When a future Hall of Famer starts heaping praise on you, that's when you know you've really arrived. Or, at the very least, are on the verge of arriving.
Philadelphia Flyers forward Jakub Voracek, after adding an empty-net goal to his season tally last night in a win over the New Jersey Devils, is now currently tied with the Pittsburgh Penguins Sidney Crosby for second place on the NHL scoring leader list, one off the top spot held by Dallas Stars center, Tyler Seguin.
According to Jaromir Jagr, the now-blossoming Voracek is only scratching the surface of the player he can truly become.
"He's got the size, he's got the strength," Jagr said, per CSNPhilly.com's Tim Panaccio. "It's up to him. If I were him, I would work a little bit more on my shooting. Wrist shots. That is what I would do. Otherwise, he doesn't have to do anything.
"He is strong one-on-one. A great skater, a powerful skater. He's a passer, you can see it. If he gets a little better shooting, he will be even more dangerous."
Jagr, 42-years-old, has been in and around the NHL for 21 years. He's got 710 goals and 1772 points in his career and is a surefire future Hall of Famer.
After last night's game, he said of his fellow Kladno, Czech Republic native, that the talent has always been there, Voracek -- dubbed by teammates as "Baby Jagr" when both were a part of the Philly organization -- is simply learning how to augment that skill on the ice with hard work and a healthy lifestyle off of it.
"You keep doing it every day," Jagr said. "It gives you extra strength and extra confidence to know everything to be prepared for the game. You have confidence...
"You go into the game and don't have to worry about whether this defenseman is playing or if he is any good. Now you depend upon yourself. It doesn't matter who is going up against me."
Jagr views Voracek's future potential as limitless and says that as the notoriously assist-happy winger continues to gain maturity and confidence, his acumen as a goal scorer will increase.
"He's going to be a goal scorer and will have a lot more assists than goals," Jagr said. "When I see those guys, it's very tough to cover them. If they are clicking, and they are on the power play and you have G [Claude Giroux] on the side and he is very dangerous."
If Jagr is right, Voracek, still only 25-years-old, may someday boast the type of NHL resume his longtime idol already possesses.
