TheStatican
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- Mar 14, 2012
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It's well know that Mario Lemieux missed a lot of games over the course of his career due to injuries and illness, in total he missed almost exactly 1/3rd of all possible games he could have played in - 915 of 1382 and this doesn't included the seasons he skipped entirely. What is less well know is the number of partial games he played in and how much game time he lost in those. All combined those games only amount to a comparably small faction of his lost game time. However it is arguably just as important to consider this lost time since it means that some of his marks were achieved in less time than people are generally aware of.
Here's a listing of all his missed games in every season of his career. For each instance I've listed the following;
- game & date of the occurrence
- the circumstances which cause the missed game time. Keep in mind "game time" is not to be confused with ice time
- the total missed game time or estimate there of
- and lastly but most importantly, documented proof of the lost time either in the form of press releases or actual video footage from the game. Since most of the links provided are behind paywalls I included screenshots from them - if your quick you can capture it before the page content is blocked.
1984-85
none documented
1985-86
none documented
1986-87 -1 period
1) Game 32 - December 20, 1986 vs Flyers
- Forced to leave the game early in the 3rd period after spraining his knee in a collision with Flyers center Ron Sutter. This injury also caused him to completely miss the next 14 games.
- Did not play in close to 20 minutes of game time
www.upi.com
1987-88 -4 periods in total
1) Game 14 - November 5, 1987 vs Islanders
- Forced to leave the game in the 1st period after suffered a bruised right shoulder when he was checked into the boards by Alan Kerr. Kerr was assessed a boarding penalty at 17:37 of the 1st period.
- Did not play in 42 minutes of game time
www.latimes.com
2) Game 57 (Team game 60) - February 19, 1988 vs Oilers
- Left the game after being struck in the face by a slapshot with 34 seconds remining in the first period. Gretzky was ironically also injured in this game at 4:35 of the first. It appears this was first time in 9 seasons that Gretzky missed a large chunk of ice time in a game he played in.
- Did not play in just over 40 minutes of game time
www.upi.com
www.latimes.com
1988-89 -6 periods/2 games in total
1) Game 11 - Oct 30, 1988 vs Rangers
- Left the game at 03:41 of the 3rd period after being slashed in the throat/upper chest by David Shaw.
- Did not play in just over 16 minutes of game time
2) Game 13 - November 3, 1988 vs Nordiques
- Forced to leave the game after spraining his wrist in the 1st period. He was out on the ice for at least one of the two goals Quebec scored in the 1st based on his -1 rating, the earliest of which came at 7:59 so the injury could not have happened before then. This injury also caused him to completely miss the next 2 games.
- Did not play in between 40(min) and 52(max) minutes of game time
www.upi.com
www.nytimes.com
3) Game 14 (Team game 16) - November 10, 1988 vs Leafs
- In his first game back from the wrist injury which cost him 2 full games Lemieux only played on the powerplay. Even strength and short handed points constituted 60% of his point totals that season so this in essence is equates to the loss of 60% of his normal game time.
- Equates to missing 36 minutes of game time
www.latimes.com
4) Game 15 (Team game 17) - November 12, 1988 vs Kings
- Things get a little complicated here. In his second game back from injury he again "only on power plays in the first period, a little more than that in the second period and a little more still in the third period" He doesn't play any even strength or PK minutes in the 1st period and then the team gradually ramped his ice time up. A reasonable estimate is that he played between 33% to 50% of his normal ES&PK time in the 2nd and between 50% to 100% of his normal ES&PK time in the 3rd. That means he was not available for somewhere between 50 to 75% of his normal ES&PK game time which as noted constituted 60% of his point totals.
- Equates to missing between 18(min) to 27(max) minutes of game time
www.latimes.com
1990 Playoffs -1 periods
Game 4, round 2 - April 24, 1989 vs the Flyers
- Forced to leave the game after colliding with teammate Randy Cunneyworth early in the 3rd period.
