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Ray Bourque couldn’t blame Jarome Iginla if he wanted out for a Cup run

Jarome Iginla

Jarome Iginla will forever be known as the face of the Calgary Flames. He’s the team captain and unquestioned leader of the team and whether the team has done well or not, he’ll be the heart and soul of the Flames.

However, with how things are set up in Calgary and how the team is always on the edge of being blown up to start over, could Iginla’s days of trying to win a Stanley Cup for Calgary be over with before he has a shot to get it done? It’s a distinct possibility and because of it, Iginla could be put in the same position that Ray Bourque was put in back in 2000.

Bourque told Eric Francis of the Calgary Sun about what it was like to be put in that spot and how tough it was for him and how tough it’ll be on Iginla to potentially do the same. It’s a decision he ended up having no regrets over.

“The reason I left was because it wasn’t a healthy situation at all. It was time. In some ways, I don’t think it was a fair situation to be in after all those years. I was 38 years old, and I was affected mentally by the situation, and I needed to get into a better situation if I was going to continue playing. I wanted to get back into the playoffs and compete for a Cup, but that wasn’t going to happen in Boston and hadn’t happened for quite awhile.”

Sound familiar? It could be the exact kind of situation Iginla has to face up to in Calgary. It’s similar to what could happen with Daniel Alfredsson in Ottawa as well. Iginla is just 34 years-old, but with the likelihood that the team and GM Jay Feaster will have to blow it all up lingering, other teams might be wise to bug Calgary about what it would take to get Iginla out of Calgary for a shot at a Cup.