Send this page to someone via email Jarome Iginla closed his 20-year NHL career in the city where he was the face of the franchise. The 41-year-old winger made his retirement official Monday in Calgary, where he spent 16 seasons with the Flames. Iginla entertained a packed news conference at Scotiabank Saddledome with humorous stories about his career and teammates. WATCH BELOW: Former Calgary Flames captain Jarome Iginla delivers speech as he announces his retirement from the NHL 18:18 Former Calgary Flames captain Jarome Iginla announces NHL retirement Former Calgary Flames captain Jarome Iginla announces NHL retirement – Jul 30, 2018 He’s the Flames all-time leader in goals with 525. The captain for his last decade in Calgary also scored the most points and played the most games. Story continues below advertisement View image in full screen Colorado Avalanche forward Jarome Iginla (12) looks on prior to an NHL hockey game against the Buffalo Sabres, Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017, in Buffalo, N.Y. Iginla is to announce his retirement from the NHL. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP /Jeffrey T. Barnes While a Stanley Cup eluded the future Hall of Famer during his career, he was a dominant power forward in the NHL. He assisted on one of the most famous in Canadian hockey history. Iginla set up Sidney Crosby for the overtime winner in the final of the Olympic men’s hockey tournament in Vancouver in 2010. WATCH: ‘For about 3 or 4 years – not a better player in NHL’: Conroy on Iginla 1:43 ‘For about 3 or 4 years – not a better player in NHL’: Conroy on Iginla ‘For about 3 or 4 years – not a better player in NHL’: Conroy on Iginla – Jul 30, 2018 Story continues below advertisement Congrats on an unbelievable career to one of my favorite players to watch growing up! Thank you for paving the way and setting the standard in Calgary! #ThankYouIggy pic.twitter.com/Aj0fzujZ5y — Matthew Tkachuk (@TKACHUKycheese_) July 29, 2018 WATCH: Ex-Flame Martin Gelinas shares story from 2004 Cup run 3:21 Ex-Flame Martin Gelinas shares story from 2004 Cup run Ex-Flame Martin Gelinas shares story from 2004 Cup run – Jul 30, 2018 Huge congrats to Jarome on a terrific career!! I’m grateful I got to witness your resiliency, class and humanity from close and afar. What a legacy both on and off the ice!! #Iginla #12 #dontpokethebear pic.twitter.com/sK6MONI51M — Hayley Wickenheiser (@wick_22) July 26, 2018 WATCH: Calgary Flames President and CEO Ken King talks about Jarome Iginla during his retirement ceremony in Calgary. 2:42 ‘He’s a very special person’: Flames president Ken King on Iginla ‘He’s a very special person’: Flames president Ken King on Iginla – Jul 30, 2018 Story continues below advertisement Iggy was such a great teammate and friend. He taught me everything I know about leadership on the ice but more importantly off the ice. A great father and husband and always treated everyone with the utmost respect. Congrats Iggy. What an incredible career. #ThankYouIggy — Mark Giordano (@MarkGio05) July 29, 2018 WATCH: Craig Conroy on Jarome Iginla returning to the Saddledome to retire 7:23 Craig Conroy on Jarome Iginla returning to the Saddledome to retire Craig Conroy on Jarome Iginla returning to the Saddledome to retire – Jul 30, 2018<doc-sep>After 16 seasons in Calgary and 20 in the NHL, Jarome Iginla figured the story could finally be told about how a young kid from an Edmonton suburb was destined to be a Calgary Flame. In the midst of a brilliantly humble, thankful, funny and touching speech to mark his official retirement from a Hall of Fame career Monday, the longtime Flames captain regaled a jam-packed audience with a western-Canadian spin on Le Chandail. "My grandpa took me to my first tryout at age seven and we didn’t know there were no jerseys or socks handed out," said Iginla. "So I skated around and everyone had their outfits on and were good players and I’m skating around with no jersey or socks. My grandpa had to run and get me a jersey from the sports store in St. Albert and he brought back one I wasn’t that thrilled to get – it was a Calgary Flames jersey." Armed with perfect comedic timing, the 41-year-old had to add a token Battle of Alberta shot. "It was probably the last one left at the time," he smiled, drawing laughter from a healthy gathering of friends, family, former teammates, Flames staffers and media gathered in a Saddledome lounge. "The cards were stacked against me. I think not wearing a jersey and then getting a Flames one made sure I was put on the worst team. Fact was, I wasn’t very good when I started." Eleven years later, the Dallas Stars first-round pick was traded to Calgary for Joe Nieuwendyk, prompting a "Jarome Who?" headline he spent the bulk of his NHL career answering as the greatest Flame of all time. However, it didn’t come easy or right away for Iginla, who reflected Monday on a time early in his career when he wasn’t sure the Flames would stick with him much longer. "I think confidence is tough early – it was for me. I was in awe," he said. "I had to come in and learn from guys like Theo (Fleury) on how to compete harder. It was tough confidence–wise the first three years and thankfully the Flames stuck with me. I had a tough second year (13 goals) and I remember thinking in my third year, ‘thank God I made it to the NHL but maybe I won’t be a goal scorer. I’ll work on maybe a different role. But then it started clicking." Up until Year 5 in Calgary he wasn’t even the best No. 12 in franchise lore, thanks to several stunning years by Hakan Loob before him. All that changed one fateful summer night when Iginla received the ultimate confidence boost by way of a late training camp fill-in invite to Wayne Gretzky’s 2002 Olympic Team training camp in Calgary. Or was it a prank? "I thought it was a joke, honestly. I thought it was (Flames captain) Todd Simpson playing a joke on me to come to the Saddledome with my equipment," beamed Iginla, who had watched highlights of the first day of camp on TV, when it was mentioned Simon Gagne had an injury. "I thought they were really just inviting me because I was close by. I was so nervous. The puck and stick didn’t feel the same, but it was awesome because I could hold my own. I wasn’t great, but I could hold my own and it was such a confidence booster going into that season. That was probably the biggest breakthrough mentally for me." That year he got off to a brilliant start, eventually winning the scoring title, scoring 52 goals and 96 points, finishing second in the Hart Trophy vote and scoring two goals in the Olympic gold-medal game. He’d become a superstar, known league-wide simply as Iggy – a name Sidney Crosby would scream out eight years later, mere seconds before converting a pass in overtime to score the Golden Goal. The franchise leader in almost every imaginable offensive category, Iginla went on to be the 21st player to score 500 goals with one club – as star-studded a list of Hall of Famers as you could possibly imagine. He was the captain, the face of the franchise, and, as Flames president Ken King said to open the presser, "the epitome of our culture." His endless community work included donating thousands of dollars for every goal he scored for KidSport Calgary, an organization the likes of which allowed him to start playing as a child whose parents divorced early and counted on grandparents to cart him to games. Asked on the eve of his storied promotion from Kamloops to the Flames if he’d thought about how he might spend some of the millions of dollars he’d soon start making, he famously insisted he’d pay for his mother to go back to school to finish a degree so she could pursue her dream of being a music teacher. True to his word, he did, and she did. That’s the kind of person Iginla is and always has been – a first-class individual whose genuine smile and humility in interviews betrayed a ferocity on the ice that made him so much more than just a 600-goal scorer. A photo of him following a fight with Brendan Shanahan in 2001 shows half of Iginla’s face and a good portion of his previously-white jersey covered in blood. Fact was, the 23-year-old Iginla won the tussle with one of the game’s pre-eminent power forwards and said after the game he was honoured to have fought someone he so dearly looked up to. When told of the comments, Shanahan was taken aback. "The honour was mine," said Shanahan, who played the same type of game Iginla became famous for. "He’s gonna be one of the game’s top power forwards." A pugilistic passing of the torch. Turns out he may end up being remembered as one of the game’s last power forwards given the way the game has changed.<doc-sep>WATCH: Jarome Iginla hangs up his skates as a Flame Article content After more than 1500 games in the NHL, Jarome Iginla came back to his longtime hockey home where he official retired as a Calgary Flame. A six-time NHL All Star, Iginla made his NHL debut with the Flames during the 1996 Stanley Cup playoffs and went on to lead a storied career that would include 625 goals, 675 assists, numerous awards and of course, the memories of an incredible Stanley Cup run in 2004. We apologize, but this video has failed to load. tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or WATCH: Jarome Iginla hangs up his skates as a Flame Back to video With plenty of friends, family and of course, fans on-hand to celebrate the incredible career of number 12, here’s what the forever Flame had to say at a press conference in Calgary dedicated to his retirement.