Pro Hockey

Mario Lemieux became the highest paid player in hockey when he signed a seven-year contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins worth about $42 million.

Announcement of the deal was made by the Penguins on Lemieux’s 27th birthday and on the eve of NHL openers.

Lemieux will earn nearly twice what any other player in the NHL is making. Philadelphia Flyer rookie Eric Lindros, who will face the Penguins tonight in Pittsburgh, signed a six-year deal worth $21 million earlier this year.