Jaromir Jagr Invests in His Hometown Czech Club

Several European sources are reporting that Czech hockey superstar Jaromir Jagr is negotiating in becoming the hometown team Kladno's majority owner along with his father Jaromir Sr. It's being reported that the team may be lost from the Czech league because major sponsor Gazprom can no longer afford the team possibly losing the team's license.

Also according to the source, it is speculated that the HC Kladno team owners Gazprom may want to lure him to the KHL's SKA St. Petersburg team now that his original Avantgard Omsk contract expired.

[Via: Czech Position.com]

Crosby is More Popular Than Jagr

With special thanks to all the Pittsburgh Penguins fans who got out the vote and challenged the ballot stuffing in Quebec, Sid Crosby has now set the All-Star vote record gaining over 1 million 1 hundred thousand votes.

I don't agree with either the Penguins or Canadians who have been furiously voting to put their stars in the starting line-up. Of course, this doesn't bode well for the future of the NHL All-Star games when fans can affect the voting so drastically. The All-Stars are vastly becoming a game that features the popular stars instead of the players who work hard and deserve a position on the roster. Sergei Gonchar, who hasn't played 1 minute in this current season has scored 969655 votes thanks to the encouragement of local sports reporters and broadcasters.

As a show of fairness, maybe the NHL will come up with a compromising solution. Could the NHL have a exhibition game between the 100 Year Montreal Anniversary team against the best of the NHL young stars. That is what Montreal wants to see.

Jagr previously held the All-Star voting record, but opted to play in Russia for his last years as a pro. It would be interesting to see just what this year would result had Jagr stayed in the NHL this season instead. Would he siphon off some of Crosby's popularity?

Anyway, the best and fairest voting would be to get a system of "One-fan, One-ballot". Since the NHL Fans Association (NHLFA) is looking for something to rally around now that the lockout is over, have all fans register with them and they can take care of the ballots.

[Via: Pittsburgh Penguins Official Website]

Jagr Reaches 1,500 Points

Despite being a reviled caricature in the NHL in some cities, Jaromir Jagr was booed by his former team's fans while he was chasing down a scoring benchmark. But when asked about the fans' hostility, Jagr just shrugs off stuff like this saying

"That's okay, I don't really worry about it," he said. "As long as we win, it's good."

Yea, that is a great attitude to have in public, but I have heard from my "Washington Insider" sources that Jagr didn't always cope with things this well before.

But now that Jagr is in the city/market franchise he is happy with and surrounded by the Czech players that provide a more stable support group, Jagr finds himself in elite company now.

Jagr's feat was impressive as only three players have accomplished the milestone in fewer games. Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, and Marcel Dionne are the only men who have reached that plateau faster.

I am guessing now HHOF writers and esteemed voters are now penciling in Jagr's name for consideration for the Hall now that this personal scoring achievement has been met. Jagr's career includes two Stanley Cups and numerous MVP awards.

"It's a big honor," he said to AP." How many years has the NHL been around, 100? The best players in the world play in this league. If I can be in top 12, that's great."

[Via: AllHeadline News]

Jagr Collects #600

After being denied a goal in Pittsburgh, Jaromir Jagr was able to find the scoring touch again by putting one by Tampa Bay's Johan Holmqvist early in the first period.

"We weren't happy with our start (Saturday) and we wanted to get off to a better start," Shanahan said. "It was great Jags got his 600th right off the bat. It was a good way to start our night."

Fans could see Jagr among the league leaders in goals scored this season. His scoring touch has undergone a renaissance since adding Shanahan in the off-season. 600 goals is considered a benchmark for elite players and carries weight for that player in Hall of Fame considerations.

And for a trivia note, Jagr had also scored goal number 500 against Tampa Bay.

Hockey Goal Scoring Milestones

Two hockey players in the NHL have been in the front page headlines recently looking for Milestone goals in their career.

Jaromir Jagr scored his 600th goal this past week and Detroit's Brett Hull is trying to reach his 700th. Brett was shut out yesterday against the Colorado Avalanche and now has waited 5 games to score that elusive milestone.

Mario Lemieux needs 4 assists to get 1,000 for his career. The next game is at Boston with Regional coverage on ABC.