Lemieux to Take Ice, End Retirement

P I T T S B U R G H, Dec. 27, 2000 -- Mario Lemieux is coming back. Or is he?

For sure, the Pittsburgh Penguins will stage one of the mostdramatic moments in NHL history tonight. They will pulldown the retired No. 66 sweater that has resided in the MellonArena rafters for 3½ years and return it to active duty in acomeback unprecedented for its impact and emotion.

Then, the question the hockey world has asked since Lemieuxannounced his unanticipated comeback nearly three weeks will startto be answered as the Penguins play the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Is Super Mario really coming back? Or will he only be So-soMario?

Rusty or Rested?

Lemieux has talked confidently of again being hockey’s bestplayer, of leading the Penguins to another Stanley Cupchampionship, of helping coax Jaromir Jagr out of his scoring slumpand of simply being Mario Lemieux again.

But is that possible in a sport that, despite Lemieux’s remarksto the contrary, is even slower and less scorer-friendly than thathe abandoned with disgust in 1997? That has even bigger, strongerdefensemen and goalies than before? That continues to stiflescoring even while it insists it is opening it up?

“He’s so far above the rest of us, his skill level is sotremendous,” Flyers forward Mark Recchi said. “There will be alittle rust, but what he does with his skills is beyond us, so Ithink he will be fine.”

Lemieux, a six-time NHL scoring champion, overcame cancer andyears of back problems to initially stage a successful comeback in1995. He took a year off for health reasons, then returned to winhis last two scoring titles in his final two seasons in 1995-96 and1996-97.

Still, despite the Jordan-like buzz Lemieux’s comeback hascreated, and the huge number of tickets it has sold in Pittsburgh,and the media attention it has attracted, it is difficult topredict how successful it will be — if only because there never hasbeen one like it.

Other Greats Un-Retired

Guy Lafleur and Gordie Howe renounced their retirements after ashort time to return to the NHL, and Ted Williams and otherbaseball stars spent years fighting World War II and the Korean Warbefore returning to the majors. Michael Jordan played minor leaguebaseball for a year before leading the Chicago Bulls to three moreNBA titles.

However, Lemieux has been away nearly full four seasons — avirtual career for some less-skilled players — and is now 35,certainly not old but still not young in a sport where speed andleg strength are everything.

“I have a lot of confidence to come back and play at a highlevel,” said Lemieux, the only NHL player with 500 or more goalsto average more than two points per game. “I’m going to have to be patient, but I intend to get back to the top of my game.”

Lemieux cautioned that he won’t immediately start scoring fouror five points a night, but he expects to return to his previousform in a reasonable period of time.

However, even his own teammates are trying not to get too workedup, lest they be disappointed if he is merely Lemieux the Good, notLemieux the Great.

“It’s going to be tough for him,” Alexei Kovalev said Tuesday. “It will take some time for him to come back. The skill will bethere, but the energy? It’s tough to bring it back. It’s going totake 3-4-5 games to get in game shape.

“Practice is one thing. He is definitely in good shape rightnow. But it’s different when you practice and when you’replaying.”

‘The League Is Tougher and Tougher’

Jagr, the three-time scoring champion who has been frustrated byhis own inability to locate open ice this season, warned Lemieuxthe game isn’t the same one that he once dominated.

“The league is tougher and tougher, the guys are getting biggerand stronger, it’s not going to be easy and he knows that,” Jagrsaid. “Those players are fighting for their jobs, and it’stough.”

Lemieux is coming back partly because he considers the Penguinsa Stanley Cup contender, but they aren’t playing like it. They havelost their last five home games, their longest such streak sincethey lost seven in a row in 1983-84 — the season before theydrafted Lemieux.

“I think anyone who comes back from such a period of notplaying hockey, you need help from your teammates,” Jagr said.“The way we’re playing right now, I don’t know if we can help him much. He’s going to be on his own.”