Just Your Average Extraliga Player

It seems almost unbelievable to write this, but the image to the left came from the Czech Extraliga preseason game between Kladno and Litvínov where 53 year-old Jaromir Jagr was back in action. The fact that Jagr is still playing for his boyhood team is pretty incredible, but this is a man who could have retired a long time ago from playing professional hockey. There isn't much else he can win nor many more records he can smash, but the passion must still burn inside Jagr as he looks to make the Kladno roster. How many people can say they're cheering for a 53 year-old winger to make the team without adding "beer league" in the question?

There's not much to show from the game as Jagr picked up one assist while on the power-play when he set up Martin Procházka with a cross-crease pass, but I found highlights on this webpage. The following is from video that Bohumil Kučera took during the game.
When the dust settled on this game, Kladno had downed HC Verva Litvínov by a 3-2 score. What should be noted is that Kladno played a lot of their younger players, and head coach David Čermák noticed how the play was affected, stating to denik.cz sports editor Rudolf Muzika, "We put a lot of young guys on and the game was unsettled, which is normal at the beginning of the season."

It should be noted that Jaromir Jagr doesn't have a contract with Kladno at this time, so he's literally putting his body on the line if he's hoping to make the team. If you recall, Czech businessman Tomáš Drastil bought 80% of the Kladno Knights this past January, and he vowed to bring more of the younger hockey players from Czech teams around Kladno to the Knights. While there are a number of younger players with Kladno in the preseason, it will be interesting to see if the Drastil and sports manager Tomáš Plekanec follow through with that idea once the Czech Extraliga season starts in September.

Assuming they do, Kladno's average age will certainly go down, but it will be interesting to see by how much if Jagr can play his way onto the roster. There are clearly no guarantees since he no longer is the majority owner of the club, but having 2000 people show up for a meaningless preseason game is never a bad thing. One can't argue that Jagr isn't still a draw despite being 53 years-old, so keeping him around for his leadership, his experience, his hockey wisdom and knowledge, and because he puts fans in stands might not be a bad idea for Kladno to consider... assuming Jagr wants to play.

Based on the video above, he clearly still has the hands and the vision needed to play at a high level. He doesn't have the speed he once did nor will he drag a defender with him as he drives the net, but Jaromir Jagr looks like he'll be a solid player in the Extraliga at 53.

That's something I never expected to write at the start of August.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!