Alex Nedeljkovic knows shots.
After all, in his vocation as the Pittsburgh Penguins’ backup goaltender, he is something of an expert on the subject.
So, when a figure in black surged down the slot and fired a Trident missile of a wrister by his glove which rang off the post and into the net, he had a pretty vivid understanding of what just happened.
“It was fast,” Nedeljkovic said. “It was heavy. There’s a difference between hard shots and heavy shots, and he’s got a heavy shot. Though, I don’t know how legal that curve (on his stick blade) is. It’s a heavy shot.
“He can really put some heat on it.”
Poor Alex Nedeljkovic: pic.twitter.com/D3XCpFzewf
— Seth Rorabaugh (@SethRorabaugh) February 17, 2024
The person applying that calefaction was 52-year-old Jaromir Jagr, who participated in his first practice with the Penguins in approximately 8,307 days.
With the superstar in town to have his iconic No. 68 retired Sunday before a home contest against the Los Angeles Kings, Jagr trekked north to Cranberry and took to the ice for approximately 15 minutes.
And he looked sharp.
“His hands are still really good,” said forward Sidney Crosby, something of an authority on the subject. “His first shot, he goes post and in. He made it look pretty easy.”
Jagr, still an active player with the Kladno Knights of the ELH (Extraliga ledniho hokeje) league in his native Czechia, took to the ice in full practice gear and warmed up. Nedeljkovic and defenseman Kris Letang wore mullet wigs as tributes to Jagr’s flamboyant hairstyle in the 1990s.
Letang, himself a six-time All-Star, also made an arrangement of sorts with Jagr.
“I just asked him, ‘Would it be possible if you could sign my jersey tomorrow that’s going to have his (commemorative) patch?’ ” Letang said. “I never really had the chance to sit down and chat. I know tomorrow is going to be emotional and a big day for him. So, I didn’t want to bother him (Sunday).”
There is a legitimate curiosity if the presence of Jagr this weekend could serve as a distraction to the current Penguins, especially against the context of their struggles to stay in contention for a playoff race.
But they welcomed it.
“He has a lot of humility, and his concern was that ‘I don’t want to be a distraction,’ ” coach Mike Sullivan said. “I reassured him that ‘you’re not a distraction. You’re actually an inspiration.’ The fact that he was able to participate the way he did was a thrill for our players.”
Though the Penguins conducted the remainder of practice — following Jagr’s departure to the bench — with all the precision and detail they typically devote to any other session, for one day, they didn’t have to be needled with queries from reporters about the sagging power play or defensive zone breakdowns.
“It can be tough to come in and be happy, be positive and be excited,” Nedeljkovic said. “Especially (as) we’re getting further and further along (in the regular season), and the runway is getting shorter and shorter and shorter for us. It’s tough to stay positive and come in. Something like this today, I think can be great. There was a lot of positive vibes in the room, a lot of positive energy. Hopefully, we can carry that into tomorrow’s game and moving forward.”
Beyond that, the Penguins understand what Jagr’s presence means after a sour divorce nearly 23 years ago in the 2001 offseason.
Especially those who may have a similar banner raised to the rafters someday.
“I’m sure a lot of memories come back,” Crosby said. “For the team itself, whether its fans or people that work in the organization, people that grew up watching him here, I think it brings all of us back to his time here and some of the great memories that he provided and just his legacy.”
The team’s equipment managers set Jagr up at a vacant stall in the dressing room adjacent to Crosby.
“The first thing that he said when we came in, he said, ‘I came in to see this guy (Crosby),’ ” Letang said. “He keeps getting better with age. It’s fun to watch somebody that passionate and somebody that brought so much for this city and this organization. The chance to be part of that night and be there and witness it is going to be special.”
Considering Jagr left the Penguins via trade in 2001, he really has no connections with the current roster with one exception.
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Forward Reilly Smith was Jagr’s teammate in the 2010s with the Dallas Stars and Florida Panthers.
“He has a very big personality,” Smith said. “Every team that I’ve played on, he’s been a huge positive to the team, off the ice as well as on the ice. There’s a few things players can for sure learn from his work ethic. Aside from his talent, that was something that he brought to every team that I played with him.
“He has a unique way of looking at the game, different than a lot of other people. It’s pretty cool to be able to look at the game through his lens.”
The view of Jagr in Czechia is that of a folk hero. As such, a handful of media outlets from that country are in town to document his return to the place of his greatest exploits.
Rookie defenseman John Ludvig grew up in British Columbia but lived in Czechia briefly after his birth in 2000.
He is fully aware of what Jagr means in that country.
“Over there, he’s an icon,” Ludvig said. “He’s the biggest hero hockey-wise that anyone has ever seen. Being on the ice with him today and him being here is really special.”
Another franchise pillar, Evgeni Malkin, summed things up well.
“Legend on ice,” Malkin said. “It’s crazy. … I’m surprised he’s still skating pretty well.”
One person who wasn’t surprised by Jagr’s display Saturday was the man whom he beat in net.
“That’s just what legends do,” Nedeljkovic quipped. “They find a way to score.”
The Penguins found Saturday’s practice to be remarkable for all the right reasons.
“We all feel pretty fortunate to be a part of this,” Crosby said. “There’s a lot of pride that comes with playing for this team for a lot of reasons.
“And he’s one of them.”
Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com.