Jarome Iginla revealed an ongoing health battle the Hockey Hall of Famer believes might be due to complications from hip surgery.
The 49-year-old former NHL great, a 600-goal scorer and two-time Olympic gold medalist, told Sportsnet he’s still trying to figure everything out.
“Unfortunately I have been battling some health issues,” he said. “Some neurological issues. I’m not entirely sure what it is, it may be from metal toxins from reaction to the cobalt hip.”
The hard-nosed forward, who twice led the NHL in goals during a 20-year career spent with the Flames, Penguins, Bruins, Kings and Avalanche, had his hip replaced a few years after his final season in 2016-17, with cobalt-chromium components. The breakdown of the material can see debris and ions enter the bloodstream, causing various health issues.
There are no concrete answers yet, however.
“I need more time to figure it all out, but I’m still hopeful that I will recover fully,” he said. “Things are slowly getting under control, thanks be to God.”
Per Sportsnet, he has been dealing with high mercury levels in his body, while also working through energy, weight and speech issues due to medications. He’s been going through testing and medical consults for over a year.
Iginla currently serves as a special advisor to Flames general manager Craig Conroy, a teammate from his days in Calgary where he rose to NHL stardom on his the strength of his scoring ability — he was one of the few sources of constant offense during the league’s “Dead Puck” era — and legendary toughness as a willing fighter when the occasion came.
He broke the 30-goal plateau 12 times in his career — twice hitting the 50-goal mark en route to 625 career tallies and 1,300 points in 1,554 games to go with 1,040 penalty minutes. He is Calgary’s all-time leader in goals (525), points (1,095), games played (1,219) and game-winning goals (83), and further cemented his status as a Flames legend during a run to the Stanley Cup Final, in which he collected 13 goals and 22 points in 23 games as the franchise came one goal short of a Game 7 comeback to the Lightning.
in 2020, he became just the fourth black NHLer to be enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Since retiring in 2018, the Edmonton, Alberta native has seen his three kids all turn pro. His oldest son, Tij, was the No. 6 overall pick by the Mammoth in the 2024, while his middle child Joe was drafted by the Flames in the third round earlier this year. Daughter Jade was the second-round pick by the PWHL’s Hamilton franchise at this year’s draft as well.
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