NHL legend Jaromir Jagr shifts hockey match to raise money for Ukrainian refugees

As Ukrainian people are fleeing to other countries seeking asylum due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, NHL hockey legend Jaromir Jagr has come forward to provide a helping hand to such people.  As per the reports. Jaromir Jagr-owned Kladno team will be playing their final Czech Extraliga regular-season home game to the larger O2 Arena in Prague. The money collected from the tickets will be used to help Ukrainian families who are currently seeking asylum in the Czech Republic after Russia's invasion.

Russia-Ukraine war: Jaromir Jagr to help Ukrainian families

Jaromir Jagr on Thursday, March 3 announced on Facebook that he wanted to move the home game to benefit Ukrainian families, and polled Kladno fans to find out if they would still come to the game "to help those who need it the most at this time." On Friday, Kladno announced the game was officially moved to Prague and pointed fans to where they could purchase tickets. The Knights of Kladno were scheduled to host HC Sparta Prague on March 8 at their home arena, which seats around 5,200. Instead, the Knights will be the home team inside Sparta's arena, which seats upwards of 18,000 fans.

According to the ESPN report, no charities were specified by Kladno or HC Sparta, although Kladno does have a charitable foundation. Jagr chose No. 68 as his jersey number to remember the 1968 Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia, in response to the Prague Spring insurgency. His grandfather died that year, between the start of the uprising and the Soviet response to it.

All you need to know about NHL legend Jaromir Jagr

Talking about Jaromir Jagr's career, the 50-year-old has played the last five seasons with Kladno, the Czech ice hockey team which is currently being owned by him. Jagr's last appearance in the NHL came with the Calgary Flames in 2017-18. Talking about the overall statistics in 1,733 career games, Jagr was third in NHL history with 766 goals -- three more than Alex Ovechkin, who has 763 goals in 1,251 games. Jagr won the Hart Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player in 1998-99, led the league in scoring five times, and won two Stanley Cups with the Pittsburgh Penguins.