Where will Jaromir Jagr go next after parting ways with Panthers?
As NHL free agency opens on Saturday, let’s give a warm welcome back to #JagrWatch.
Jagr’s agent, Petr Svoboda, told TSN’s Pierre LeBrun that the 45-year-old-forward will not be back with the Florida Panthers, ending his two-and-a-half season tenure in South Florida.
There was interest in re-signing Jagr, who scored 16 times and recorded 46 points last season despite linemates Jonathan Huberdeau and Aleksander Barkov missing time due to injury, but it was clear that general manager Dale Tallon preferred a salary lower than the $4 million plus bonuses he earned in 2016-17.
FA 1994- all GMs called , FA 2017- 0 calls pic.twitter.com/7uLJm95CAB
— Jaromir Jagr (@68Jagr) June 29, 2017
Huberdeau and Barkov were great linemates for Jagr as the trio combined for 58 even strength points over the last three seasons. Despite his age, Jagr has shown he can still be a productive part of a lineup and power play in the right situation. Since being dealt to the Panthers in Feb. 2015, no Florida forward averaged more ice time with the man advantage (2:43) than Jagr, and only Barkov scored as many power play goals as the mulleted one (15).
Jagr, who has said he wants to play beyond age 50, will not only provide some production for whatever team he lands with next, but also some marketing power.
Here’s the current list of milestones that Jagr is chasing:
• 35 goals from 800 in his NHL career (37 away from passing Gordie Howe for second all-time).
• 21 games away from moving into third all-time (1,732).
• 21 assists from moving into fourth place all-time.
• 86 points from being only the second player in NHL history to reach 2,000.
Jagr’s next team will get to promote all of that that plus, you know, the breathless updates about the continued growth of hockey’s greatest mullet. Also, there will need to be tryouts for the newest member of the Traveling Jagrs.
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Sean Leahy is the associate editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Sean_Leahy