Calgary Flames Monday Roundtable: First week of the 2017-18 season

Question 6: While Jaromir Jagr isn’t the fastest guy anymore, does he still look like he can help the Calgary Flames in other ways?

Jonathan Boulanger

For sure. His game against Ottawa on Friday was great. Call me crazy but I think he was our best player that game. Nobody can touch him when he has through puck and he’s still so strong he always wins his puck battles and I have yet to see him turn the puck over in the offensive zone. He’s getting in better shape and more comfortable with the team too so I think he will be useful for the team.

Ian Gustafson

I think Jagr can be a big help on the power play and using his big frame to play physical around the net. He still has great hands and excellent puck protection. As well as helping out all the young guys on the team sharing all of his wisdom.

Tomas Oppolzer

Definitely! He’s never been a player that relied on speed. His hockey sense is other-worldly though. Look no further than his play vs. the Kings when he used his stick to push Bartkowski into the D-zone allowing Bart to make a good defensive play.

On top of that, his ability to hold onto the puck, and his board work in general, is still amazing. (he also got his first point as a Flame and that’s real neat!)

Here’s his first point:

Ben Prokopy

Yes, but at what cost? I’ve always thought that Jagr’s value is as a mentor. He cannot be expected to be the offensive juggernaut he once was. As such, he is very clearly sharing his experience with the rest of the team. During the Sens game, the camera caught him communicating with Bennett and Versteeg. That type of conversation is invaluable.

However, clearly, Jagr needs time to get his legs under him. Having missed training camp (and being 45 years old), he is clearly the slowest guy on the ice not wearing goalie pads.  At some point, that may get costly. Certainly, the best way to get him acclimated is to put him in game situations.  But until he is fully tuned in, he prevents the team from rolling 3 full and effective lines.

Related Story: Hey Jaromir Jagr, you're really old

And, frankly, his postgame media quips about his lack of readiness don’t exactly fill me with confidence.

Dan Raicevich

Give Jaromir Jagr time, he’s already making an impact in the locker room and on the ice. He picked up his first point on Saturday and was an offensive impact on Friday with four shots on net. He is starting to get some chances and his puck possession skills are being shown.

For a 45 year old who barely trained over the summer, it is safe to fully evaluate the player at the midway point of the year.

Ramina Shlah

Like Tomas said, while he’s not as fast as he once was, he can still help in other ways…

He’s helped a lot with mentorship and basically every practice, you see him talking to the younger players and giving them tips. While I do think that the Calgary Flames should have waited maybe waited another week before he joined the lineup (he looked really tired in the game against the LA Kings whenever he was done a shift), it hasn’t been hurting the Flames having him in the lineup, so that’s good to get his legs going.

And in the game against the Vancouver Canucks, the Flames were completely out-chanced, but Jagr was one of the only players who had over 50% CF% and generated a few scoring chances. He signed at a cheap price and he’s been a good leader. And how could you not love having an absolute legend on the team?

Next: New Flames fan? We've got you covered!

That’s all for our virtual roundtable discussion! Who’s been the biggest disappointment for you on this Calgary Flames team so far this season?