New Jersey Devils forward Jaromir Jagr doesn’t think the team’s recent decision to fire Peter DeBoer will make a difference unless the players start to compete harder.
“The changes have been made here [but] if us as players don’t wake up, it might not help that much,” Jagr told nj.com Saturday after the Devils named Adam Oates as the new bench boss. “Most of the things that happen here it’s our fault. I think if you’re honest to yourself, no one in this room can say, ‘I played good.’ But you have to be honest to yourself.”
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The Devils are currently seventh in the Metropolitan Division with a 12-17-7 record and after a strong start to the season they’ve lost 13 of their last 16 games.
“Obviously when you look at the standing, this franchise has had so much expectations because of the history of this franchise and winning the Cups, so it’s not easy situation for anybody,” Jagr added. “Especially it’s not an easy situation for [GM Lou Lamoriello] and he decided to make the decision and make changes. It doesn’t mean Pete is blamed for all the mess we made here. It’s us the players. We didn’t play the way we supposed to play. It’s everybody. It should be a message to us. It doesn’t matter what kind of changes are here. We have to be the first to change.”
Two weeks ago, the 42-year-old told the Bergen Record that a coaching change “would be one of the biggest mistakes they could make. To be honest with you, without our coaches and the system we play, it would be a lot worse.”
