Calgary Flames all-star Jarome Iginla is in elite company after hitting the 30-goal mark for the 11th straight season.
The 514th goal of Iginla’s illustrious career was a one-timer in the second period of Tuesday’s 3-2 overtime win against the San Jose Sharks in Calgary.
Only six players have longer 30-goal streaks than the St. Albert product. Jaromir Jagr and Mike Gartner lead the way with 15 straight seasons of 30-plus goals. Wayne Gretzky, Phil Esposito and Bobby Hull did it 13 years in a row and Marcel Dionne accomplished the feat 12 times.
Iginla, 34, ranks 36th on the NHL’s all-time goal scoring list and is third among active goal-scoring leaders.
The 1,068th point in 1,177 games for Iginla was his 31st goal of the season in Thursday’s 4-1 win over the Phoenix Coyotes in Calgary. It was the sixth-straight game Iginla scored a goal during an eight-game point streak of eight goals and six assists.
The Flames’ captain is the franchise leader in games played, goals and points and is second in assists at 553.
The St. Albert Flyers soared to victory in Thursday’s opening game in the North Cup playoff tournament in the Alberta Minor Midget AAA Hockey League playoffs.
Brett Smythe potted two goals and added four assists in the 9-4 decision against the seventh-place KC Centennials (15-15-8) at Terwillegar Arena.
Zack Gonek, Paul Lovsin and Brett Van Os also tallied twice, Brendan Passek scored once and affiliate player Matteo Gennaro had four helpers. The winning goalie was Pat Gora with 19 saves.
The second-place Flyers (25-7-6) continued their pool B round-robin draw Friday against the fifth-place Spruce Grove Saints (20-12-6) and the third-place Leduc Oil Kings (23-11-4). Scores were unavailable at press time.
Playoff games are scheduled for Bill Hunter Arena. The top two teams in the A and B pools meet in today’s semifinals at 10:15 a.m. and 12:45 p.m. The third-place game goes at 8:15 p.m. Sunday’s final starts at noon.
The two finalists and the third-place winners from the north and south conferences advance to provincials, starting Wednesday in Calgary.
Davis Jones of St. Albert was selected the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League’s goaltender of the year. Jones, 19, posted a 26-12 record and two shutouts for the third-place Nipawin Hawks (34-20-4).
He tied for the league lead in wins and finished second in minutes played (2,252) and goals-against average (2.42) and was third in save percentage (.920).
In the opening playoff round Jones won three and lost four while recording one shutout, a 2.29 GAA and .932 save percentage in the seven-game series against the North Battleford North Stars.
Jones was a member of the 2009 midget AA provincial champion St. Albert Crusaders who started his junior career with the Fort McMurray Oil Barons in 2010-11. Last June he was traded to Nipawin for forward Jamie Johnson, who was later dealt by the Barons to the St. Albert Steel.