- Did not play in close to 20 minutes of game time
www.sun-sentinel.com
1989-90 -half a game
1) Game 58 - February 14 1990 vs Rangers
- Forced to leave the game during the 2nd period due to serve back pain. This is one of Lemieux's two most well-known lost partial games, since it ended his 46-game point streak. His only shifts in the 2nd period were a "54-second shift to start the period and two power plays." In the first period Lemieux appeared to be in pain and "each time left after a short shift in which he showed little mobility." Lemieux would ultimately miss the next 21 games and only return to play in the final game of the season as the Penguins had one final chance of getting into the playoffs.
- Did not play in at least 30 of game time but more likely 40+
www.upi.com
theathletic.com
1990-91 -3 periods/1 game
1) Game 4 (Team game 54) - February 2 1991 vs Bruins
- Forced to leave the game early in 2nd period due to a pulled groin muscle injury. This injury also caused him to miss the following game.
- Did not play in 35 minutes of game time, but also had limited ice time in two of his three previous games
www.latimes.com
www.nytimes.com
1991 playoffs -2 periods
Game 7, round 1 - April 15, 1991 vs the Devils
- Forced to leave the game at the end of the first period due to back spasms. This issue would reoccur in the finals and cost him one full game (gm 3).
- Did not play in just over 40 minutes of game time
1991-92 -almost 3 periods/1 game
1) Game 7 - October 19, 1991 vs Rangers
- Left the game with 8:58 to go in 3rd period due to back spasms. This injury also caused him to completely miss the next 3 games.
- Did not play in 9 minutes of game time
2) Game 42 (Team game 49) - January 28 1992 vs Jets
- Forced to leave the after the 1st period due to back spasms. This injury also caused him to completely miss the next 6 games.
- Did not play in 40 minutes of game time
www.upi.com
www.tampabay.com
1992 Playoffs -almost 3 periods/1 game
Game 2, round 2 - May 5, 1992 vs Rangers
- Left the game at 05:05 of the 1st period after a 2-handed slash/chop by Adam Graves broke his wrist. This injury also caused him to completely miss the next 5 playoff games.
- Did not play in 55 minutes of game time
1992-93 -6 periods/2 games in total
1) Game 13 - November 3 1992 vs Islanders
- Left for the locker room twice due to an apparent issue with his skates but was more likely a back related issue.
- Did not play in approx. 5 minutes of game time
2) Game 19 - November 13 1992 vs Red Wings
- Left the game at 15:16 of the second period due to a bruised heel. Interesting tidbit about this blowout - The Pens were only losing 0-3 at that point, after Lemieux left the the Wings proceeded to score 3 times in the next 4 minutes and twice more in the third leading to the massive blowout.
- Did not play in about 25 minutes of game time
www.latimes.com
3) Game 39 (Team game 40) - January 2 1993 vs Rangers
- Left the game with about five minutes remaining due to back stiffness, didn't want to take any chances with "the game in hand."
- Did not play in 5 minutes of game time
www.tampabay.com
4) Game 40 (Team game 41) - January 5 1993 vs Bruins
- Played in just one period because of back problems. Left the game 8 and 1/2 minutes into the second period but he did not have any ice time in the second.
- Did not play in 40 minutes of game time
www.tampabay.com
5) Game 40 (Team game 65) - March 2 1993 vs Flyers
- In his first game back from radiation treatments Bowman limited his ice time at least initially and "only used him for four even-strength shifts in the first period (the first one lasted 12 seconds)."
- Equates to missing approx. 5 minutes of game time
6) Game 40 (Team game 66) - March 5 1993 vs Rangers
- In his second game back from radiation treatments Lemieux only played a total of 6 minutes, specifically only on the powerplay. Even strength and short handed points constituted 2/3rds of point totals that season so this in essence is equal to missing 2 periods. In reality it actually cost him a little more since by my calculations the Penguins were averaging between 8 to 9 minutes of powerplay time per game this season and Lemieux was likely out on the ice for between 90 to 95% of that PP time.
- Equates to missing at least 40 minutes of game time
www.latimes.com
1993 Playoffs: -close to 6 periods/2 games
1) Game 1, round 2 - May 2, 1992 vs Islanders
- Left the bench with back spasms 2:34 into the game after playing just one shift. This injury caused him to miss the next playoff game completely.
