing ability gave defense nightmares.
JAG IS SO REAL AND DOWN TO EARTH...GREAT HALL OF FAME BOUND 4 SURE....
Jagr said he thinks thats the reason why Mario came back. The title says that was the REAL reason. Whats up?
That’s the single best nhl story I have ever listened to. Mario was the man if he had a all star team around him like Wayne did he would have blown him away.
That lemiuex come back is my most cherished memory with my grandfather
When the letters of Jaromir are re-arranged you can spell Mario Jr ;)
Mario was a scary good player who retired too soon. Glad his son by asking that question put Mario back into playing again
Gretzky is clearly the great record holder etc. But the best player I ever saw play was Mario hands down…
People forget how much better than everyone Mario was. There’s no debate in my mind who the best player ever is. People can say this and that about Gretzky being the greatest, but Mario was the better player. There’s a difference.
They both saw and thought the game at a god-like level, but Mario was simply a bigger and stronger man.
I know it's a tired argument but if not for his injuries and illness, he'd have a few of Wayne's records.
woulda, coulda, shoulda
@@Whitesquall123 are you high? 😂 There's NO WAY Mario would have had ANY of Wayne's records. IF Mario didn't have cancer, IF Mario didn't have a bad back..... IF, IF, IF. If Mario was SO GREAT then why couldn't he pick HIS OWN NUMBER? Just EXACTLY HOW did Mario come up with #66? He went to his agent Gus Bedali (who was WAYNE'S first agent) and said, I want a number that nobody else is wearing." Gus told him to take WAYNE'S #99 AND TURN IT UPSIDE DOWN.
If Mario was SO GREAT, then why hasn't the NHL retired #66 LEAGUE WIDE? He didn't have the same impact on the sport that Wayne did. CASE CLOSED.
@@goalscorerlajon look at his goals/game.
Extrapolate that for the same number of games played as Wayne.
I rest my case.
Have a good day. Don't forget tomorrow's homework.
Lemieux with his size, reach, and insane skill level , was the most lethal player to ever lace up a pair of skates...
Personally i think jags was the best player ever, he should have his #68 retired and no1 ever to wear it again
Legend. Jagr is the definition of OG
The man deserved the 2006 Hart. Thanks for the memories Jaromir.
He deserved the one for the ‘99-‘00 season too; after he left the NHL the first time to play in Russia, his dad spoke to someone in the Czech media. He said that back in 2000 Jaromír was bluntly told that Americans (the translated article didn’t specify if it meant North Americans in general or people from the US in particular) DID NOT WANT HIM to be the “face” of the NHL, that he was NEVER going to be allowed to play up to his full potential or dominate that league the way Gretzky & Mario had (& the way Sid the Kid & McDavid have been allowed to) because they DIDN’T WANT HIM TO BEST PLAYER IN THE LEAGUE & he was told that the North American media was NEVER going to give him the credit he deserved for how great/dominant of a player he was. And they NEVER did. The other players voted him league MVP - 3 times. But the media only awarded him the Hart - ONCE. He finished 2nd in the voting a good 5 times - I think. Virtually every single time they could find an excuse to award the Hart to a North American player - they DID. It’s no coincidence that the only season Jaromír was awarded it - was when the top 3 finalists were ALL Euros: Jarda, Hasek & Alexei Yashin
The best Jagr story is when that 19 year old model tried to black mail him with pictures in bed.
Didn't Jags release the pictures himself? Boss move.
@@kymcharles1179she released them
Lol that was great. He wasn't married, it was consensual and she was legal age.
@@kymcharles1179 I think you are right
Mario unretired. Which inspired Michael Jordan to unretire
That’s a good one boys 👍🏽👌🏽👊🏽😎
You guys are good right on 👍🏽👌🏽👊🏽😎
When Kids say Lemieux or Gretzky would be average today
Drives me insane cause we all know they would be incredible
Dude, no, Gretzky was like 160lbs soaking wet. He would get smashed into pieces. Lemieux had the size, but not the speed. I’m a diehard Pens fan. Lemieux was my favorite player growing up. He was a smoker when he was drafted. It’s just night and day how different the league is.
You can disagree. That’s fine. I get why you say this, but it’s not even close. Out Ovechkin back in the 80s and he’s ripping 300 goals a year. It’s not even close. Those standup goalies were brutal.
@@chrisg7731 nothing about today's NHL game is smashing to pieces today's hockey is faeries playing crab soccer compared to Gretzkys days
@@chrisg7731 and the goalies today suck!
@@EAchank Oh stop. You people on the internet sit here behind your keyboard calling NHL players soft, meanwhile they're blocking 100mph slap shots, breaking bones, running into each other at collision speeds of like 40mph...
......and what is it that you're doing, EAchank, that makes you the arbiter of toughness?
I would wager that those "faeries" would win in a fight against you 100 times out of 100. I'm not even calling you a pussy or anything. These dudes are hockey players. They're not soft.
They would be The BEST no cuestion about that
Wow, much respect for these hockey heroes.
Mario Lemieux is the only player that would have been capable of beating Gretzky's records if he was healthy. And most of the time he was not and still was better than everyone else. Scary to think how he would have been had he worked out more & had been healthy.
Mike Bossy and a few other come to mind around 3-4th in the offensive category.
Mario didn't sleep for 3 days and he scored 5 goals and 3 assists. Thats just incredible yet it's not surprising at all. Mario' whole career is full of stories like this.
Wow Jagr looks so young still.
Incredible story. I think it's well known that Lemieux returned so his youngest son could watch him play, but I've never heard that story about not recognizing his dad in the poster.
GSP can take time off to beat someone up lol
We had a 2lb baby, our first child... there's always a reason why it happened and there's always a point you think you're loosing both mother and child... it's enough to put career in perspective.
I think Gretzky wants Loughten's telephone number. LOL
What a likeable dude!
Believe it or not, when he was playing, at least where I’m from, he was sort of a villain, or an anti-hero at least.
he has universally loved for a long time now though
Has there ever been a better duo
That story is humble as hell. Mario saved the Pens several times.
“I skate on your crew like Mario Lemieux.” - Phife Dawg
Mario actually told the media that he said he was coming back to show his kid that "his dad can play"...
GOD OF GODS KING OF KINGS SUPER MARIO LEMIEUX THE BEST IN THE HISTORY ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
I was a kid there was a annual hockey convention at Plac des Arts in Montreal and that weekend the Pens were playing the Habs so we went. I was probably a squirt? Mario and Jaromir scored a stupid amount of points that game. It was probably the only game I made at the Forum. I should research it better..
Lots of people in Québec know that story about Mario. Quel homme 💪🏻 le magnifique
I remember the year Czechia won the Olympic gold , im pretty sure Jágr averaged about 59 minutes a game lol
Jagr. Damn I miss him in the NHL. As a Pens fan, I think of him as our own, but he is not. He was a gift to all.