Mario Lemieux: Penguins are catching up to Steelers

The city of Pittsburgh is home to a lot of sports champions, and those teams are competing to best each other. The Steelers are the most successful NFL franchise with six Super Bowl wins. The Pirates, despite their recent struggles, have won five World Series. The Penguins don’t have the most championships in NHL history, but they’re closing the gap on the Steelers now that they’ve won five Stanley Cups.

That point isn’t lost on Mario Lemieux, who is proud that the Penguins are getting closer to earning as much respect in the city as the Steelers have.

“I think it means a lot,” Lemieux said of the Penguins winning their fifth Stanley Cup. “The Steelers have been the team in town for many years, but I think the Penguins are getting pretty close now with the fifth one, so that’s pretty cool.”

Lemieux’s been a huge reason for Pittsburgh’s success. He won consecutive Stanley Cups as a player in ’91 and ’92, and three more as an owner. Given their strong core of players, it seems likely that they can add to their growing success and legacy.