It took less than a month for the NHL’s younger free agents to be picked up, leaving mostly old-timers still waiting for deals to come their way this very moment.
Nevertheless, there’s still talent and experience aplenty with the remaining players on the market. Here are the five veterans that teams are sorely missing out on.
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1. RW Jaromir Jagr
Future Hall of Famer Jaromir Jagr is still going strong, as the 45(!)-year-old has put up a total of over 100 points in the past couple of seasons combined and actually appears to have more left in the tank than most of the available free agents.
At the very least, Jagr can impart his wisdom and leadership in the locker room for teams having a youth movement should he not be able to replicate his numbers on-ice this upcoming season. Furthermore, The Ageless Wonder will boost any franchise’s ticket sales just by the mere fact that he’s on the team.
So please, somebody give ol’ Jags another shot the soonest because every hockey fan deserves to see him in action until he ultimately calls it a career.
2. LW Thomas Vanek
At 33, Thomas Vanek is the only player featured here below the age of 35, which goes to show how valuable the Austrian winger could be for prospecting teams right now.
Vanek’s no stranger to change, as he’s played for six different teams over the last four seasons. Having said that, he’s a highly-adaptable player with outstanding accuracy – his 14.3 shooting percentage is second-best among active players with at least 2,000 shots taken – that can be slotted in almost any roster in need of veteran production.
3. C Mike Fisher
The Predators would love to retain their captain for at least one more season, as Mike Fisher played a huge role in leading the Preds to their first-ever Stanley Cup Final appearance this spring.
Then again, it’s not really a matter of Fisher playing for another team, but rather if the 37-year-old is really about to announce his retirement already. Injuries have limited the Ontario native’s productivity these past couple of years, so it’s highly possible that he’ll indeed hang up his skates instead and just chill with his wife and Music City’s very own darling, Carrie Underwood.
4. RW Jarome Iginla
Another player leaning towards retirement is 40-year-old Jarome Iginla, who’s coming off one of his worst seasons with just six goals and three assists in 19 games for the Kings and for a total of 27 points counting his earlier stint with the Avalanche the previous season.
Iginla spent his first 18 NHL seasons in Calgary, so the best case scenario for the former Art Ross Trophy winner would be to return to the Flames and cap off his decorated career where it all began.
5. RW Shane Doan
As if we didn’t have enough 40-year-olds on this list, Shane Doan is the rare company man in hockey to have spent his entire career for one franchise.
Doan’s the Phoenix/Arizona Coyotes’ (and the original Winnipeg Jets’) all-time leader in goals, points and games played. With that in mind, there’s really no better outcome for hockey fans than to have the two-time All-Star ride off into the Arizona sunset as he should, and not before he gives it one more go this upcoming season.
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