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Jarome Iginla, one of the greatest power wingers in NHL history, will get one last shot at winning a Stanley Cup.
The Colorado Avalanche granted the future Hall of Famer’s wishes on Wednesday, trading Iginla to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for a conditional fourth-round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft.
The 39-year-old right winger joins the Kings hoping he regains some semblance of his game. A miserable season for the entire Colorado Avalanche has included Iginla’s continued decline: with just eight goals in 61 games, Iginla is on pace for about 25 points, which would be the worst season of his 20-year career.
But what a career it’s been. Iginla’s excellence and longevity leave him high up on many all-time NHL lists: 34th in points (1,289), 16th in goals (618), 11th in even-strength goals (411), and sixth in game-winning goals (97). Combine that resume with his hard-nosed style of play and you can see why Los Angeles acquired him.
The one thing missing from his ledger? A Stanley Cup. The closest Iginla came to that glory was in 2003-04, when his Calgary Flames lost Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals to the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Iginla, an unrestricted free agent this summer, was a natural asset for Colorado to trade off as it circles the drain on a terrible season. But it was made inevitable when Iginla requested a trade earlier this season.