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| hittingzone |
I’ve listened to both sides, pro and con, of the Jaromir Jagr situation now and I’ve come to the conclusion that I don’t want him here.
Jagr was supposed to be in Pittsburgh yesterday and never made it due to flight delays at JFK airport. He missed Shero’s deadline yesterday to give a definitive answer on whether he’ll become a Penguin again. Some reports today say he’s in New York, other’s say he’s at Wimbledon. This almost seems like some kind of publicity stunt that’s reminiscent of the game “Where’s Waldo?”
But, even if it isn’t, Jagr seems to be pulling “The Diva” card by making the Pens wait for their answer on his timeline.I admit, I was young and really unaware of him the first time around but, I’ve heard a lot of talk about how much of a problem he used to be for the Penguins and I’d hate to have any immaturity, drama or narcissism that he might bring to Pittsburgh disrupt the good thing the team has going.
I think this team has enough big talent, egos and leadership without bringing in someone who could really wind up being a wild card. Granted, Jagr is one of the best players the team’s ever seen, but, with that said, is he really needed? I guess we’ll find out…maybe.
If Jagr does sign with the Penguins tomorrow, he’d better be worth every shiny penny of the $2 million he was offered for the 2011-2012 season. To be honest, I’d much, much rather see some of that money be put into Mike Rupp’s pocket, who is keeping his options open for free agency tomorrow. Rupp turned down a two year offer from the Pens yesterday. I’m not sure how much they offered him exactly, but it must have been below what he deserves, which is a shame considering there’s more than enough to go around. (Especially if they would have tacked on the $775,000 they gave to Aaron Asham.)
I’m not going to lie, I’m a bit anxious to see what tomorrow brings.
Lori Pometo
The longer this goes, the worse and worse its looking for the pens and jagr's image in pittsburgh. He HAS to know though that if he signs with pittsburgh, has an pretty good season (ill take 50 points for $2 million) and retires a penguin, he'll have a great, long-lasting image in the minds of penguin fans who will easily forget the washington trade debacle. We would probably see his 68 jersey hang from the rafters at consol after a few years too. If he signs somewhere else though for more money, he's gonna get booed every time he touches the puck when he visits pittsburgh. If someone offers him some ridiculous contract a la ryan malone then i guess i wouldnt blame him for not signing, but if he takes detroit or montreal or whoever over pittsburgh for a matter of less than $1 mill it would leave a sour taste in a lot of pens' fans' minds.
ReplyDeleteand i wouldnt may mike rupp a dime over $750k a year. he didnt impress me at all last year when he had a TON of opportunity on the PP and such when geno and sid were out. yeah, hes a big body than can stand in front of them net but so can tangradi. yeah, hes a tough guy than can fight but so can engelland.
ReplyDeleteanonymous,
ReplyDeleteI for one will not be willing to forgive him for his pre-trade behavior for less than a 200 point season.
Lori,
I agree with this article wholeheartedly. I never wanted him back, but now I really don't want him back. He said he wanted to come back and play for the Pens. Now he stringing us along. That shows me he has not matured the way everyone wants to give him credit for and he still just as narcissistic as he was early in his career. I'm really pulling for Detroit at this point since I think that would make him the ultimate villain in this town.