PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – In roughly a 45-minute ceremony that included several videos and comments from some of his former teammates, the Pens honored Jaromir Jagr and then sent his banner to the rafters. They retired his number 68 with him wearing it for a final time.
Here are some of his comments. What Mike Sullivan said about the weekend and how he left the ice.
Speech time
Highlights from Jagr’s speech right before they raised the banner. Among those on the ice with him- Mario Lemieux, Ron Francis, Ulf Samuelsson, Peter Taglianetti, Jay Caufield, Phil Bourque, Robert Lang, Jiri Hrdina
· “Pittsburgh is my second home”
· Pens Jaromir Jagr’s mom started to cry as Jagr thanked his parents and he went over and hugged his mom.
· “I want to thank my dad, he passed away last year but I know he’s watching. Everything he said was right on.”
· “I loved to play with Troy Loney, he didn’t want the puck and he would give it to me”
· “You guys showed me the respect to love me and I want to show the respect back.” Jagr started reading the names of the GM ( Craig Patrick ), scouts, the players (those in attendance and those unable to be here) and Mike Lange .
· “I remember my first coach Bob Johnson always said ‘It’s a Great Day for Hockey’, I’m going to change it a little bit ‘Today is a Great Day for Me’
· “A big thanks go to you, the fans, all of you. The fans in Pittsburgh, since my first day until the last day I was traded. You guys make it easier for me.’
· “(My time in Pittsburgh) probably the best days of my life.”