The Boston Bruins beat the New Jersey Devils 1-0 Thursday as Jaromir Jagr scored the only goal of the game in his Bruins debut. Jagr was traded to the Bruins on Wednesday by the Dallas Stars , just before the trade deadline for two wingers and a conditional second-round draft pick in 2014.
Jagr’s first goal with the Bruins came off a deflection that got past Martin Broduer 1:20 into the second period for his 15th of the season. Jagr also has 12 assists for 27 points on the year as he joined his third NHL team since 2011.
The 41-year-old has won two Stanley Cup’s, both with the Pittsburgh Penguins in the early 1990’s. Jagr spent his first 11 seasons with the Penguins before moving to the Washington Capitals.
Jagr played three seasons with the Capitals and four more with the New York Rangers before joining the Kontinental Hockey League of Europe. After three years in the KHL, Jagr returned to the NHL as a member of the Philadelphia Flyers.
In 73 games with the Flyers last season, Jagr posted 19 goals and 35 assists, enough to earn him a spot on the Dallas Stars this year. The Stars fell to the bottom of the Pacific Division out West and decided to trade their aging right winger to the Bruins.
The Bruins win over the Devils is their third straight after losing back-to-back games last week. Tuukka Rask was brilliant in net, stopping all 40 shots he faced against the Devils for his third shutout of the season.
Jagr’s goal was all the Bruins needed, though it came in an unusual way for the seven-time All-Star. Brad Marchand drove the puck into the Devils zone up the left boards and threw a pass into the middle. The pass went off Jagr’s skate and through Broduer’s five-hole for the only goal of the night.
It wasn’t pretty, but Jagr will take it as the Bruins went on to beat the Devils for the sixth consecutive time. Here’s a shot of Jagr’s unlikely goal that held up as the game-winner:
Jagr is sharing a line with Tyler Seguin and Marchand and noted after the game that he’s never scored like that before.
“Sometimes you have to be lucky to score,” Jagr said in the locker room. “I think that’s the first time I’ve scored with my leg I guess.”
The Bruins have Friday off, giving Jagr the chance to get more work with his new linemates before a meeting with the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday. The Bruins are currently one point behind the Canadiens for first in the Northeast Division and second in the Eastern Conference.
Will the addition of Jaromir Jagr help the Boston Bruins climb to the top of the Northeast as the regular season comes to a close in three weeks?
[Image via Creative Commons ]