<doc-sep>Share this Story: 'This is home': Flames legend Iginla thrilled to return to Saddledome for farewell 'This is home': Flames legend Iginla thrilled to return to Saddledome for farewell Article content All these years and all those goals later, Jarome Iginla still wonders if he was perhaps docked a few evaluation marks because of the jersey that he was (eventually) wearing. Remember, he was raised in Oil Country. We apologize, but this video has failed to load. tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or 'This is home': Flames legend Iginla thrilled to return to Saddledome for farewell Back to video “When I tried out for that first team at age seven, I was put in the worst league. I wasn’t very good when I started,” Iginla admitted during Monday’s retirement party at the Saddledome, a fitting farewell for the Calgary Flames’ franchise icon. “But when I did go to tryouts, just to give you an idea, the cards were stacked against me. My grandpa took me to my first tryout and we didn’t know that there was no jersey, no socks. So everyone has their outfits, they’re good players, they’ve been playing for years … My first time, I’m skating around with no jersey, no socks. “My grandpa had to run and get me a jersey from the sports store in St. Albert, while I was out there wheeling around. He brought back one, and I wasn’t that thrilled to get it — it was a Calgary Flames jersey. I don’t know if was the last one left at the time. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content “So I think not wearing a jersey to start and the Flames jersey after, it worked against me and I ended up in the worst league.” He ended up, of course, as the best to ever wear that Flaming C logo. As the franchise record-holder in several significant categories, among them goals (525) and points (1,095) and games played (1,219). As the longest-serving captain in Calgary’s club history. As the favouritest of the fan-favourites and the always-smiling face of the organization. For 16 seasons, before he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins on that wacky Wednesday in March of 2013, it seemed almost impossible to picture Iginla in any other crest. That’s why it was so fitting that he returned Monday — after twirls with the Penguins, Boston Bruins, Colorado Avalanche and Los Angeles Kings and after failing to find a job last winter once he’d recovered from hip surgery — to make his retirement official. As team president Ken King put it: “Welcome home, kid.” Echoed Martin Gelinas, who was working as Iginla’s linemate when he became ‘The Eliminator’ in the spring of 2004: “I bleed red, and I’m so excited that you’re retiring as a Flame.” That was, no doubt, the consensus. Theoren Fleury, another franchise all-timer, was among the past teammates there to congratulate ‘Iggy’ on his terrific career. Although it was closed event, a few dozen fans were hanging around outside the Saddledome, hoping for an autograph or a selfie. One was apparently willing to stay awhile. He brought a lawn-chair. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content “I’m thankful for the times, from 35 on, that I played elsewhere, too. It was good for me and good for my family,” said Iginla, who has settled with his family — wife Kara, daughter Jade and sons Tij and Joe — in Boston. “But I’m thrilled to be able to come back and not be like I just took off and that was the end. Because this is home. Alberta is home. “I’m really thrilled that I got to do this today and reminisce with fans and say thank-you to the fans and to the city and not just go quietly the other way.” This will not be the final thank-you, either. Some wondered if Monday’s send-off would be paired with an announcement that the team would retire Iginla’s No. 12 or at least raise those digits to the rafters as part of their Forever a Flame program. “We don’t want to preempt ourselves on the honours that will follow,” King said during his own speech. “But based on today, I think I can safely tell you that we’re thinking about a 41-game salute, Jarome. “So we’ll see you later this year.” Ice chips: The Flames finished some business prior to Monday’s ceremony, avoiding arbitration by re-signing Garnet Hathaway to a one-year, one-way deal. The 26-year-old right-winger will earn US$850,000 during the upcoming campaign. Hathaway logged 59 appearances for the Flames last winter, chipping in with four goals and nine assists. He also finished second on the team with 154 hits and dropped his mitts for six fights. wgilbertson@postmedia.com Twitter.com/WesGilbertson Share this article in