Next stop, No. 1: Projecting Jagr's path to catch Gretzky

Heroes are remembered, but legends never retire.

If you're Jaromir Jagr, at least.

The Florida Panthers' ageless wonder and all-time NHL icon recorded three assists last night to give him 1,887 points in his legendary career, tying Mark Messier for second all-time.

Only one name lies ahead of Jagr on the list now: some fellow named Wayne Gretzky with an unfathomable 970 points beyond.

Jagr's latest accomplishment is truly remarkable. His longevity, competitive edge, and love for the game has solidified his place among hockey's greatest. He's 44-years-old and still doing it day in and day out for heaven's sake.

It's fun to wonder, though, where Jagr's totals might be without a three-year venture to the KHL from 2008-11, while he was still scoring at an elite rate.

At this point, catching Gretzky is out of the question, but in the name of fun, let's see what he'd have to do.

Simple subtraction indicates there's 970 points separating No. 99 and No. 68. If Jagr were to catch Gretzky, he'd need to play 10 more 82-game seasons, at his career point-producing pace.

But, gone are the days of Jagr winning the Art Ross. Since the 2012 lockout, Jagr has 234 points in 316 games over four-plus seasons, 0.74 points per contest. At that pace, he'd need an additional 16 full seasons to become No. 1.

He'd be 61-years-old by then.

While the grand total is out of reach - Gretzky has more assists alone than anyone else has combined points - had Jagr stuck around the NHL, The Great One's goal record (894) could have been attainable.

Who knows, Jagr could prove us all wrong and produce points right into his senior citizenship, supplant Gretzky, and retire on top. He hasn't lost any desire to play the game, and until he calls it quits - whenever that may be - let's enjoy the ride.