As hockey veteran Jarome Iginla pounced on the loose puck, firing it past helpless New Jersey goaltender Cory Schneider and into the back of the net, the flashing red lamp in the Pepsi Center served as reminder of two words not spoken nearly frequently enough in sports:
Thank you.
During a season of consistently befuddling and ultimately humbling disappointment for the Avs, one reason it has been good to be a hockey fan in Colorado is watching Iginla wear No. 12 for the burgundy and blue.
At age 37, Iginla still has game. Rather than rest on a résumé worthy of the Hall of Fame, he has added a notable new chapter to his NHL story. In his first season with the Avalanche, Iginla leads the team with 22 goals. But his scoring doesn’t begin to tell the story.
In a Colorado locker room where there have been hard lessons learned in almost every corner by young players who committed the error of taking their ascension as stars as a given way back in October and have paid the price in the Western Conference standings, Iginla stands as the example of what a grind it is to put together a brilliant career that merits hockey immortality.
“The older you get, each season goes faster. They just go quicker and quicker and quicker. I realize that’s just the way life goes, too. To be honest, I enjoy each win and each goal a little bit more, because now I realize I’m not going to play forever,” Iginla said after his five-hole score Thursday against Schneider proved to be the difference in a 2-1 shootout victory against the Devils.
“I’ve got to push myself to stay in good physical shape and make sure there are no excuses. I admit some days you don’t feel well and you start to think: ‘Oh, what is it? Is it age catching up with me?’ But then I remind myself I didn’t always feel great at age 25, either.”
In retrospect, any knucklehead could have told you that Avalanche front-office executive Joe Sakic did not do enough to address the team’s defensive shortcomings in the quest to return Colorado into a legitimate Stanley Cup contender. Sakic’s idea, however, to bring aboard the professionalism and passion of Iginla was more than sound. After a slow start in which I was among those who wondered aloud how much jump remained in Iginla’s legs, the winger has earned every penny of his $5.33 million salary.
With Colorado’s chances of sneaking into the playoffs so very slim as to be barely worth dreaming about, coach Patrick Roy has refused to throw in the towel with barely a month remaining in the season. With goalie Semyon Varlamov again smarting from yet another injury, Roy started him between the pipes against New Jersey when it would have been easier and perhaps more prudent to give Varly an extra day or two to allow his body additional time to heal.
But I liked the decision to ride Varlamov until he breaks down, which appeared to be motivated by more than desperation. Roy always has an agenda, and he’s constantly sending a message. What Roy’s trying to instill here, against all odds of making the playoffs, is a never-surrender determination in a team that quite frankly seemed to be guilty of soft focus when the Avalanche followed up its surprising Central Division title of last season by taking too much for granted.
After the Avs were badly outshot 13-3 and habitually on their heels during Thursday’s opening period, Iginla brought his new home arena to life a mere 2 minutes, 27 seconds into the second period with the 582nd goal of his 18-year career. This score was not among the top 10 plays in any television highlight package. And that’s precisely why it was so beautiful.
Iginla scored because he kept grinding when there were a series of less than graceful collisions in front of the New Jersey goal. When the puck finally came loose, Iginla was there to leverage his persistence.
What’s the lesson to be learned here? Winning hockey is not always pretty hockey. In fact, what makes a Hall of Fame hockey player is his determination as much as his talent.
If that one important lesson has been ingrained in the minds of young Avs from Nathan MacKinnon to Matt Duchene to Gabe Landeskog, then all is not lost from this disappointing season.
Thank you, Mr. Iginla.
It has been a pleasure seeing you go to work, sweat all the small stuff that has made you a Hall of Famer and bring an unwavering passion night after night.
Mark Kiszla: mkiszla@denverpost.com or
