Cover your ears, B’s fans: The newest member of the Bruins, who looked like such a perfect fit for Boston in his first game Thursday night, was trying to make himself a Montreal Canadien this past summer.
Jaromir Jagr said after practice Friday that he tried to work out a deal with the Habs this past offseason, but the Canadiens weren’t interested, and he signed a one-year, $4.5 million contract with the Dallas Stars instead.
“I had never played in Canada, so I would like to try it,” Jagr said, according to WEEI.com. “The [Canadiens] went in a different direction, so that’s OK. I feel like Canada lives more for hockey, so I wanted to try it at the end of my career, how it is to play in Canada.”
While Jagr isn’t going to get to experience Canadian hockey culture, he’s certainly getting a passionate fan base in playing for Boston — and almost a certain upgrade from Dallas, which continues to be a peculiar place to drum up hockey love.
Jagr will face his former interest this Saturday as the Bruins take on the Habs in Montreal at 7 p.m. At 24-8-5, Montreal has the tiniest edge on the 24-8-4 Bruins, who can take the Northeast Division lead with a win.