- Did not play in close to 58 minutes of game time
2) Game 3, round 2 - May 6, 1992 vs Islanders
- Left the ice midway through a shift with 2:26 left in the second. After the 2nd intermission ended did not return to the bench until 3:16 of the third.
- Did not play in 5:40 of game time
3) Game 4, round 2 - May 8, 1992 vs Islanders
- Lemieux was "limited to powerplay duty only in this game" and the Penguins only had 3 powerplays meaning he only played a total of 6 minutes.
- Equates to missing 40-45 minutes of game time
1993-94 -half a game
Game 4 (Team game 16) November 7, 1993 vs Ducks
- Left the ice with back stiffness halfway through the 2nd period. Would miss proceed to miss nearly half the season, the next 39 games in all, due to a reoccurrence of his back issues.
- Did not play in approx. 30 minutes of game time
www.latimes.com
1995-96
Surprisingly none. He had a brief reoccurrence of back pain in a game against the Leafs on February 12 but he did not appear to leave any games early this season.
1996-97
none documented
2000-01
none documented
2001-02 -2 periods
Game 8 (Team game 10) - October 27, 2001 vs Leafs
- Left the game after playing 6:30 in the 1st period(hip flexor) and did not return for the 2nd.
- Did not play in at least 40 minutes of game time
www.upi.com
2002-03 -4 periods
1) Game 41 - January 7 2003 vs Islanders
- Left the game in the 2nd period with a groin injury after logging four shifts and 2:50 of ice time. This injury also caused him to completely miss the next 2 games.
- Did not play in 30 to 35 minutes of game time
www.espn.com
2)Game 42 (Teams game 44) - January 13 2003 vs Bruins
- Left the game with a strained groin after playing just 6 shifts and 3:53 in the 1st period and did not return for the 2nd. This injury also caused him to completely miss the next 9 games.
- Did not play in 40 to 45 minutes of game time
www.capecodtimes.com
2003-04 -2 periods
Game 10 - November 1 2003 vs Bruins
- Left the game with a hip injury after playing 7:19 in the 1st period and did not return for the 2nd. It would be his last game of the season.
- Did not play in 42 minutes of game time
2005-06
none documented
As we see Lemieux has a very extensive injury history(this took me forever to research and compile), most of which are related to his back woes, but he's also been the victim of some notable on-ice incidents and then lastly hip and groin issues took their toll at the tail end of his career. In total there were 28 games where he left early resulting in an additional loss of an estimated 46 periods of game time(about 15 games and 1 period). Overall career-wise this doesn't make a huge difference, the numbers that are of interest though are for the 88-89 & 92-93 seasons specifically, as well as the playoffs once again in particular 1993 vs the Islanders. His missed time in 87-88(4 periods worth) could also have been interesting but it was countered by Gretzky also missing nearly an entire games worth of ice time that season as well, in his 47th game vs the Pens as noted above.
It was clear from the start when I looked at his game logs that something happened to Lemieux in 88-89. He scored 41 points in his first 12 games, which was the hottest start in NHL history and then somehow not only does he not score any points in his next two but he doesn't even register a single shot? Could that happen normally? Sure, but it was VERY unlikely and now we all know why. All in all he missed somewhere in the range of 110 to 131 minutes of game time in '89. It would be fair to say he lost about two additional games worth of ice time, meaning he put up 85 goals and 199 points in only 74 games worth of ice time, not 76. Another way of looking at it is splitting up his lost time situationally since he lost differing amounts of powerplay and even strength time. He lost about a single games worth of PP time(items 1 & 2 as noted in the 88-89 season above)and approximately another game and half more of ES and PK time. Which gives us these totals:
120 ES & SH pts in 73.5 games= 1.633ppg +79 PP pts in 75= 1.053, which all together= 2.686
Likewise in 92-93 he did not play in about 2 games worth of ice time. Meaning his stat line of 69 goals and 160 points was actually achieved in 58 games worth of ice time, not 60. His missed time in the Islander series, once again 2 games worth, also goes a very long way to explaining why his numbers were down.
Accounting for all of the above his year to year goal and point totals were achieved in approximately(rounded to the nearest period/half game) following number of games:
Regular Season
Playoffs:
I'm fairly certain that covers it but will add any more if found.
