Former Capital Jaromir Jagr had a merry Christmas. Now, the fourth greatest goal-scorer in NHL history is turning his focus back to hockey and scoaring moar goals.
On Saturday, Jagr signed into his Twitter account for the first time in four years to challenge Alex Ovechkin. Ovi is currently breathing down Jagr’s neck on the NHL’s all-time goals list.
“Merry Christmas to you all,” Jagr wrote. “My job as a Santa is finish [so sic] for this year, so I can concentrate on hockey now. Look out Ovi8 😀”
Merry Christmas to you all. My job as a Santa is finish for this year, so I can concentrate on hockey now. Look out Ovi8 😀 pic.twitter.com/ZnOiZBtCYg
— Jaromir Jagr (@68Jagr) December 25, 2021
Jagr finished his NHL career in 2017-18 with 766 career goals. Ovechkin, after scoring 22 goals in his first 31 games of his age 36 season, now trails Jagr by only 14 tallies – a number he’d likely hit in January or February if he keeps his current pace.
While Jagr is absolutely joking about Ovechkin, he is not about playing more hockey. The 49-year-old legend continues to take the ice for the Czech Extraliga team he owns, HC Kladno, because he fears the team will be forced to fold if he doesn’t.
“I have a responsibility to the club, otherwise I wouldn’t fly here and I wouldn’t be making a fool of myself. But if I quit, the partners and sponsors would leave and the club may be done. I have no choice.”
The 49-year-old forward said that on top of the responsibility of being the owner of the club, he’s also continuing to play for his father, who passed on the majority ownership of Kladno to him in 2011.
“As long as my father breathes, I take the club as my responsibility,” he said. “He held it for 20 years. As a son, I would be embarrassed if I left.”
Jagr turns 50 in February.
In November 2020, a more serious Jagr shared that he believed Ovechkin would not only pass him on the all-time goals list, but eventually Wayne Gretzky as well.
“Earlier I thought Ovechkin doesn’t have any chances to break Gretzky’s goal record,” Jagr said then. “It was six years ago. But Alex has changed and became a better and more effective hockey player than he was in [his] youth. I think he works harder now. He’ll be able to [break Gretzky’s record] if he can stay healthy and keep working as hard as now.”
Photo: @68Jagr/Twitter
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