Calgary Flames: Signing Jaromir Jagr Never Made Sense
The Calgary Flames and Jaromir Jagr are close to ending a forgettable marriage
From the moment Jaromir Jagr signed with the Calgary Flames, many questioned if it was the right fit for the player and the club. It was a puzzling move by the Flames to sign a 45-year old winger, given how the team needed to develop its young core and weren’t considered Stanley Cup contenders this season.
Adding him would be the type of move a championship contender would do to help add scoring depth to the roster. In most cases, it’d make sense to add Jagr if a team lost a key player among their top-six forwards and couldn’t easily replace them.
More from Puck Prose
- Detroit Red Wings 2023 Rookie Camp Has Plenty of Ups and Downs
- This Columbus Blue Jackets rookie doesn’t want to be forgotten
- 2 trades the Boston Bruins must make to secure the Stanley Cup
- 3 reasons the Avalanche won’t win the Stanley Cup in 2024
- This is a big year for Alex Turcotte and the Los Angeles Kings
There’s also the novelty act idea where a losing team could bring him in to help sell tickets as fans would come to see the legend before he retires. Jagr could continue to chase records and sell jerseys while young prospects of the team could continue to develop in the minors.
The problem with Calgary is they sit in the awkward middle of not being good enough to be a Stanley Cup contender or a team bad enough to focus on the lottery. The team’s young players need playing time in the NHL and don’t need a 45-year old taking ice time away from their development.
Whether it’s Sam Bennett, Matthew Tkachuk, Mark Jankowski, or Garnet Hathaway, these players make up Calgary’s future and the Flames need to find out what they have in the young core. Some would argue Calgary wanted Jagr to help a player like Bennett reach the next stage in his development by pointing to his success with the Florida Panthers. Jagr, along with Aleksander Barkov and Jonathan Huberdeau, formed an excellent trio during the 2015-16 season.
However, Barkov and Huberdeau were miles ahead in their development compared to where Bennett is today. He is still trying to find his way in the NHL. Bennett doesn’t need the distraction of trying to play with Jagr while taking the ice together. He should be allowed to focus on his own game and being the best player he can possibly be at only 21-years old.
Jagr’s production appears to be something the Flames either overlooked or grossly underestimated. If a team is going to bring him in, they must understand he needs at least 15 minutes of game action and significant power play time. If a team isn’t willing to do that, it simply wouldn’t make sense to bring him in.
With only one power play point and an average of 13 minutes per game, it’s clear Calgary and Jagr were a horrible fit together. It hasn’t helped he has been hurt the majority of his time with the Flames, having played in only 22 of 45 possible games. However, it’s easy to question if even a healthy Jagr would be able to make a different impact.
Although his time in Calgary appears to be coming to an end, he should still be granted one more opportunity with another franchise. The gas tank might be close to empty but another club might be able to squeeze out whatever remaining magic exists within the legend. Jagr won’t cost much in terms of the salary cap which means whatever team gambles on him won’t have much to lose.
A contending team like the Nashville Predators or St. Louis Blues could use an addition scoring punch. The Predators haven’t replaced James Neal on the wing yet and the Blues have been enduring injuries all season. Perhaps the Pittsburgh Penguins and Jagr finally reunite for one final run at the Stanley Cup together. It’s not like Sidney Crosby hasn’t had a lot less to work with on his wings.
It also wouldn’t be unheard of to see a team well out of the playoffs like the Montreal Canadiens bring in Jagr simply to help sell tickets and jerseys. A historic hockey city like Montreal would appreciate the legend maybe more than anywhere else and it could at least provide for a positive moment in an otherwise negative season.
Regardless of if Jagr finds a new home, it was clear from the first day he was never a fit in Calgary. The future hall of famer hasn’t played in the Flames’ past six games and Calgary has won them all proving Jagr was never needed to begin.
Next: Each NHL Team's New Year's Resolution
However, just because things haven’t worked out between Jagr and the Flames doesn’t mean the legend can’t find one more home before he hangs up his skates.