*edit another significant one found. Lemieux only played on the powerplay(a total of 6 mins) in gm 4 vs the Islanders in the 1993 playoffs. Combined with playing just one shift in gm 1, sitting out gm 2 entirely and missing some time in gm 3, he really only played in a little over 4 games in that series.
Here's a listing of all his missed games in every season of his career. For each instance I've listed the following;
- game & date of the occurrence
- the circumstances which cause the missed game time. Keep in mind "game time" is not to be confused with ice time
- the total missed game time or estimate there of
- and lastly but most importantly, documented proof of the lost time either in the form of press releases or actual video footage from the game. Since most of the links provided are behind paywalls I included screenshots from them - if your quick you can capture it before the page content is blocked.
1984-85
none documented
1985-86
none documented
1986-87 -1 period
1) Game 32 - December 20, 1986 vs Flyers
- Forced to leave the game early in the 3rd period after spraining his knee in a collision with Flyers center Ron Sutter. This injury also caused him to completely miss the next 14 games.
- Did not play in close to 20 minutes of game time
Pittsburgh Penguins star Mario Lemieux will be sidelined at... - UPI Archives
Pittsburgh Penguins star Mario Lemieux will be sidelined at least three weeks because of sparined ligaments in his right knee....
www.upi.com
1987-88 -4 periods in total
1) Game 14 - November 5, 1987 vs Islanders
- Forced to leave the game in the 1st period after suffered a bruised right shoulder when he was checked into the boards by Alan Kerr. Kerr was assessed a boarding penalty at 17:37 of the 1st period.
- Did not play in 42 minutes of game time
NHL Roundup : Penguins Lose Lemieux, Then Win Game, 4-2
The Pittsburgh Penguins said that losing star Mario Lemieux was a rallying point Thursday night against the New York Islanders, but it took them a while to show it.
www.latimes.com
2) Game 57 (Team game 60) - February 19, 1988 vs Oilers
- Left the game after being struck in the face by a slapshot with 34 seconds remining in the first period. Gretzky was ironically also injured in this game at 4:35 of the first. It appears this was first time in 9 seasons that Gretzky missed a large chunk of ice time in a game he played in.
- Did not play in just over 40 minutes of game time
dmonton Oilers star Wayne Gretzky sustained a corneal abrasion... - UPI Archives
dmonton Oilers star Wayne Gretzky sustained a corneal abrasion and minor internal bleeding in his left eye after being accidentally struck by a stick early...
www.upi.com
NHL Roundup : Gretzky, Lemieux Are Both Injured
The latest matchup between the two top players in the National Hockey League, Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux, turned out to be a short-lived affair.
www.latimes.com
1988-89 -6 periods/2 games in total
1) Game 11 - Oct 30, 1988 vs Rangers
- Left the game at 03:41 of the 3rd period after being slashed in the throat/upper chest by David Shaw.
- Did not play in just over 16 minutes of game time
2) Game 13 - November 3, 1988 vs Nordiques
- Forced to leave the game after spraining his wrist in the 1st period. He was out on the ice for at least one of the two goals Quebec scored in the 1st based on his -1 rating, the earliest of which came at 7:59 so the injury could not have happened before then. This injury also caused him to completely miss the next 2 games.
- Did not play in between 40(min) and 52(max) minutes of game time
The Pittsburgh Penguins without Mario Lemieux do not look... - UPI Archives
The Pittsburgh Penguins without Mario Lemieux do not look anything like the Penguins who are challenging for their first playoff spot since the 1981-82...
www.upi.com
SPORTS PEOPLE; Lemieux Hurts Wrist (Published 1988)
3) Game 14 (Team game 16) - November 10, 1988 vs Leafs
- In his first game back from the wrist injury which cost him 2 full games Lemieux only played on the powerplay. Even strength and short handed points constituted 60% of his point totals that season so this in essence is equates to the loss of 60% of his normal game time.
