Report: Pittsburgh Penguins Hiring Jaromir Jagr

Jaromir Jagr is returning to Pittsburgh....sort of.

The Penguins are reportedly in negotiations to hire Jagr to join their player development team, with the agreement he can mostly work from home in Czechia. Rob Rossi of The Athletic was first to report the news. 

Jagr's relationship with the franchise was on rocky ground for many years and this season, it felt like Dubas and company was trying to do whatever they could to find common ground and to rebuild the franchise's ties to the hall-of-famer.

Rossi went on to mention Jagr's day-to-day work wouldn't be heavy, however he'd likely have to travel to Pittsburgh a few times a year for full team meetings. It's also worth considering Jagr's very savvy when it comes to building hockey in Europe and this is certainly an added wrinkle having the legend on board. It's likely he'll be doing some scouting on potential draft picks as well or pending free agents.

Seeing Mario and Jagr back together seems like the perfect fit for the Penguins. They have an aging core, Dubas fumbled his first season and now the team is looking at every avenue moving forward to enhance their franchise. Makes sense to circle back on one of the best Penguins to ever do it.

Photo credit:  Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports