He thumbed the digits on the screen of his mobile phone, held the top of it to his ear and hoped for the best. That he heard a ringing was a good sign. That it was followed by the voice of an elderly woman was probably not.



Phil Bourque asked the question anyway: Is Jags there?



“His mom answered,” Bourque said. “I think it was at the family house in Kladno, not the place he actually lives. But he was there. I tried to tell her who I was, she handed him the phone, he got on and I heard his voice.



“‘I can’t believe you caught me here. I’m, like, never here.'”



Jaromir Jagr wasn’t the only one in disbelief. His former teammate felt the same way.



Bourque had never really thought about it, but almost 30 years later, he realizes he and Jagr had a lot in common when they played for the Penguins in the early 1990s. Though 10 years his senior, Bourque shared Jagr’s fondness for mullets, fast...