Jagr has big plans in the future for Penguins, addresses rumors of his retirement

Former NHLer Phil Bourque recently caught up with his old Pittsburgh Penguins teammate Jaromir Jagr recently and, lucky for us, he shared the details of his visit with Sportsnet NHL insider Elliotte Friedman.

Among the things discussed were Jagr's potential retirement from professional hockey and his hopes and wishes for the Penguins to retire his #68 in a special announcement in Jagr's home country of Czechia.

From Friedman's latest 32 Thoughts column for Sportsnet:

Jagr, who will be 51 on Feb. 15, is still going, with 40-year-old Tomas Plekanec also on the team. “He knows his name is so tied to that team, not just as an owner, but for the sponsors,” Bourque said. “Because once he leaves, the big sponsors leave. That’s part of why he’s hanging on. But, also I wanted to plant that seed with him, that you are loved in Pittsburgh. I just want you to close your eyes for a second and imagine what that night’s going to be like. You know Mario is going to be there. That night of putting number 68 up in the rafters right next to 66.”

Was he amenable to it? Will it happen? “Yeah it’s going to happen.” Bourque said they talked in late December. “I said, ‘Hey, the Penguins are thinking maybe April. He said, ‘I haven’t retired yet.’ That was his thing, once (he) retired, (he’ll) be all for it.”

Bourque added what Jagr really wants is for the Penguins to come to Prague one more time. “He said, ‘I would love to have that moment with the team here, do a puck drop, announce my retirement then and maybe a couple weeks later, come back to Pittsburgh and put the jersey in the rafters.’ That’s his vision, his dream.” We should do everything we can to make it happen.

- Elliotte Friedman

Jagr has always said that he planned on playing until he's 50 years old and he turns 51 next month. Is it finally time to pack it in? He has one goal and seven points in 11 games with Kladno this season, playing in the top Czech league.