The reeling New Jersey Devils made a move today that would have made ESPN break into it's Worlds Strongest Man coverage, if it were still 1996. The Devils have signed the artist formerly known as Jaromir Jagr.
New Jersey is certainly still trying to fill the hole left by the sudden retirement of Ilya Kovalchuk. Kovalchuk decided to go to play in Russia after most of the top NHL costless agents had already been signed. The Devils needed to make a move to fill the gap that is left. This is not that move. However, Jagr is a well seasoned pro at 41 whose experience and skill can still contribute to the Devils if used properly. The Devils will likely not be able to fill the void left by Kovalchuks departure until after this season, or maybe later. The Devils are not deluding themselves to think they can just plug Jagr in and have him be Kovalchuk at this point in his career. But Jagr will play a role on the team and work with other players already on the team such as Patrick Elias to help the team offense.
There is no word as of yet if any of the $70 million Kovalchuk left on the table when he left for Russia will be used to find the fountain of youth for Jagr. If it is, they could really have something here.