Jaromir Jagr takes NHL All-Star Game captaincy in stride

Apparently, John Scott isn't the only captain selected to the 2016 NHL All-Star Game who asked for hockey fans not to vote for him.

Florida Panthers forward Jaromir Jagr, who was selected to captain the Atlantic Division in the newly formatted All-Star Game Jan. 31, had taken to social media to ask to not be voted to participate in the tournament. Fans didn't seem to listen to his plea.

But, as NHL.com reported, the veteran forward is taking a humorous approach to being voted in anyways:

"I asked the fans don't vote for me; they didn't listen,'' Jagr said, smiling, on Sunday after scoring twice in the Panthers' ninth straight win, a 2-1 victory against the Minnesota Wild at BB&T Center. “I think they don't like me much. They want to see me dead."

This year's All-Star contest will use the 3-on-3 three format that was introduced into the league's overtime play just this season. Jagr, 43, joked that he's too old to play at that pace for a whole game.

"Probably the fans think I need to get into shape. I don't deserve the rest, I need to get into shape during the All-Star Break," Jagr told Fox Sports Florida, smiling. "Everybody else is going to have a vacation and I've got to play 3-on-3."

Granted, fans voting for Jagr is a bit more genuine than them voting for Scott to be captain of the Pacific Division. Typically at the bad end of fan ridicule, Scott insisted during the voting process that fans vote for some of his Arizona Coyotes teammates whom he thought were more deserving of going to the game.

The remaining 40 participants in the All-Star Game — each of the four teams will have 11 players — "will be determined by the NHL Hockey Operations Department and announced Wednesday," NHL.com said. 

The tournament will consist of two semifinal games, with one between the Atlantic and Metropolitan Divisions and the other between the Central and Pacific Divisions. The winner of each game will compete in a final tilt to determine a winner.