Bench Life Sports

Since Free Agency began on July 1st, we’ve seen a lot of big names sign in new places. Kevin Shattenkirk signed a 4 year contract with the New York Rangers, Patrick Marleau signed a 3 year deal with the Leafs, but one of the most prolific names in the history of the NHL remains without a new home. 

45 year old Jaromir Jagr is still waiting to find his new team for next season, but in the meantime here are three teams that would make sense for the veteran winger.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Who wouldn’t like seeing Jagr return to the where he spent the first 11 seasons of his career? Playing with the Penguins from 1990 to 2001, Jagr would score 1079 regular season points, good enough for 2nd in franchise history. Obviously, his production has dropped, but Jagr still managed to score 46 points (16 G, 30 A) last season. He would be able to provide the Penguins with a relatively cheap depth forward, likely on a 1 year deal. Jagr has previously said he plans to play until he’s 55, but age has to catch up to him eventually. If this is the end, then it is fitting that his Hall of Fame career ends in the same city where it began 27 years ago.

Vegas Golden Knights

What better way for a team to draw fans to a new franchise than by signing one of the best players of all time? In addition to some added interest, Jagr provides some additional leadership to a very young team. While winning one more Stanley Cup might be a reason why Jagr would stay away from Vegas, it wouldn’t be the worst place to live. And after playing in Florida for the last few years, I bet that he wouldn’t mind avoiding some of those cold winters that everyone playing in Edmonton and Winnipeg have to deal with.

Calgary Flames

Now I know I was just saying “Why would Jagr want to deal with cold Canadian winters?” but there’s a chance that he might not have a choice. The Flames have been rumoured to be interested in signing Jagr, and based on what Jagr is saying it might be his only option. Could we see him playing on the top line with Sean Monahan and Johnny Hockey? Or maybe on a line with his another Czech player in Michael Frolik? It would be interesting to see him on a Canadian team for the first time in his career, and Calgary is a team on the rise. Jagr could help push this team back to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2004

Things sure have changed since 1994, and Jagr is set to change jerseys once again in his NHL career. Hopefully. But if Jagr remains unsigned, could the ECHL become an option? The Florida Everblades sure hope so.