| Mario Lemieux scored one of the greatest goals in Canadian international hockey history when he took a pass from Wayne Gretzky and rammed the puck past Sergei Mylnikov at 18:34 of the third period to give Team Canada a 6-5 victory in the third and deciding game of the 1987 Canada Cup finals. Lemieux's 11 goals in the tournament established a Canada Cup record and his 18 points ranked second to Gretzky's 21 in scoring that year as Lemieux earned a spot on the Canada Cup All-Star Team. Lemieux's first appearance on international ice came at the World Junior Championships in 1983. He had five goals and five assists to rank second behind Dave Andreychuk in Canadian scoring as Team Canada claimed a bronze medal that year, but Lemieux's unhappy experiences at this tournament contributed as much as his many injuries to his decision to limit his international play over the years. Lemieux was a late addition to Canada's World Championship roster in 1985 and collected 10 points in nine games as Canada settled for a silver medal after dropping the final game of the tournament 3-1 to Czechoslovakia. Lemieux turned down pleas to join Team Canada at the World Championships in 1986 and 1987, but was one of the first to accept the invitation for the 1987 Canada Cup. His play at that tournament, and the dedication to the game he learned from Wayne Gretzky, is often credited with elevating Lemieux from simply another talented performer to one of the greatest players in hockey history.Lemieux retired from competitive hockey at the end of the 1996-97 season, and remarkably after three years returned to the Pittsburgh Penguins during the 2000-01 season to tally 76 points in 43 games.Lemieux returned to the world stage captaining Canada's 2002 Olympic team to a gold medal, contributing two goals and four assists. In preparing for the 2004 World Cup of Hockey Executive Director Wayne Gretzky again named Lemieux captain and his leadership did not disappoint. Team Canada went undefeated throughout the tournament and Lemieux along with Joe Sakic was credited for helping lead a young team of upcoming stars to victory. |
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