Glory Days During the 1960s the NHL made a bold move and expanded from six teams to 12 One of the new clubs was placed in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania The NHL knew Pittsburgh was a good hockey town A minor-league team called the Hornets already played there and fans all over the city supported them Pittsburgh’s owners went to the fans to pick a name for the team Thousands of suggestions flooded in The winner was Penguins Some say it was because the club played in an arena that fans had nicknamed the Igloo That may be true although igloos are found in the Arctic while penguins are found in the Antarctic The Penguins built their team with experienced players including Andy Bathgate Ab McDonald Ken Schinkel Bryan Watson and Leo Boivin Pittsburgh’s goalie was 6
Les Binkley In his first year he allowed fewer than three goals per game and was second in the league with six shutouts The Penguins were headed for the playoffs until Binkley broke his hand They fell short by one victory In the years that followed the Penguins brought younger talent to the ice Michel Briere was one of the top rookies in the NHL in 1969 70 He led Pittsburgh to the postseason for the first time A year later Briere’s life was tragically cut short by a car accident The Penguins found more good young players in Greg Polis Dave Burrows Pierre Larouche Lowell MacDonald Jean Pronovost Rick Kehoe and Randy Carlyle Their best player during the 1970s was Syl Apps Jr His father had been a star for the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1930s and 1940s Apps MacDonald and Pronovost played together on Pittsburgh’s Century Line In the late 1970s the Penguins traded for veterans but this strategy didn’t work For six years in a row during the 1980s the Penguins failed to reach the playoffs The news wasn’t all bad In 1984 Pittsburgh chose Mario Lemieux with the first pick in the LEFT Les Binkley gave the Penguins great goaltending in their early years ABOVE Syl Apps Jr learned to play hockey from his famous father 7
NHL draft Lemieux was bigger and stronger than most players Yet he could skate pass and shoot like someone half his size Opponents were helpless to stop him The Penguins built a great team around Super Mario Their stars included Jaromir Jagr Kevin Stevens Paul Coffey Bryan Trottier Ron Francis Larry Murphy and goalie Tom Barrasso Pittsburgh won the Stanley Cup in 1991 and again in 1992 Unfortunately Lemieux was slowed by health problems including a bout with cancer a heart condition and back and hip injuries Jagr however blossomed into a superstar In 1995 96 the two combined to form the league’s most dangerous scoring duo Lemieux retired a year later LEFT Mario Lemieux played through injuries and illness to become one of the greatest players in NHL history ABOVE Ron Francis helped the Penguins win two Stanley Cups 9
