Jaromir Jagr was drafted by the Penguins fifth overall in the 1990 NHL entry draft. Jagr enjoyed great success early in his career, winning back to back Stanley Cups with Pens in ‘91 and ‘92, and eventually winning the Art Ross trophy (leading scorer in the NHL) in 1994-95. Jagr would go on to dominate the NHL for the next decade, in the process winning four more Art Ross trophies consecutively from 1998-2001. The only players to win the scoring title from 1981 to 2001 were Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, and Jaromir Jagr.

The Penguins found themselves in financial trouble in 2001, eventually having to trade Jagr to the Washington Capitals because they couldn’t afford to pay his salary. Jagr was never able to replicate his previous success with the Capitals, and was traded to the Rangers in January of 2004. The rest of Jagr’s career would take many twists and turns, including time in Russia, a return to the NHL, and then time in Europe playing for his own team in the Czech Republic. Incredibly, he still plays for them to this day at age 51. More importantly though, his time in the NHL left him as the second highest scorer in the history of the game, sandwiched between Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier. The Penguins retired his number on February 18th, 2024, and if Jagr someday retires from professional hockey, he will surely be inducted into the NHL Hall of Fame.

This jersey was worn toward the end of the 1993-94 season, and is littered with wear. Dozens of stick marks, 17 board burns, seven instances of board paint transfer, four un-repaired holes, and some of the heaviest pilling I’ve seen on an ultrafil jersey. During this time in Jagr’s career, he was coming into his own. His point totals climbed for the fourth consecutive year, resulting in 32 goals, 67 assists, and 99 points, finishing tenth in the scoring race and good enough to earn a third consecutive all-star appearance. The following year he would explode on a 1.45 points per game place to win the scoring title, and the rest is hockey history.

The jersey is matched to the three stars post-game ceremony following the 3-12-94 game against the Rangers, in which he scored the first goal of the game, and assisted on Mario Lemieux’s game-winner. It is also video match to Jagr’s celebration with Lemieux after said goal. Additionally, it is matched to a shot of Jagr sitting on the bench next to Tomas Sandstrom on 3-22 vs. San Jose, and later in the game congratulating Tom Barrasso as the players leave the ice. You can see some distinguishing marks on his sleeve as he walks to the locker room shortly thereafter. In that game, he tallied an assist on Lemieux’s 10th goal of the season as the Pens tied the Sharks 2-2.