Jarome Iginla retires: highlights from a storied career

CTV National News: Jarome Iginla retires Jarome Iginla gets a hero's welcome in Calgary as he hangs up his skates after 20 years in the NHL. Janet Dirks has the story.

Former Calgary Flames captain Jerome Iginla announced his retirement, bringing an end to a more than 20-year professional career.

A native of St. Albert, Alta., Iginla played 16 seasons with the Calgary Flames, scoring 525 goals, 570 assists and 1,095 points for the team during that time. He wore the captain’s ‘C’ for nine seasons, right until being traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

He also made his mark internationally, helping Canada win gold medals at the 2002 Salt Lake City and the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

He finished off his career with stints in Boston, Colorado, and Los Angeles, before playing his final NHL game on April 9, 2017.

Iginla’s official retirement press conference was hosted by the Flames at the Saddledome at 10:30 MST, with longtime play-by-play announcer Peter Maher serving as emcee for the event.

“Jarome Iginla’s contributions to the organization and this city are unmatched,” said Maher. “I had the pleasure of seeing every game that he played wearing the Flame colours. And it was indeed an honour to see him perform night after night.”

Management and former players told stories of Iginla’s successes, on and off the ice.

When we look back, we had our own bonafide superstar,” said Flames President and CEO Ken King.” “I suspect all of us at one time or another took him for granted a little bit, but he never took us for granted, he never took the fans for granted.

“As a player, we have the responsibility to share the game with fans and friends and family. And Jarome had a gift of doing so,” said Martin Gelinas. “Signing autographs, shaking hands, going to schools, donating to charities – that’s what makes him the classiest person I’ve played with. “

Iginla used his time on stage to thank the Flames organization and former teammates, sharing memories of his time in Calgary.

“It would have been easier to maybe not have to do a speech,” Iginla joked. “I’m so excited to be here and share it with everyone. To come back to the city of Calgary and say thank you – this is home.”

In honour of Iginla’s storied career, CTVNews.ca presents a timeline of major events in his career

Jul. 8, 1995: The Dallas Stars draft Iginla as their first pick, 11th overall. Five months later they would trade him to Calgary as part of a package deal for the rights to Joe Nieuwendyk.

Jan. 4, 1996: Iginla leads the tournament in scoring at the 1996 World Junior Championships in Boston, helping Canada win their fourth-consecutive gold medal.

Apr. 21, 1996: Iginla makes his NHL debut during game 3 of Calgary’s Stanley Cup series with the Chicago Blackhawks. He becomes the first 18-year-old to play for the Flames since Dan Quinn in 1983.

Oct. 5, 1996: Iginla scores his first regular season goal. He finishes the season with 21 goals, and comes in second in voting for the Calder Trophy as top rookie.

Feb. 24, 2002: Iginla scores two goals during Canada’s 5-2 victory against the United States in the gold medal game at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics.

Jun. 20, 2002: Iginla wins both the Rocket Richard and the Art Ross trophies, as the leading goal and leading point scorer, respectively. He is also awarded the Lester B. Pearson Award as the league’s most valuable player.

Oct. 8, 2003: Iginla is named captain of the Flames. He leads the Flames to the Stanley Cup finals, but loses the series 4-3 to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Dec. 7, 2006: Iginla reaches his 300th career goal and 600th career point in a game against the Minnesota Wild.

Mar. 1, 2009: Iginla passes Theoren Fleury as the Flames’ all-time scoring leader and scores his 400th career goal during a game with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Feb. 28, 2010: Iginla assists on Sidney Crosby’s overtime winning goal in the gold medal game against the United States at the Vancouver Olympics.

Apr. 1, 2011: Iginla gets his 1,000th NHL point scoring the game winning goal against the St. Louis Blues. He becomes the 77th player to hit this milestone.

Mar. 28, 2013: After 16 years with the Flames, Iginla is traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins. He becomes a free agent after the season ends.

Jul. 5, 2013: The Boston Bruins sign Iginla to a one-year, $6 million contract.

Dec. 10, 2013: Iginla makes his first return to Calgary. He’s greeted with standing ovation and a tribute video.

Jul 1, 2014: The Colorado Avalanche sign Iginla to a three-year deal after Boston is unable to re-sign him because of salary cap constraints.

Jan. 4, 2016: Iginla becomes the 19th player in NHL history to reach 600 goals during a game against the Los Angeles Kings.

Mar. 1, 2017: Iginla is traded to the Los Angeles kings. He was not re-signed for the 2017-18 season.

Apr. 9, 2017: Iginla plays in what becomes his last NHL game, getting an assist during the 4-3 loss to Anaheim.

Jul. 30, 2018: Iginla formally announces his retirement in Calgary, bringing his 20-season career to a close.