Top 35 Mario Lemieux Quotes (2025 Update)

1. “Every day is a great day for hockey.”

— Mario Lemieux

2. “When someone screams at me to hurry up, I slow down.”

— Mario Lemieux

3. “I don’t order fries with my club sandwich.”

— Mario Lemieux

4. “I can no longer play at a level I was accustomed to in the past.”

— Mario Lemieux

5. “One thing I hate is people screaming at me. If you want me to do something, talk to me. When someone screams at me to hurry up, I slow down.”

— Mario Lemieux

6. “Oh, I did stop smoking a long time ago.”

— Mario Lemieux

7. “Red wine is a great accompaniment to meat.”

— Mario Lemieux

8. “I think we have to show some pride in the jersey that we are wearing, and can’t quit.”

— Mario Lemieux

9. “Since the beginning, I always loved the game. When you grow up in Montreal, one day you want to be a professional hockey player. When I was six or seven, I knew that was what I wanted.”

— Mario Lemieux

10. “I’m sorry I didn’t feel any better or play any better, but that’s what happens at the end of careers.”

— Mario Lemieux

11. “I think people in Montreal smoke a lot, and I used to smoke when I was 17-18, and just picked it up when I was playing juniors. But I think I stopped when I was 22, which was a big decision in my life.”

— Mario Lemieux

12. “Hockey is a tough, physical game, and it always should be.”

— Mario Lemieux

13. “When it comes to hockey, it’s been in my blood since I was 3 or 4 years old. I love coaching the kids, especially at that level.”

— Mario Lemieux

14. “I have two main reasons for retiring. The first is I can no longer play at a level I was accustomed to in the past. That has been very, very frustrating to me throughout this past year. The second one is realizing my health, along with my family, is the most important thing in the world.”

— Mario Lemieux

15. “All I can say to the young players is, enjoy every moment of it. Just enjoy every moment of it. Your career goes by very quickly.”

— Mario Lemieux

16. “My son, he is the reason I got involved. It’s been a joy to be around him and teach him the stuff that I know, and to the other kids as well. When he started playing I wanted to be involved in his hockey career. It’s a lot of fun for both of us.”

— Mario Lemieux

17. “I’ve gone through back surgery a couple times, and of course, my radiation treatments for six weeks got me to the point where I was not able to play at the level that I was accustomed to.”

— Mario Lemieux

18. “Once I’m at the arena with the guys in the dressing room, and in the bus, and on the plane, I’m a player. And I sit in the back with the players and I play cards and try to take their money.”

— Mario Lemieux

19. “I didn’t like the way the game was being played.”

— Mario Lemieux

20. “Of course, my family has been a big reason for me to come back, especially my son who loves the game of hockey – he was a big reason for me coming back.”

— Mario Lemieux

21. “I think the game has opened up, and that’s why I decided to come back and try to be a part of it.”

— Mario Lemieux

22. “I think the lottery changed everything for us. Once we got Sidney, it helped us turn this franchise around overnight.”

— Mario Lemieux

23. “I didn’t speak English until I came to Pittsburgh.”

— Mario Lemieux

24. “He’s only 4 years old, so I don’t think he realized, you know, that I played so many years. Of course, we watch tapes here from the Stanley Cup years, but I don’t think he realized how many years I played.”

— Mario Lemieux

25. “When I’m able to see the ice ahead of time when I get the puck, I’m able to make some pretty good plays.”

— Mario Lemieux

26. “It was great to play with some of my old linemates.”

— Mario Lemieux

27. “For as long as I can remember I wanted to be a professional hockey player.”

— Mario Lemieux

28. “Everybody I talked to – from my friends to my family and some of the players – really gave me a lot of support from the start. And that certainly made me feel good about trying to come back and be one of the best again.”

— Mario Lemieux

29. “I don’t try to match wine with food, I just drink what I like. And I think a lot of people are going towards that now, which never used to be in the past.”

— Mario Lemieux

30. “Well, I think just a desire to come back and be a part of the game again.”

— Mario Lemieux

31. “My body’s feeling it a little bit. But one good thing, my back is in good shape, and that’s my main concern. I know that my legs are going to take awhile to get back to where I was a few years ago, but as long as my back is solid, I feel that I can play many years.”

— Mario Lemieux

32. “Since the beginning, I always loved the game.”

— Mario Lemieux

33. “Certainly we’re not satisfied with just winning games. We’ve been playing some pretty good hockey, but we think we can play much better.”

— Mario Lemieux

34. “As I’ve said, in 2007, we’re free to go and we’ll just have to do what’s best for the business.”

— Mario Lemieux

35. “The first few games that we played against some of the teams, the young guys, you know, want a stick sign or photo sign, and I think that they respect what I have achieved throughout my career.”

— Mario Lemieux