your social network Latest National Stories Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Calgary Sun Headline News Sign up to receive daily headline news from the Calgary SUN, a division of Postmedia Network Inc. Email Address There was an error, please provide a valid email address. By clicking on the sign up button you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. You may unsubscribe any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of our emails. Postmedia Network Inc. | 365 Bloor Street East, Toronto, Ontario, M4W 3L4 | 416-383-2300 Thanks for signing up! A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it please check your junk folder. The next issue of Calgary Sun Headline News will soon be in your inbox. 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Jarome Iginla stood at the podium — wearing a dark suit jacket and unbuttoned, white-collared shirt — and spoke about the "many great memories" of playing for the Calgary Flames, joking with ex-teammates and thanking everyone he could think of who played an important role in his 20 NHL seasons. "It's very humbling to be here," the 41-year-old said Monday at his retirement news conference at the Saddledome. "It was a true honour to play here. This is home." "I remember starting hockey at age seven, going to my first tryout and dreaming of how great it would be [to play in the NHL] and it's been even better." Jarome Iginla on Stanley Cup run: 'It was awesome' Sports 0:51 Iginla talks about the Flames journey to the Stanley Cup final in 2004. 0:51 The franchise leader in goals, points, games played and game-winning goals, Iginla quickly became a fan favourite following a 1995 trade from Dallas along with fellow forward Corey Millen for Joe Nieuwendyk. He played 16 seasons in Calgary, scoring 525 goals and 1,095 points from 1996 to 2013. During that time, Iginla set a culture, according to Flames CEO Ken King. "You would just say, 'Just go talk to and follow Jarome' and understand how you'll act in the community, how you'll act on the ice, how you'll be as a teammate, and it just works," said King. 5 things about Jarome Iginla Sports 2:33 With the Flames great officially hanging up his skates, Rob Pizzo looks at 5 things you may not know about the man they call Iggy. 2:33 A six-time all-star, the six-foot-one, 210-pound Iginla was feared on the ice for his power, speed, skills, toughness and smarts. But the right-winger was also thankful, as an 18-year-old rookie, to have some of the tougher guys to play the game in his corner. "Coming into the NHL at 18 can be intimidating," he said, "and there was more fighting and intensity than today. It was so nice to look down the bench and see Sandy McCarthy … and the way Brian McGrattan would lift a team with his great fights." In 1,554 NHL regular-season games, Iginla scored 625 goals and 675 assists, for 1,300 points — 34th on the NHL's all-time list — and had 1,040 penalty minutes. He also played for Pittsburgh, Boston, Colorado and Los Angeles. Flames assistant coach Martin Gelinas, who played with and against Iginla, said his former teammate had a gift of sharing the game with family, friends and fans by signing an autograph, visiting a school and doing charity work. "That's what makes him the classiest person — on and off the ice, that I played with — and I'm grateful for that," Gelinas said. Stanley Cup run In 2004, Iginla guided Calgary to the Stanley Cup Final — his first season as captain —when it dropped a seven-game series to the Tampa Bay Lightning. He led all scorers that post-season with 22 points in 26 outings, including 13 goals. "It was so special to me, the group of guys we had and their sense of humour," Iginla recalled of the march to the Cup Final. "We had so many great personalities and had so much fun together. "It was the way the city was with us the whole way, with the Sea of Red in the stands and the Red Mile parties. It stung not winning, and it still does to be honest, but it was worth it." Craig Conroy, who played nine seasons in Calgary with Iginla, called his ex-teammate a "true competitor" who always elevated his game when needed. "If we needed a big fight, hit or goal, he was there to do it," Conroy, now the Flames assistant general manager, said of Iginla. "For about three or four years, I don't think there was a better player in the NHL. We had him in Calgary, and I think at times we did take him for granted. Craig Conroy on Iginla: 'For 3 or 4 years, I don't think there was a better player in the NHL' Sports 1:17 Flames Assistant GM talks about his playing days with Jarome Iginla. 1:17 NHL debut 'so surreal' "I got a chance to play with some Hall of Famers but it was a true honour to play with him."