On the first day of free agency in the NHL Jaromir Jagr has signed a one year deal with the Philadelphia Flyers. Jagr has played well the last three seasons in the KHL averaging .94 points per game in 155 games. The KHL is a slower paced league that plays in larger rinks and the scoring is lower. Generally, Alexander Radulov and Alexei Morozov have been considered the best players in the KHL over the past few seasons and Jagr finds himself in a tier just below those two.
Analysis: To put Jagr’s 2010-11 KHL season into perspective on where his offensive/fantasy game is, he scored 19 goals, 32 assists for 51 points in 49 games, good for eighth in the league. An aging Pavol Demitra made the switch from the NHL to the KHL this past year and amassed sixty-one points, tied for third best in the league. In Demitra’s last two NHL seasons he averaged .71 points per game.
Projection: On a strong Flyers squad even without Richards and Carter it is safe to assume Jagr will produce. If Jagr can stay healthy in the more physical NHL at his age and play in at least seventy-five games we should expect 20 goals, 45 assists and a solid plus/minus rating.