Fifty-year-old hockey legend Jaromir Jagr revealed on Facebook this week that he had a scary automobile accident involving a tram and is now considering playing another season in the Czech Extraliga. It would be his 35th pro season.
According to his post written in Czech, he stopped within a half-meter of a tram moving at a high speed. He blamed himself for the accident.
"I thought [I would be dead]." he said. "I have always believed that force majeure has a hand over me, and today I have seen it again."
The idea of a superstar playing hockey into his 50s is not unprecedented. Gordie Howe played in the NHL at 52 and scored 16 goals in his final season. Jagr posted eight goals and 19 points in 43 games for the Kladno Knights last season. Negotiating a contract is not an issue because he is an owner of the team.
Jagr came to the NHL in 1990, and then won two Stanley Cups with the Pittsburgh Penguins, five league scoring titles and the Hart Trophy. He scored 766 goals and produced 1921 points in 1,733 games. But he played his first pro game in the Czech Republic when he was 16. That was in 1988-89.
To put it all into perspective, consider these facts:
* When Jagr played his first pro game, Patrice Bergeron was three years old. He's contemplating retiring this season from the Boston Bruins.
* Only a small percentage of NHLers were even born when Jagr played that first NHL game.
* The NHL only had 21 teams when Jagr played his first pro game and when he joined the NHL.
* When he played his rookie season for the Pittsburgh Penguins, he played against Hall of Fame defenseman Larry Robinson who is now 70.
* Jagr played against the late Guy Lafleur.
*When Jagr turned pro, he was from Czechoslovakia, not the Czech Republic or Czechia. The Soviet Union
* The Gas prices were 60 to 70 cents per gallon when Jagr turned pro in 1988.
* Seventeen different NHL teams have won the Stanley Cup since he turned pro. The Notebook
2. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet says Rick Tocchet is a possibility to become the Detroit Red Wings coach because GM Steve Yzerman wants a demanding coach. Yzerman and Tocchet would be an interesting pairing. They have a history. In 1998, Tocchet kneed Yzerman, resulting in Yzerman suffering a sprained MCL. At the time, then-Red Wings coach Scotty Bowman heavily criticized Tocchet for the hit.
3. The Tampa Bay Lightning’s to-do list is the same every year. They make a run at the Stanley Cup in May and June. Then, they deal with their salary cap problem in July and August. According to Capfriendly.com, the Lightning’s salary commitments are already almost $2 million over next season’s salary cap limit. That means they don’t, at least for now, have money to re-sign regulars Ondrej Palat, Nick Paul and Jan Rutta. All three will be UFAs next summer. But you know creative GM Julien BriseBois is already working on a solution.
4. Detroit Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin will be negotiating a new contract this summer and he switched agents from Kurt Overhardt to Pat Brisson. Larkin is coming off the best overall season of his NHL career. The decision seemed to catch the Overhardt group by surprise. “As with all of our clients, our work on behalf of Dylan was at the highest standard in all situations,… Overhardt said in a statement. “ We are very disappointed in his decision and the timing.…
5. Is John Tortorella the favorite for the Flyers’ coaching job? That may not be accurate but I’m told he is a serious contender.
6. The Nashville Predators have money to spend on free agents. They want a scorer for the second line and a top four defenseman. If they don’t get Filip Forsberg re-signed, they will have far greater needs and more money to spend.
7. Now that the Calgary Flames are eliminated, the clock is ticking on the re-signing of Johnny Gaudreau. Who should be more nervous – the Predators over Forsberg or the Flames over Gaudreau? In both cases, if the player doesn’t re-sign, the general manager will explaining to do.
8. Nate MacKinnon’s hat trick in Game 5 was the second in a row for an Avalanche player. Nazem Kadri scored three goals in Game 4.It was only the second time in team history two players registered hat tricks in consecutive games. The other time came in 1987 when Peter Stastny (Game 3 of 1987 DSF), Michel Goulet (Game 4 of 1987 DSF) and John Ogrodnick (Game 5 of 1987 DSF) posted three consecutive three-goal performances. The franchise was located in Quebec then.
9. The older I get the more I appreciate Calgary coach Darryl Sutter. Asked by a media member whether the best team won the series, the loveable curmudgeon said: “The best player won the series.…
10. Time for all of us, especially me, to apologize to Mike Smith for saying ad nauseum that the Oilers’ goaltending wasn’t good enough. If you look at the numbers, Smith is going to the Conference Finals with a .927 save percentage and 2.70 goals-against average. He hasn’t been perfect, but he has gotten the job done.
11 Still believe the Penguins will find a way to re-sign Evgeni Malkin, but they have every right to proceed with caution. Over the past three seasons, Malken has missed 37.9% of his team’s games because of injury.
12. Ray Sheppard turns 56 today. He scored 357 goals for eight different NHL teams. He played for the Buffalo Sabres, New York Rangers, Detroit Red Wings, San Jose Sharks, Florida Panthers, and Carolina Hurricanes. His best seasons came with the Red Wings. After signing with the Red Wings as a free agent, he scored 36 goals in 1991-92. The following three seasons he posted season totals of 32, 52 and 30 goals. On Oct. 25, 1995, the Red Wings traded him to San Jose for future Hall of Famer Igor Larionov.
13. The Dallas Stars were eliminated in the first round, but Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger leads all goalies in goals prevented above average. According to IcyData.com, he’s at 16.07 and everyone else is below 13.00. By the way, Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy is at 12.64 and Edmonton’s Smith is at 11. 92. They rank second and third, respectively.
14. The New York Rangers, with some young players on defense, have given up the most high danger scoring chances in this postseason. They have surrendered 173 in 12 games for an average of 14.3 per game. The less-than-airtight Edmonton Oilers crew have surrendered 124 high danger scoring chances in 12 games for an average of 10.4 per game. By contrast, the Carolina Hurricanes have given yielded 83 HDCA in 12 games for an average of 6.91 per game.
15. On this date, May 27, 1975, the Bobby Clarke-led Philadelphia Flyers won their second consecutive Stanley Cup championship. The Broad Street Bullies were the NHL’s most intimidating force. They were tough, dynamic and Bernie Parent was a goaltending king. No one would have guessed that the franchise would go the next 47 years without another title. Parent is 77 and Clarke is 72. And today’s Philadelphia Flyers aren't close to winning the Stanley Cup.