A pair of Butler County sports legends left us recently.

Dave Hoffman, 64, of Renfrew and Tom Schneider, 65, of Zelienople died earlier this month.

Hoffman owned 299 career wins in the Late Model division of dirt track racing, earning track championships at Lernerville Speedway in 1975, 1976, 1977 and 1991.

He never gave up hope of securing his 300th career win. Upon his induction into the Lernerville Hall of Fame in 2010, Hoffman said “if the right opportunity in a decent car came along, I’d do it.”

Schneider was the manager of Zelienople in the Butler County American Legion baseball league for 20 years before stepping down after the 2009 season.

He managed in an era with Des Schnur at East Butler and Bob Steiner at Mars, when the trio combined for more than 50 years of managerial experience in the league.

Both men left legacies behind of which to be proud.

• Hasn’t this NHL lockout thing gone on long enough?

A shortened season — which hockey fans are surely in for — cheapens the whole year in terms of individual statistics and makes for an uneven schedule.

The NHL surely wouldn’t jeopardize the Jan. 1 Winter Classic, which is practically its version of the Super Bowl.

Stranger things have happened. The hockey folks already canceled a full season once.

• The Steelers get to chase RG3 all over Heinz Field this weekend.

They better catch him.

With a date at the defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants looming next week, Pittsburgh can ill afford to stumble at home.

The AFC is jumbled up right now with a bunch of teams hovering around .500. It’s not going to stay that way.

A few teams are bound to separate themselves from the pack and if the Steelers want to be along for that ride, a home win over Washington is critical.

• We can’t go wrong with this World Series.

If the Tigers win, former Pirate manager Jim Leyland can join the select few who have managed world championship teams in the National and American Leagues. Former Pirate skippers Lloyd McClendon and Gene Lamnont are on his coaching staff, as is longtime Pirate infielder Rafael Belliard.

The Giants have former Pirates Javier Lopez, Ryan Vogelsong, Xavier Nady and Freddy Sanchez on their roster.

Lopez was dealt to the Giants for pitcher Joe Martinez and first baseman-outfielder John Bowker. Sanchez went to the Giants for pitching prospect Tim Alderson.

Martinez, Bowker, Alderson ... whatever happened to those guys, anyway?

• Kudos to Bill O’Brien.

The man is proving that Penn State football is far from dead.

Effort and pride can go a long way. The boys donning the Nittany Lion jerseys are showing plenty of both.