- Equates to missing 36 minutes of game time
NHL Roundup : Lemieux Returns, but Brown Is the Star as Penguins Win
Rob Brown scored 2 goals and assisted on another as the Pittsburgh Penguins ended their 3-game losing streak with a 5-1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs Thursday night at Pittsburgh.
www.latimes.com
4) Game 15 (Team game 17) - November 12, 1988 vs Kings
- Things get a little complicated here. In his second game back from injury he again "only on power plays in the first period, a little more than that in the second period and a little more still in the third period" He doesn't play any even strength or PK minutes in the 1st period and then the team gradually ramped his ice time up. A reasonable estimate is that he played between 33% to 50% of his normal ES&PK time in the 2nd and between 50% to 100% of his normal ES&PK time in the 3rd. That means he was not available for somewhere between 50 to 75% of his normal ES&PK game time which as noted constituted 60% of his point totals.
- Equates to missing between 18(min) to 27(max) minutes of game time
Gretzky, Kings Win First Round Against Lemieux, Penguins, 7-2
They packed the Forum Saturday night to see Mario Lemieux go against Wayne Gretzky: The greatest players in the game on the ice together, competing head to head.
www.latimes.com
1990 Playoffs -1 periods
Game 4, round 2 - April 24, 1989 vs the Flyers
- Forced to leave the game after colliding with teammate Randy Cunneyworth early in the 3rd period.
- Did not play in close to 20 minutes of game time
LEMIEUX MAY MISS 5TH GAME HE HAS WHIPLASH BESIDES SORE KNEE
PHILADELPHIA — Mario Lemieux, after secluding himself for nearly an hour in an off-limits room in the basement of the Spectrum Sunday night, slipped out a side door to avoid reporters. He wal…
www.sun-sentinel.com
1989-90 -half a game
1) Game 58 - February 14 1990 vs Rangers
- Forced to leave the game during the 2nd period due to serve back pain. This is one of Lemieux's two most well-known lost partial games, since it ended his 46-game point streak. His only shifts in the 2nd period were a "54-second shift to start the period and two power plays." In the first period Lemieux appeared to be in pain and "each time left after a short shift in which he showed little mobility." Lemieux would ultimately miss the next 21 games and only return to play in the final game of the season as the Penguins had one final chance of getting into the playoffs.
- Did not play in at least 30 of game time but more likely 40+
Penguins 4, Rangers 3 - UPI Archives
Paul Coffey scored twice and set up two other goals, including the game-winner by Troy Loney at 3:33 of overtime, Wednesday night to lead Pittsburgh to a 4-3...
www.upi.com
‘He had tears in his eyes’: On the night Mario Lemieux’s back stopped him from catching Wayne Gretzky
On the night Mario Lemieux couldn't play through the pain any longer.
theathletic.com
It was also noted that his back soreness was limiting his ice time during that season. But since TOI wasn't tracked there is ofc no way of knowing or confirming exactly how much his ice time was reduced by. For the purposes of this thread there doesn't seem to have been any other games where he missed a large block of time or left a game early that season.
1990-91 -3 periods/1 game
1) Game 4 (Team game 54) - February 2 1991 vs Bruins
- Forced to leave the game early in 2nd period due to a pulled groin muscle injury. This injury also caused him to miss the following game.
- Did not play in 35 minutes of game time, but also had limited ice time in two of his three previous games
NHL ROUNDUP : Lemieux Suffers Another Injury
Mario Lemieux's comeback will have to be put on hold.
www.latimes.com
PRO HOCKEY; Hot Blues Too Much for Devils (Published 1991)
1991 playoffs -2 periods
Game 7, round 1 - April 15, 1991 vs the Devils
- Forced to leave the game at the end of the first period due to back spasms. This issue would reoccur in the finals and cost him one full game (gm 3).
- Did not play in just over 40 minutes of game time
1991-92 -almost 3 periods/1 game
1) Game 7 - October 19, 1991 vs Rangers
- Left the game with 8:58 to go in 3rd period due to back spasms. This injury also caused him to completely miss the next 3 games.
- Did not play in 9 minutes of game time
2) Game 42 (Team game 49) - January 28 1992 vs Jets
- Forced to leave the after the 1st period due to back spasms. This injury also caused him to completely miss the next 6 games.
