sports: WI: Healthy Mario Lemieux

The hockey great Mario Lemieux is indisputably a legend, who led Pittsburgh to greatness in 1991 and 1992. But in 1993, his awful health issues robbed him of the chance to play many games, including causing him to not play again after that season until 1995. He retired in 1997, and the Penguins nearly went bankrupt immediately afterwards in 1998; but Lemieux again was pittsburgh hockey's salvation, buying the team. However, if he had remained a healthy player through the '90s, would he still have bought the Penguins? And by extension, would Pittsburgh even have a hockey team? When teams go bankrupt, it is not uncommon for them to be sold away to play in different cities.
 
As I recall it, the skids got greased mightily to allow Lemieux to buy the franchise and keep it Pittsburgh IOTL. Absent his retirement and hey presto, you have the Seattle Thunderbirds or Houston Aeros in the NHL--and a revival of the old AHL Pittsburgh Hornets playing to perhaps 3000 per game.
 
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