Courtesy: Washington Post
“IGGY! IGGY! IGGY!” is all you could hear at the Saddledome in Calgary last night as the Flames hosted the Colorado Avalanche. The fans knew as soon as it was announced on the big screen that Jarome Iginla was a healthy scratch. It was the first game that Iginla missed in 6 years and for the Flames to sit their captain meant something big was going to happen.
The buzz around the league was that the Boston Bruins had made an offer that Flames GM Jay Feaster could not pass up. For a couple hours, rumors swirled that the Iginla had accepted the idea of going to Boston, who needed to answer to the Penguins acquisition of Brendan Morrow and Douglas Murray earlier in the week. This would have a huge gain for the Bruins.
However…
When GM Jay Feaster took the podium he dropped a bombshell that Jarome Iginla had in fact been traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Apparently, according to Bob McKenzie of TSN, the Flames wanted the deal with the Bruins as it fit better with their needs, but Iginla chose to go to PIttsburgh and Calgary could do nothing but accept. In return for Iginla, the Flames received LW Kenneth Agostino, C/RW Ben Hanowski and a 2013 1st Round Pick. Not sure who these kids are, but they have to be worth something. Right?
I think the Penguins got away with grand larceny in this deal and now the pressure is on to take their new toys and make a deep playoff run. I really don’t like the Penguins. At all. As a long time Caps fan, I’ve had a special place in my colon for them. However, and I hate to admit it, I almost want them to win the Cup this year.
Courtesy: Al Charest/Calgary Sun
I love Jarome Iginla as a player and from I understand from everyone around the league, he is one of the nicest guys that ever played the game. To stay with one bad team year after year after year and only making one Stanley Cup appearance in 16 years is tough and very respectable. He’s the kind of player that every team wishes they could draft. Who knows who he will play with, but chances are he could be paired up with Sidney Crosby. As whiney and weird-looking as Crosby is, he’s still the games best player and I really enjoy watching him play. To have some like Iginla want to go to Pittsburgh says a lot about players like Crosby and Malkin. I think I just threw up in my mouth a little.
The Flames are heavy hearted right now and players admit it feels a little weird:
“It’s different. It’s weird for sure,” said Mike Cammalleri. “I think he’s been such presence on this team, this city, this organization for so long. He’s such a dominant player, a guy who is in the lineup all the time not missing any games.”
For Iginla, this starts a whole new chapter in an otherwise stellar career. He’s not the go-to guy anymore. He’s not even the Captain. All he has to do is relax and take passes from the games most creative player. And he has, for the first time in a long time, a very easy shot at winning the Stanley Cup.
Iginla was originally drafted by the Dallas Stars 13th overall in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft. He was then traded to Calgary for Joe Nieuwendyk, who is now the Stars GM. He is a three-time First-Team All-Star, won the Rocket Richard Trophy as the NHL’s top goal-scorer in 2002 and 2004, and led the NHL in points in 2001-02. He has been the Flames’ captain since the start of the 2003-04 season. In 1,219 games he has 525 goals and 570 assists.
Good luck Iggy.
More to come…