- Did not play in 40 minutes of game time
Lemieux out 2 more weeks with back injury - UPI Archives
Pittsburgh Penguins All-star center Mario Lemieux is expected to miss up to another two weeks with a herniated muscle in his back, according to team...
www.upi.com
Essensa blanks Pens; Lemieux injured again
Bob Essensa stopped 38 shots for his fourth shutout of the season Tuesday night as the Winnipeg Jets beat the slumping Pittsburgh Penguins 4-0.
1992 Playoffs -almost 3 periods/1 game
Game 2, round 2 - May 5, 1992 vs Rangers
- Left the game at 05:05 of the 1st period after a 2-handed slash/chop by Adam Graves broke his wrist. This injury also caused him to completely miss the next 5 playoff games.
- Did not play in 55 minutes of game time
1992-93 -6 periods/2 games in total
1) Game 13 - November 3 1992 vs Islanders
- Left for the locker room twice due to an apparent issue with his skates but was more likely a back related issue.
- Did not play in approx. 5 minutes of game time
2) Game 19 - November 13 1992 vs Red Wings
- Left the game at 15:16 of the second period due to a bruised heel. Interesting tidbit about this blowout - The Pens were only losing 0-3 at that point, after Lemieux left the the Wings proceeded to score 3 times in the next 4 minutes and twice more in the third leading to the massive blowout.
- Did not play in about 25 minutes of game time
NHL ROUNDUP : Red Wings Rebound to Rout Penguins, 8-0
After an embarrassing performance in Tampa two days before, the Detroit Red Wings came alive Friday night.
www.latimes.com
3) Game 39 (Team game 40) - January 2 1993 vs Rangers
- Left the game with about five minutes remaining due to back stiffness, didn't want to take any chances with "the game in hand."
- Did not play in 5 minutes of game time
Lemieux hurts back in Penguins' win
Bob Errey scored twice as the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Boston Bruins 6-2 Tuesday night in a game in which Mario Lemieux play just one period because of back problems.
4) Game 40 (Team game 41) - January 5 1993 vs Bruins
- Played in just one period because of back problems. Left the game 8 and 1/2 minutes into the second period but he did not have any ice time in the second.
- Did not play in 40 minutes of game time
Lemieux hurts back in Penguins' win
Bob Errey scored twice as the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Boston Bruins 6-2 Tuesday night in a game in which Mario Lemieux play just one period because of back problems.
5) Game 40 (Team game 65) - March 2 1993 vs Flyers
- In his first game back from radiation treatments Bowman limited his ice time at least initially and "only used him for four even-strength shifts in the first period (the first one lasted 12 seconds)."
- Equates to missing approx. 5 minutes of game time
6) Game 40 (Team game 66) - March 5 1993 vs Rangers
- In his second game back from radiation treatments Lemieux only played a total of 6 minutes, specifically only on the powerplay. Even strength and short handed points constituted 2/3rds of point totals that season so this in essence is equal to missing 2 periods. In reality it actually cost him a little more since by my calculations the Penguins were averaging between 8 to 9 minutes of powerplay time per game this season and Lemieux was likely out on the ice for between 90 to 95% of that PP time.
- Equates to missing at least 40 minutes of game time
NHL ROUNDUP : Lemieux Struggles in 3-1 Loss
Friday night in New York, Mario Lemieux struggled.
www.latimes.com
1993 Playoffs: -close to 6 periods/2 games
1) Game 1, round 2 - May 2, 1992 vs Islanders
- Left the bench with back spasms 2:34 into the game after playing just one shift. This injury caused him to miss the next playoff game completely.
- Did not play in close to 58 minutes of game time
2) Game 3, round 2 - May 6, 1992 vs Islanders
- Left the ice midway through a shift with 2:26 left in the second. After the 2nd intermission ended did not return to the bench until 3:16 of the third.
- Did not play in 5:40 of game time
3) Game 4, round 2 - May 8, 1992 vs Islanders
- Lemieux was "limited to powerplay duty only in this game" and the Penguins only had 3 powerplays meaning he only played a total of 6 minutes.
