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For so many years, Mario Lemieux held the captaincy of the Pittsburgh Penguins franchise. Then, when Lemieux retired from the game, it was expected that his successor, Ron Francis, would hold that title until he, too, would hang up the skates for good.

But a funny thing happened to the Pittsburgh Penguin organization - something called financial instability - which forced Francis to leave the club through free agency and put a question mark as to who would become the next captain in team history.

The logical choice would have been the Penguins' Mario Jr., otherwise known as Jaromir Jagr. Jagr is supposed to lead the Penguin franchise to future glory, just like Super Mario did once before. But as the wild and crazy Czech wonder kid has grown up as the understudy to Lemieux and Francis, many wondered if his attitude had grown up with him.

Too many times last season the weight of the Penguin franchise fell on Jagr's shoulders, and too many times the 26-year-old right winger let the team down. The most memorable of those occasions came near the end of the regular season when Jagr fumed and fussed over new head coach Kevin Constantine's defensive system and his line combinations. The attitude Jagr gave off sounded a lot like a whining prima donna hockey player the league has been so inclined to develop over the past couple of years.

That's why the naming of Jagr as the new Penguin captain before this season raised more than a few eyebrows. Questions of his leadership ability flooded the Civic Arena like a newly laid sheet of ice.

But as the 1998-99 season unfolds, it doesn't look like naming Jagr captain has been a bad move after all. The Pens are near the top of the Eastern Conference in terms of wins and points, and there doesn't seem to be any controversy in the Penguin dressing room.

Jagr could give the hockey world a good once-over and say "I told you so." But Jagr's been quite the gentlemen about people questioning his leadership ability. He's even admitted that he might have been a little bit of a pain in the butt in years past.

"Well, I was kind of, I would say, the troublemaker; that is what I have to change," Jagr said. "When I didn't play well; when I wasn't happy with myself -- I didn't quit, but I was screaming. I was uninterested in whatever I did on the ice or whatever the team did.

"I would say I changed that because a lot of players, a lot of young players, look up to me, and I cannot afford it right now because they look up to me."

Jagr was lucky to begin his career with the likes of Lemieux and Francis on his team and in the room everyday. As far as role models go, there just aren't many better in all of sports. Lemieux was a great leader by example. He was quiet and reserved in the dressing room, but on the ice Mario showed his team how to get the job done.

Francis, on the other hand, picked up where Lemieux left off in the dressing room and on the bench. He's a vocal leader who always seems to have time to help other players with problems or complaints. He can also get his team fired up and ready to play in a big game.

Jagr said he tends to be more like Lemieux and lead by example. And so far this season, he's done just that. He leads the Penguins in scoring with 35 points (eight goals) in 24 games. His 35 points also puts him among the league leaders.

"I would say I am more like Mario (as a leader)," Jagr said. "I am not talking too much during the game. I am not talking before the game to the guys. I am trying to lead by example."

One reason he might not be talking too much is because of his background. Coming over to Pittsburgh from the Czech Republic at the age of 17 made it hard for him to learn the English language. There was a time, it seemed, when the only words he knew were Kit-Kats and blue jeans.

Jagr's English has improved dramatically during his eight-plus seasons in the league, but he still might find it hard to put his thoughts into a rah-rah kind of speech that the likes of Vince Lombardi used to make. It also doesn't help that over a dozen of his teammates speak foreign languages, either.

At one time, having Europeans as captains of NHL teams was sacrilege, but times have changed. There's even a European captaining the Toronto Maple Leafs - Super Swede Mats Sundin. Jagr said he doesn't find any added pressure being put on him because he's a European.

"I think the North American players and North American fans, they kind of started respecting the European players and it is not like it used to be when I first came here," he said. "When I came here, I was the first European ever to play for the Pittsburgh Penguins and everybody looked at me differently. I couldn't speak English, all that kind of stuff, but I think during the eight or nine years it has changed a lot."

Jagr's game has also changed a lot this season from in previous years. The two-time Art Ross Trophy winner said he considers himself as a passer, not a scorer. Statistics are backing him up. He scored 62 goals during the 1995-96 season, 47 the season after that, but he dropped down to 35 last year and has scored just eight goals in 24 games so far this season.

Jagr's stats are slowly becoming ironically close to Colorado's Peter Forsberg, who has been known to be more of an assist man over his career despite possessing an incredible shot and excellent moves. But Forsberg has one thing Jagr doesn't - people that can pass to him and create some room for him. Now that both Lemieux and Francis are gone, Jagr said he's found it tougher to score goals.

"Of course it is tougher for me," he said. "I was used to skating free on the boards and getting the puck with speed and play one-on-one. I don't have many opportunities this year. The other teams, they cover me very well, but on the other hand, if I am going to play smart -- and I always will -- I should find my teammates and they should be free out there because the other teams, they try to cover me with two guys. If you look around, there should be one guy open always. That is what I am trying to do right now."

Players like Martin Straka and Stu Barnes are reaping the benefits of Jagr's new style of game. Straka has 14 goals in 24 games, while Barnes has 12. Straka had a total of 19 goals all of last season.

With Jagr leading a resurgent offense including Straka, Barnes, the newly acquired Alexei Kovalev and others, the Penguins seem to have a firm grasp on a playoff spot again this season. A lot of their success has to be attributed to Jagr's fresh outlook on the Penguins and Constantine's style of play.

"I think we got a pretty talented team," he said. "I'd say we have a lot of underrated players and the names maybe don't tell anything to anybody, but they are very good players. And all you need is patience and somebody that can score goals."

Jagr seems to have found a little bit of both.

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