At 43 years old and over 20 years experience as a professional hockey player, Jaromir Jagr figured he’d been given a common courtesy usually extended to veterans when their dealt.
In all his years, and with all his experience, Jagr assumed that New Jersey Devils president and general manager Lou Lamoriello would have communicated with the sure-fire Hockey Hall of Famer prior to pulling the trigger on the trade that sent him to the Florida Panthers on Thursday.
“He didn’t even ask me. So, it was kind of shocking for me,” Jagr said of the trade in a post-game press conference on Saturday. “It’s the third time I’ve been traded during the season, and when you’re a little bit older I felt that if there were any offers Lou was going to come to me. From what I understand the offer was so good for him that he had to say yes (right away without consulting me.)”
For the Kladno, Czech Republic native it was a surprise that the Devils didn’t confer with him, but that hasn’t changed his attitude about arrive in sunny Florida.
“It’s like a new life,” Jagr said. “I’ve played the game for so many years, and counting those games in Europe, I think I’ve played the most games any hockey player has ever played. So, I got a lot of experience. There’s a lot of young guys (here), and it makes me excited (to play) a little more.”
As for his debut, things couldn’t have started on a much better foot for the NHL veteran with his new team taking down the Sabres in his first game in the lineup.