- Equates to missing 40-45 minutes of game time
Not to be confused with Lemieux's missed games but I found it interesting that his running mate Stevens also missed about an entire extra games worth of ice time in both the regular season and playoffs in 1992-93 which makes his numbers look better too. Meaning he scored 111 points and 55 goals in 71 games, not 72 and followed it up with 16 points in really only 11 playoffs games.
Game 14 November 5, 1993 vs Blues
- Left the game after playing 1 minute
- Did not play in approx. 59 minutes of game time
1) Game 7, round 2 - May 14, 1992 vs Islanders
- And of course there was the horrific injury he suffered 5 minutes into game 7 of the playoffs verses the Islanders
- Did not play in 55 minutes of game time
Game 14 November 5, 1993 vs Blues
- Left the game after playing 1 minute
- Did not play in approx. 59 minutes of game time
1) Game 7, round 2 - May 14, 1992 vs Islanders
- And of course there was the horrific injury he suffered 5 minutes into game 7 of the playoffs verses the Islanders
- Did not play in 55 minutes of game time
1993-94 -half a game
Game 4 (Team game 16) November 7, 1993 vs Ducks
- Left the ice with back stiffness halfway through the 2nd period. Would miss proceed to miss nearly half the season, the next 39 games in all, due to a reoccurrence of his back issues.
- Did not play in approx. 30 minutes of game time
Penguins Simply Are Too Tough : Ducks: Even with Lemieux off of the ice, Pittsburgh is able to hold on for a 5-4 victory.
It's one thing to get ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins, another to stay there.
www.latimes.com
1995-96
Surprisingly none. He had a brief reoccurrence of back pain in a game against the Leafs on February 12 but he did not appear to leave any games early this season.
1996-97
none documented
2000-01
none documented
2001-02 -2 periods
Game 8 (Team game 10) - October 27, 2001 vs Leafs
- Left the game after playing 6:30 in the 1st period(hip flexor) and did not return for the 2nd.
- Did not play in at least 40 minutes of game time
Toronto 4, Pittsburgh 0 - UPI Archives
Mats Sundin scored twice to snap a six-game goalless streak and Curtis Joseph recorded his second consecutive shutout Saturday night to give the Toronto...
www.upi.com
2002-03 -4 periods
1) Game 41 - January 7 2003 vs Islanders
- Left the game in the 2nd period with a groin injury after logging four shifts and 2:50 of ice time. This injury also caused him to completely miss the next 2 games.
- Did not play in 30 to 35 minutes of game time
Islanders 6-3 Penguins (Jan 7, 2003) Game Recap - ESPN
Expert recap and game analysis of the New York Islanders vs. Pittsburgh Penguins NHL game from January 7, 2003 on ESPN.
2)Game 42 (Teams game 44) - January 13 2003 vs Bruins
- Left the game with a strained groin after playing just 6 shifts and 3:53 in the 1st period and did not return for the 2nd. This injury also caused him to completely miss the next 9 games.
- Did not play in 40 to 45 minutes of game time
Hrdina goal extends Bruins' losing ways
BOSTON — Jan Hrdina scored the game-winning goal with 5:58 remaining and Sebastien Caron made 31 saves to lead the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 2-1 victory over the Boston Bruins last night. \n Hrdina sco…
www.capecodtimes.com
2003-04 -2 periods
Game 10 - November 1 2003 vs Bruins
- Left the game with a hip injury after playing 7:19 in the 1st period and did not return for the 2nd. It would be his last game of the season.
- Did not play in 42 minutes of game time
2005-06
none documented
As we see Lemieux has a very extensive injury history(this took me forever to research and compile), most of which are related to his back woes, but he's also been the victim of some notable on-ice incidents and then lastly hip and groin issues took their toll at the tail end of his career. In total there were 28 games where he left early resulting in an additional loss of an estimated 46 periods of game time(about 15 games and 1 period). Overall career-wise this doesn't make a huge difference, the numbers that are of interest though are for the 88-89 & 92-93 seasons specifically, as well as the playoffs once again in particular 1993 vs the Islanders. His missed time in 87-88(4 periods worth) could also have been interesting but it was countered by Gretzky also missing nearly an entire games worth of ice time that season as well, in his 47th game vs the Pens as noted above.
