Mario Lemieux reportedly sells minority shares in Penguins, no longer an owner of the team

For the first time since 1999, Mario Lemieux is no longer an owner of the Pittsburgh Penguins, and for the first time since 1984, he has no financial connection to the franchise. 

According to multiple reports, including the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Lemieux has sold his minority share of the team as part of the sale to the new owners, the Hoffmann Family of Companies. 

"I'm really hopeful that he will be a part of this in whatever way, shape, or form makes sense for him," said new Penguins Governor Geoff Hoffmann during the family's first public press conference in June. 

In 2021, the Lemieux Group sold the team to Fenway Sports Group, and last year, FSG sold the team to the Hoffmann Family. 

However, the relationship between the franchise legend and Fenway Sports Group was reportedly frosty, which meant once the Hoffmann Family took control, questions began to arise about whether Lemieux would be welcomed back into the fold. 

The Hoffmanns did sound optimistic in June. 

"We know what he means to hockey, we know what he means to the Penguins, we know what he means to the city, and what he means to the NHL," Geoff Hoffmann said. 

Lemieux's legacy with Pittsburgh is ironclad. He led the team to back-to-back Stanley Cup championships as a player in 1991 and 1992, and then three more as an owner in 2009, 2016, and 2017. 

In 1999, Lemieux became an owner of the team when he used deferred money he was owed as a player to help fund the sale and purchase the team out of bankruptcy. 

Under his stewardship, the team moved from Mellon Arena to PPG Paints Arena, then CONSOL Energy Center, in 2010. 

It's a resume that just about any team would want to have on board. 

"I think everybody would embrace him with open arms, especially the three of us up here," Geoff Hoffmann said. 

KDKA-TV has reached out to the Penguins for comment, but has not heard back.