Quote:
Originally Posted by Calgary4LIfe
I think Iginla will move this season unless the Flames go on an absolute tear. He hasn't been re-signed for a reason.
From what I gathered about Iginla over the last few years is that he is very mindful of his 'legacy' here in Calgary. The team is not doing well, and is desperate for some new blood. As you can see from these boards, people are almost 'hating' Iginla it seems. The guy is 35 and can't carry a team any longer. There are fans that see this, and say: "That's ok, Iginla deserves to run his time out in this city." There are fans that say: "Iginla is dogging it." There are others that say: "This team is not good enough, and the Flames have to trade him and get assets back."
Seems there are very few fans who are ok with Iginla just riding out his career here - at least based on how the team is doing. If Iginla stays in Calgary past the trade deadline, there will be a loud group of people hating it, and unintentionally (or intentionally) hating Iginla.
You already see the "he doesn't care if he wins", "just playing for a paycheque", etc.
From that standpoint, I actually do want the team to trade him to a contender. Let him win a cup. Hopefully he returns here IF he ends up winning a cup. If not, we may never see Iginla again.
He has done a tremendous amount for this city. Unfortunately, I don't think he is able to ride out his career in Calgary like Yzerman in Detroit - Flames got their drafting and development program up too late (and probably still needs more improvement). Not enough impact players coming up through the ranks yet. I would bet you see Iginla moved around the deadline or so.
You also have to wonder how far those trades will go. I personally hope the Flames go on some kind of tear and vault themselves into the playoffs, but I don't see them standing pat at the trade deadline if they are not this year.
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There are MANY reasons why he is not Steve Yzerman or Joe Sakic ... way too many people wanted him to be their fairy tale, but he's not.
Both those guys are top 50 players in NHL history. Iginla is a 1st ballot HOFer no doubt, but Yzerman/Sakic transcend the finest accolades. Circumstances pending, but Iginla is trending closer to Mats Sundin path rather instead which really sucks. Its sad to see, on a personal level when I first started watching hockey was Iginla's rookie season and the growth of a franchise player, the Iginla-Gagner-Hoglund line. But that story is coming to an end and everybody has to realize that.