It was clear from the start when I looked at his game logs that something happened to Lemieux in 88-89. He scored 41 points in his first 12 games, which was the hottest start in NHL history and then somehow not only does he not score any points in his next two but he doesn't even register a single shot? Could that happen normally? Sure, but it was VERY unlikely and now we all know why. All in all he missed somewhere in the range of 110 to 131 minutes of game time in '89. It would be fair to say he lost about two additional games worth of ice time, meaning he put up 85 goals and 199 points in only 74 games worth of ice time, not 76. Another way of looking at it is splitting up his lost time situationally since he lost differing amounts of powerplay and even strength time. He lost about a single games worth of PP time(items 1 & 2 as noted in the 88-89 season above)and approximately another game and half more of ES and PK time. Which gives us these totals:
Games | G | A | Pts | per/gm | |
| Even Strength | 73 1/2 | 41 | 61 | 102 | 1.39 |
| Short Handed | 73 1/2 | 13 | 5 | 18 | 0.24 |
| Power Play | 75 | 31 | 48 | 79 | 1.05 |
| Totals | 85 | 114 | 199 | 2.69 |
Likewise in 92-93 he did not play in about 2 games worth of ice time. Meaning his stat line of 69 goals and 160 points was actually achieved in 58 games worth of ice time, not 60. His missed time in the Islander series, once again 2 games worth, also goes a very long way to explaining why his numbers were down.
Accounting for all of the above his year to year goal and point totals were achieved in approximately(rounded to the nearest period/half game) following number of games:
Regular Season
Year | Gms | G | A | Pts | GPG | PPG |
1984-85 | 73 | 43 | 57 | 100 | 0.59 | 1.37 |
1985-86 | 79 | 48 | 93 | 141 | 0.61 | 1.78 |
1986-87 | 62 2/3 | 54 | 53 | 107 | 0.86 | 1.71 |
1987-88 | 75 2/3 | 70 | 98 | 168 | 0.93 | 2.22 |
1988-89 | 74 | 85 | 114 | 199 | 1.15 | 2.69 |
1989-90 | 58 1/2 | 45 | 78 | 123 | 0.77 | 2.10 |
1990-91 | 25 | 19 | 26 | 45 | 0.76 | 1.80 |
1991-92 | 63 | 44 | 87 | 131 | 0.70 | 2.08 |
1992-93 | 58 | 69 | 91 | 160 | 1.19 | 2.76 |
1993-94 | 21 1/2 | 17 | 20 | 37 | 0.79 | 1.72 |
1995-96 | 70 | 69 | 92 | 161 | 0.99 | 2.30 |
1996-97 | 76 | 50 | 72 | 122 | 0.66 | 1.61 |
2000-01 | 43 | 35 | 41 | 76 | 0.81 | 1.77 |
2001-02 | 23 1/3 | 6 | 25 | 31 | 0.26 | 1.33 |
2002-03 | 65 1/2 | 28 | 63 | 91 | 0.43 | 1.39 |
2003-04 | 9 1/3 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 0.11 | 0.96 |
2005-06 | 26 | 7 | 15 | 22 | 0.27 | 0.85 |
Playoffs:
Year | Gms | G | A | Pts | GPG | PPG |
1988-89 | 10 2/3 | 12 | 7 | 19 | 1.13 | 1.78 |
1990-91 | 22 1/3 | 16 | 28 | 44 | 0.72 | 1.97 |
1991-92 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 34 | 1.14 | 2.43 |
1992-93 | 9 | 8 | 10 | 18 | 0.89 | 2.00 |
1993-94 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 0.67 | 1.17 |
1995-96 | 18 | 11 | 16 | 27 | 0.61 | 1.50 |
1996-97 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 0.60 | 1.20 |
2000-01 | 18 | 6 | 11 | 17 | 0.33 | 0.94 |
*edit another significant one found. Lemieux only played on the powerplay(a total of 6 mins) in gm 4 vs the Islanders in the 1993 playoffs. Combined with playing just one shift in gm 1, sitting out gm 2 entirely and missing some time in gm 3, he really only played in a little over 4 games in that series.
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