It was the first year in which Jaromir Jagr really became an NHL offensive superstar.
The 21-year-old Czech winger scored 94 points during the 1992-93 regular season and showed the world that he was ready to dominate the League in the near future. But from his own point of view, he recalls that year almost as if it was a disaster, and not only because it was his first NHL season that didn't finish with a Stanley Cup raised above his head.
"I'd rather erase that season from my memory," Jagr wrote in his Czech biography 'From Kladno to America.' "Until Christmas, I just fought myself. And January was even worse. I scored just three goals during that month and one of them was an empty-netter."
In Jagr's opinion, the only two good things that happened during the 1992-93 campaign were attending the NHL All-Star Game in Montreal and meeting former U.S. President Ronald Reagan, who had been a secret idol of Jagr's growing up in communist Czechoslovakia.
In the book, Jagr spoke about issues between him and legendary coach Scotty Bowman.
"I felt like I was in a pressure cooker and it was just a matter of time when I was going to blow up," he wrote. "The thing was that I did not play. Scotty gave me just about two or three shifts per period. I almost did not play any power plays and I got sick and tired of sitting on the bench."
After he earned his second Stanley Cup in his first two years in the NHL with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1992, Jagr set his personal goal for the next season - to score at least 100 points.
"I did not achieve that goal and it felt disappointing," said Jagr, who later won five Art Ross Trophies as the League's leading scorer and a Hart Trophy as the League's most valuable player.
But while Jagr himself does not like to recall the 1992-93 season, he still finished it with 25 more points than the previous year. And for Czech fans, 1992 was the year when Jagr's popularity really started to spread all over the country.
After Jagr's excellent performance in the 1992 Stanley Cup Playoffs, more and more people back home were ready to watch Jagr's magic dekes and moves during late night's broadcasts from North America. He drew more Czech attention to the NHL than any other person before and turned most Czech hockey fans into Pittsburgh Penguins fans.
for me and i think for most ppl the hockey boom, for fans in Czech republic was after Nagano, the olympic games, where Czech republic won the tournament. Everyone knew Jagr and Hasek after that. I personally didn't really care much about Jagr since he was number one for pretty much everyone, all changed previous year in Flyers, thats when i started to love hockey again.
Old man and the Stars: Jaromir Jagr embraces leading role in Dallas
pretty good article about JJ
Quote:
It was past 10 o'clock on Tuesday night, and the Dallas Stars were going through the usual postgame routine. Some players rode stationary bikes in the middle of the visitors' dressing room at Joe Louis Arena, pushing so hard they were out of breath. Others stretched on the floor.
Jaromir Jagr's postgame routine includes a weighted vest and media scrums. And then there was Jaromir Jagr.
Out in the hallway – where equipment guys loaded gear into a truck parked indoors, where arena workers pushed carts of beer into a huge cooler, where reporters scurried to the media room to file their game stories, where all sorts of family and friends and hangers-on gathered to catch a glimpse of backstage glamour – Jagr did his own thing, as he always does.
He wore a weighted vest. He wore weights on his ankles. On the grungy concrete floor, along the spartan cinderblock wall, he did deep-knee bends. He did lunges from side to side. He did sprints.
--
Jagr walked into the dressing room, his hair a wet mop, sweat dripping through his salt-and-pepper stubble. He did an interview with a Czech TV crew and a couple of North American writers. Some of his teammates stared.
"This one's not much," Jagr said, looking down at his weighted vest. "Twenty-five pounds."
So there are heavier ones?
"I've got 45 [pounds]," he said. "I've got to wait. Before playoffs."
Just got my Jagr jersey in. I always told myself that I would never buy one of the current Stars unis but alas, I have one now..
Yea, I ordered one right after he was signed. I would have gotten it signed at the icebreaker, but there was a 1 item limit. So, I had him sign a Jagr Flyers jersey I had instead. But, maybe I'll find some other way to get it signed.
(the name panel looks brighter than the shirt, but it's just because of the flash from the camera)
DALLAS, Texas - Dallas Stars forward Jaromir Jagr has not had to share a hotel room in more than 15 years, but he had to the other night with a total stranger.
It was mostly the young guys who shyed away from rooming with one of the best players in NHL history. That left the team's director/producing of TV broadcasting, Mark Vittorio.
"He was actually a really good sport about it," Vittorio said. "We talked a little tennis and it was fine. The only problem might have been that I snore."
I asked Jagr if Vito's snoring was indeed a problem.
"Oh, (bleeping) unbelievable," he said. "I feel bad for his wife."
i can't find any word on the injury yet, just this:
Quote:
Jagr left with an undisclosed injury in the third period of Thursday's loss to the Blackhawks, the Associated Press reports. ''I don't think it's anything big, but I haven't spoken to our training staff,'' Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said.
A Jagr groin injury could be bad, but i believe he experienced the same injury in the Czech league, missed a game or two and came back on fire so i wouldn't worry about it too much. Although, it is something to be concerned about, i think the groin slowed him down last season
Yes, that's all I could find on Google as well.,..
The new rule is practice can only go an hour right? We should know any minute if he's on the ice, and I imagine an injury update would come right after the practice is completed.
Maybe rest him on Saturday, let him get healthy for the return of Benn. Maybe Benn and Jagr can hang out and watch the game together on saturday with soda and popcorn
If I may be a little cynical I'd say that now that Benn is signed, Jagr will get over it. He could win Worlds' full of stars with a broken finger in his 30s, I'm sure he can give it a shot tomorrow with Loui and Benn. I don't mean to say "let's use Jagr, he can do it" but that I think he himself would love to play despite that injury. As he stated many times last year, he wants to play as much as possible considering how closer his retirement seems to be every day
According to Czech press, it started on tortuous return from Detroit. A hours of waiting for aircraft then 4 hours in air and 2 hours in bus. No time for practice. JJ is old school, he needs to practice. And there it is, back problems and fatigue.
I personally didn't really care much about Jagr since he was number one for pretty much everyone, all changed previous year in Flyers, thats when i started to love hockey again.
