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Sweeping the Steel City Lemieux fever running rampant through Pittsburgh
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Tim Piett's sporting goods store had those "Mario is Back!" T-shirts hanging around for eight years. He just couldn't unload them. It's no longer a problem. With Penguins owner and Hall of Famer Mario Lemieux formally announcing his intention Friday to rejoin the team as a player, Pittsburgh sports fans were enthusiastically buying tickets, purchasing jerseys and talking hockey like never before. Piett, the manager of Honus Wagner Co., said that, on Thursday morning, he still had 36 T-shirts from back when Lemieux returned from cancer during the 1992-93 season. On the front, they read, "The Three Most Feared Words in Hockey." On the back, they said, "Mario is Back!" Reports that Lemieux might return broke midday Thursday. By Friday afternoon, Piett had three shirts left. "This is the most exciting thing to happen in a long time in Pittsburgh," Piett said. "It's unbelievable the impact it has done so far in the day and a half since the news came up." Fan frenzy was at a fever pitch Friday. Pittsburgh newspapers led their front pages with headlines of "Mario Returns" and "Mario's Back." Newscasts ran updates on Lemieux's return close to the top of the hour -- its only competition the ongoing presidential recount in Florida. Sports radio buzzed with favorable comments. Mark Anderson, the Penguins vice president of ticket sales, called Thursday "the single most important day" in the franchise's 33-year history. And this from a team that won consecutive Stanley Cups in 1990-91 and 1991-92. People calling Mellon Arena were told all circuits were busy. At midday Friday, tickets for remaining home games were selling at about 1,000 an hour, forcing the ticket office to install extra phone lines to handle the overload. Workers inside Mellon Arena said they had trouble calling each other. A line of people were at the arena box office hoping to purchase a ticket to see one of the best players ever - and one who, although he hasn't played professionally since 1997, returns as potentially the league's best player. "I think it's great," said June Seale, of Pittsburgh, who bought tickets for a game as a gift for her daughter. "We are so excited. I really think this will bring more young people to the games and maybe help us get a new arena." Eric Moore said he made three trips Friday to various ticket outlets, getting seats for six games, including a Dec. 27 game against Toronto which many believe will be Lemieux's first. Mick Killmeyer, of Allison Park, said his 16-year-old son Jonathan was on the phone all day Thursday trying to get tickets. "He thinks this is the most exciting thing," he said. "I just think it's great for the game, great for the city," Fran Saban, a man from Beechview, told KDKA-TV. Karen Ford, retail manager at Mellon Arena's Penn Station store, said Lemieux merchandise has been available since he retired from playing. Since midday Thursday, the store received 23 orders for authentic Lemieux jerseys each costing between $230 and $250. "We got calls, upon calls, upon calls," Ford said. "There is still that demand out there." Racele Watson, who takes jersey orders at the store, said she got a call from a man looking to purchase 24 replica jerseys -- 12 home and 12 road -- with Lemieux's name and No. 66 included. They cost about $130 each. Watson also said a woman from Sydney, Australia, called looking to purchase several pieces of memorabilia with Lemieux's autograph. In hockey-crazy Canada, Penguins jerseys are now hard to find. James Winkler, vice president of River City Sports in Winnipeg, Manitoba, said they will not be able to refill orders for Penguins jerseys any time soon. "I phoned [jersey manufacturer] CCM and they told me that they do not have a single [Penguins] jersey in stock, so that's not good," Winkler said. But at Primanti Bros., a well-known Pittsburgh eatery, at least one person didn't seem thrilled with the idea of Lemieux coming back. "People are wondering how much he will pay himself and whether the price of tickets are going to go up," said Robin Englehart, as she drew Cokes behind the bar.
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