A year ago there was much furore over Jaromir Jagr's return to the NHL. The prolific scorer eventually signed a one-year deal with the Philadelphia Flyers.
This year however, Jagr quietly, without any fuss, made his decision to sign for Dallas. The Stars inked the coveted right-winger to a one-year $4.55 million contract.
Jagr, 40, had 19 goals and 35 assists for Philadelphia last season, totalling 54 points, and was highly coveted by some of the teams during this offseason.
Dallas Stars general manager Joe Nieuwendyk was understandably thrilled to land Czech Republic forward. "Jaromir Jagr is, without a doubt, one of the best players in the history of this league, and he demonstrated last season that he remains incredibly skilled, productive and valuable," Nieuwendyk said.
"We see him fitting into our top two lines and contributing heavily to our offensive attack. We're very excited about adding a player of Jaromir's caliber to our club.
"I don't think there's any question he still has game in the tank. He had a terrific season with Philadelphia.
"He's still a world-class player. For us to bring a player like that to our franchise is a big deal."
Dallas have already added Derek Roy, Aaron Rome and Ray Whitney during the offseason and have further strengthened their roster with the signing of Jagr.
Jagr spent three seasons with Avangard Omsk in the Russian Kontinental Hockey League, before returning to the NHL with Philly.
The 40-year-old has had a stellar career and leads all active players with 655 goals and 988 assists for a total of 1,653 points.
A two-time Stanley Cup champion with Pittsburgh (1991 & 1992), Jagr won the Hart Trophy as the NHL's MVP in 1999.
He is a five-time winner of the Art Ross Trophy as the league's leading scorer and has three times won the Lester B Pearson Award as the players' selection of the league's most outstanding player. Jagr is also a nine-time All-Star.
