As a youngster, Jarome Iginla played baseball in the catcher position for the Canadian national men’s junior team, but soon began to develop his skills as an ice hockey forward from 1991 through 1993 as a member of the St. Albert Raiders of the Alberta Midget Hockey league, and from 1993 through 1996 with the Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League. With the latter team he won the Memorial Cup, given annually to the Canadian junior men’s ice hockey champions, in 1994 and 1995, the George Parsons Trophy as the most sportsmanlike playoff participant in 1995, and the Four Broncos Memorial Trophy as the most outstanding player in the league in 1996. That was also the year that he skated for Canada at the Junior World Championships and brought home a gold medal. He was drafted by the National Hockey League’s Dallas Stars in 1995, but quickly traded to the Calgary Flames, where he made his debut during the 1996 playoffs. From then on he skated exclusively with the Flames, an affiliation that continues as of 2010. With the team he has won the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy as the league’s top goal scorer twice (2002, 2004), the Art Ross Trophy as the top overall scorer (2002), the Lester B. Pearson Award as the most outstanding player (2002), the King Clancy Memorial Trophy for leadership (2004), the NHL Foundation Player Award for community service (2004), and the Mark Messier Leadership Award (2009). Internationally, in addition to his appearance with the junior squad in 1996, he has won gold medals at the 1997 World Championships, the 2002 Winter Olympics, and the 2010 Winter Olympics, where he assisted Sidney Crosby in making the overtime, tournament-winning goal. He also appeared at the 2006 Winter Olympics, scoring two goals in six games, but did not reach the podium. Since the 2003-2004 season he has been team captain for the Flames. Off the ice he is well-known for his numerous charitable efforts, most notably his pledge since 2000 to donate $1,000 to KidSport for every goal he scores (the figure was doubled to $2,000 in 2005). Since 2002 he has run the non-profit Jarome Iginla Hockey School in Calgary, donating the money he earns from the venture to the Diabetes Research Association. He is also a partial owner of his former team, the Kamloops Blazers.
Canada