Old Guns vs. Young Guns

The secret of staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly, and lie about your age. — Lucille Ball

Jaromir Jagr will turn 36 years old next Friday (Feb 15th). Most fans would agree that his season has been a big disappointment so far. He has 15 goals, 32 assists, for 47 points and a 0 plus/minus in 57 games this season. The previous two 82 game seasons Jagr averaged 1.34 points per game. So the big question, upon which the fate of the Ranger season might be hanging, is: what's ailing Jagr? Have age and the demands of his style of play finally caught up with him? Or is Jagr just missing the scoring chemistry with sympatico linemates, like a Michael Nylander?

Either way, it's a mystery why Coach Tom Renney is still giving Jagr large amounts of the ice time, when he is clearly off his game.

As a reference point, the Rangers traded Brian Leetch to Toronto right around his 36th birthday on Mar. 3, 2004. Should the Rangers pull the trade trigger on Jagr? Has the old gun permanently lost his scoring touch?

Historically, old guns can still be good guns. Phil Esposito, gave the Rangers two very good seasons after he turned 36. Wayne Gretzky turned 36 the first season he was with the Rangers. He gave them two solid 90+ point seasons out of three. Brad Park, on the other hand, retired after he turned 36. The amazing Bobby Hull had his best season when he turned 36 (77 goals, 65 assists, 142 pts). The following season he had his second best (53 goals, 70 assists, 123 pts).

Consider the "Young Guns" marketing campaign for the Washington Capitals, who are currently three points behind the Rangers with one game in hand. Will the Rangers ever give their young guns: Dubinsky, Callahan, Dawes, etc. the kind of publicity the Caps are giving their young players? Why are the Rangers so committed to relying on old guns like Jagr and Shanahan, who just turned 39, to take them to the Stanley Cup?


Coincidentally, the issue of an old gun vs. a young gun might also be applied to the 2008 Presidential election. If Barack Obama wins the Democratic nomination, then you would likely have 72 year old John McCain pitted against 47 year old Obama. Now that's a showdown.

Related Articles by Categories