PITTSBURGH - Mario Lemieux never planned to be a long-term team owner when he and his backers bought the Pittsburgh Penguins in federal bankruptcy court in 1999.

Lemieux's intent wasn't entirely philanthropic, either, when he became American pro sports' first owner-player by purchasing the team he led to two Stanley Cup championships in the 1990s. While he preserved the franchise, he also protected the nearly $30 million in deferred money owed him by its previous owners.

So the news that San Jose, Calif.-based investors, led by venture capitalist William "Boots" Del Biaggio III, are planning to buy a majority stake in the Lemieux-owned NHL team is hardly a surprise.

Once a new NHL labor agreement is reached, probably within weeks, owning an NHL franchise will no longer be a guaranteed way of quickly shedding disposable income. The new agreement seems certain to fix salary costs within an affordable limit - the so-called "cost certainty" commissioner Gary Bettman has wanted for years - and should allow owners who don't run their franchises like fantasy teams to make a profit.

Lemieux's group has operated in a fiscally prudent manner, shedding debt and avoiding the deficit-creating megacontracts like that once signed by Jaromir Jagr. At the same time, it also lacked capital - so much so that every player except Lemieux with even a marginally large contract was shed (Jagr, Martin Straka, Alexei Kovalev), resulting in a rapid deterioration of the on-ice product. In just three years, the Penguins went from being a Stanley Cup semifinalist (2001) to the league's worst team (2004).

That's one reason Lemieux never envisioned himself chairing a board of directors meeting in 15 years, even if he might be looking at a favorable profit-loss statement instead of a dreadful won-lost record. Only a year ago, he said, "I'm not going to be in this business forever."

Many team ownership sales, especially when they involve a franchise that has been bankrupt twice in its 38-year history, are viewed skeptically by the public. But while the new group has no ties to Pittsburgh except the 37-year-old Del Biaggio's friendship with the 39-year-old Lemieux, that doesn't guarantee the Penguins will be packing for Portland, Kansas City or Houston if the sale is completed.

First, creating the base of loyal and knowledgeable fans Pittsburgh already possesses would take years to replicate in a non-hockey city, once the initial wave of I've-gotta-see-this curiosity has passed. The Penguins played before crowds in the 90 percent-plus capacity range for 15 years, and there is no NBA franchise in town to compete for ticket sales, advertising revenues, suite leases or wintertime newspaper space.

Rather, the threat to the Penguins' longtime existence in Pittsburgh isn't new ownership but, just as it has been since Lemieux bought the team, the lack of a new arena.

Mellon Arena, at age 44 the NHL's oldest, smallest and least fan-friendly venue, is a mere shell of the far more attractive buildings located three hours to Pittsburgh's west (Columbus), 3½ hours north (Buffalo) or 4-5 hours east (Washington, Philadelphia). Once the NHL returns, the Penguins' revenue gap with other clubs will be even greater without the tiers of money-producing luxury suites and concession and merchandise concourses prevalent in nearly every other NHL arena.

For more than two years, the Penguins have targeted slot machine legalization as a way to generate the non-tax dollars needed to sway public support and construct the arena. They hope that even if they themselves don't get the license to build a downtown Pittsburgh slots parlor, the group that does will be pressured into building the arena with part of the slots revenue.

So, no matter where the Penguins' owner lives, the franchise's future rests with the arena issue. Once the Penguins' Mellon Area lease expires in 2007, their owner is free and clear to move the franchise wherever he wants. Moving the franchise would be exponentially easier if that owner's last name is not Lemieux - perhaps another reason for the owner-player-Hall of Famer to sell now.

"I'm not going to scream and yell at everybody," Lemieux said a year ago. "I'll just go quietly and protect my interests and protect my partners. Not to warn anybody, but I've told everybody that the clock is ticking."