Out first instance comes 23 years ago when it was announced that Penguins legend and franchise hero Mario Lemieux would come out of retirement to rejoin the Penguins. Lemieux had retired in 1997 after a pile of injuries had somewhat slowed him, but the introduction of the trap combined with the clutching and grabbing to slow stars down in the 1990s took its toll on the Penguins' superstar.
In 1992, he called the NHL a "garage league" which earned him a $1000 fine, but he didn't mince words about the direction of the league's play, stating in a Sports Ilustrated article, "The advantage is to the marginal players now. They can hook and grab, and the good players can't do what they're supposed to do."
After battles with intense back pain, his non-Hodgkins lymphoma scare, and the premature birth of his son, Austin, Lemieux decided that the time had come where if he couldn't do what he loved doing - playing hockey unobstructed - he would retire. Knowing his plans, Penguins owner Howard Baldwin arranged a meeting with Brian Burke, the NHL director of operations, and commissioner Gary Bettman about his concerns over how the game was being called.
Lemieux told reporters,
"It's to the point where it's not hockey anymore. It's like football on skates. The best teams win in basketball because the players can run up the court without carrying two guys on their backs. Not so in hockey. That's why there are so many teams with mediocre records. [Opposing players] grab you whether you have the puck or not. It's the worst it's been since I've been in the league. [Burke and Bettman] agreed. They always agree when you're there. It's very, very aggravating. You keep getting promises, and they aren't kept."With no changes on the horizon, 1996-97 would be Lemieux's last season skating in the NHL as he retired just as he had threatened, walking away from the game with a sour taste in his mouth despite being idolized by so many fans and players.
However, 44 months after he had left the game, Lemieux had a change of heart. Quietly, there had been rumblings that Lemieux had liked some changes implemented by the NHL to open up the game, and there were whispers around the Penguins' front office that the man who bought the Penguins in 1999 may suit up again for the very team that he owned. On December 7, he released a statement indicating his intent to return to the ice, and on December 11, 2000, he stood before reporters and said it out loud.
On December 27, 2000, #66 officially returned to the ice. As seen above, Lemieux's return saw him score a goal and add two helpers as the Penguins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs by a 5-0 score. While the Penguins still had problems off the ice financially as they tried to steady the ship from their 1998 bankruptcy filing, the fans flocked to Mellon Arena to see Super Mario once again as his comeback at age 35 started on this very day in 2000.
And that brings us to the other Penguins player who had himself a night this evening. There's no doubt that the Penguins have had incredible defenders suit up for them over the years - Larry Murphy, Ulf Samuelsson, Paul Coffey, Kevin Hatcher, Sergei Zubov, Erik Karlsson and Darius Kasparaitis to name a handful - but the name from this Penguins era that stands atop them all is Kris Letang.
We've seen Letang do incredible things for the Penguins over the years, but, like Lemieux, he's a dedicated family man who has a history of complicated medical issues that have limited his time on the ice at points. Letang has suffered at least two strokes in his hockey-playing career, and there's some fear that any further issues along those lines may derail his career entirely.
Letang has been playing as well as we've seen him play over the last few years, and that came to a head tonight as he set all sorts of records against a team that Mario Lemieux terrorized for years: the New York Islanders. With the game tied 0-0 early in the second period, the Penguins exploded for goals, scoring six in the period to take a 6-0 lead. Along the way, Letang had assists on the final five goals of the period, and that put him into the NHL record books!
With the offensive outburst that saw Letang pick up those five helpers, he became the first defenseman in NHL history to record five points in a single period, and just the second player to ever record five assists in a period! He also broke the Penguins' franchise record of most assists in a single period, one-upping the likes of Mario Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr, Paul Coffey, Ron Stackhouse, and Syl Apps who had four assists in one period while wearing Penguins' colours!
Letang wasn't done there, though, as he'd add a sixth assist on the lone goal scored by the Penguins in the third period which tied a franchise record for most helpers in a single contest as he put his name alongside Greg Malone, Ron Stackhouse, and Mario Lemieux in the Penguins' record books. He also tied the NHL record for most assists by a defenseman in one game that's been done six times, most recently by Calgary's Gary Suter on April 4, 1986 against the Edmonton Oilers. That a 37-year gap between tonight's achievement and Suter's achievement!
I'm not here to predict that Kris Letang will be a Hockey Hall-of-Famer like Lemieux is, but it seems the offensive defenceman is on his way to being one of the best point producers from the blue line in modern hockey history. Add in his three Stanley Cup wins, his 2023 Masterton Award, his international awards, his incredible junior career, and his devotion to charitable organizations away from the rink, and it seems like December 27 was a big day for one current Hall-of-Fame Penguin and one future Hall-of-Fame Penguin.
Will we see some additional magic from a Penguins player next December 27? It's possible with the likes of Crosby, Malkin, Karlsson, Guentzel, and others still lighting the lamp for the Penguins for the foreseeable future!
Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!
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