Jarome Iginla says goodbye after 20 seasons in the NHL

Forward Jarome Iginla has chosen not to return for another season. Instead, he will officially hang up the laces for good in a special ceremony in Calgary.

And so it goes, another legendary career has come and gone. After 20 seasons and more than 600 goals scored, Jarome Iginla has decided to step away from the best league in the world. He announced his intent to retire from the NHL on Wednesday, with the official “party” being held on Monday in Calgary.

Originally drafted by the Dallas Stars back in ’95, Iginla was traded that same year for Center Joe Nieuwendyk. He’d spend the next 16 years of his life as a Calgary Flame, not only racking up over 500 goals and 1,000 points, but the fighting majors as well.

After bouncing around with various teams, including the Pittsburgh Penguins and Boston Bruins, he was traded in 2016-17 from the Colorado Avalanche to the Los Angeles Kings. It would be the last season for Iginla, who returns now to his forever-home in Canada to say goodbye.

It’s a proper and obvious sendoff before he makes his way to the Hall of Fame.

Perhaps the biggest disappointment, for him at least, in ending such a fantastic career is the fact that he was never able to capture a Stanley Cup. He’d be the first to tell you the regret of not bringing a title to the city during his tenure with the Flames.

And yet the fans in Calgary would be the first to tell you of their love for Iginla, regardless of rings. Players with this much grit and skill don’t come along so often. It’s certainly not often they stay for 16 years, either. But sometimes, sports can be good to us that way.

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The press conference for his retirement will be held on the morning of Monday, July 30, at the Saddledome. Be sure to tune in and we’ll have the updates for you when the time comes!