Mario Lemieux is OK with how his statue looks. Penguins fans should be OK with it, too

Penguins legend Mario Lemieux was honored on Wednesday for his many contributions to the team--including rescuing it from obscurity as a player and bankruptcy as an owner--with a statue that was unveiled in front of the new Consol Energy Center.

It was a great tribute to one of the greatest athletes Pittsburgh has ever seen and one of the greatest hockey players of all-time.

I've never been much of a hockey guy, but I've always admired Mario for what he's done for the Penguins, and maybe more importantly, what he's done for the City of Pittsburgh. Heck, you might say Mario is to the Penguins what Babe Ruth was to the Yankees; Lemieux put the Penguins on the map and is basically the godfather of hockey in Pittsburgh.

Having said all that, however, I'm starting to get annoyed by all the radio heads and fans complaining about the statue that the Penguins finally settled on.

In-case you haven't seen the statue, it's of Mario deking out a couple of New York Islanders in a game in 1988.

A lot of critics think that the statue should have been of Mario standing by himself while hoisting the Stanley Cup or saluting the crowd after an awesome goal.

That sentiment has merit, but I like that the Penguins did something a little more abstract.

Lemieux was arguably the most physically gifted hockey player to ever wear skates, and he made a lot of guys look silly during his phenomenal career. What better way to honor him than to show him in motion?

And if you're really concerned about it, you should know that Mario is probably OK with it; that's good enough for me.

Maybe it's not the most perfect statue in the world--maybe the Penguins and the person who sculpted it could have made a more traditional choice--but one of the things I've always admired about Lemiuex is how grounded he is and how he keeps everything in perspective.

If the worst thing a person has to worry about is a statue that may not be as flattering at it could be, that person is living a pretty blessed life.

If Mario Lemiuex is fine with the statue that the Penguins dedicated to him, I'm fine with it, too.