RED DEER — A special night for Flames - and Alberta - hockey royalty.
Jarome Iginla, Kelly Kisio and Dave King were among the inductees Saturday in Red Deer as Hockey Alberta celebrated its Hockey Hall of Fame Class of 2024 in front of a packed auditorium at the Gary W. Harris Canada Games Centre.
Iginla, the Flames franchise leader in games played, goals and points and a two-time Olympic gold-medalist, was the centre of attention in a class that also included Canadian Olympic goaltender Shannon Szabados and ex-Oilers player and coach Craig MacTavish.
Saturday’s induction was kind of a full-circle moment for Iginla, the Flames legend fêted in his home province following a Hall of Fame career.
And for Iginla, the weekend was also a trip down memory lane.
“It’s very special, it’s an honour, it makes me obviously look back and think of how fast it went, but it’s always great to be in Alberta,” he said. “My wife, Kara, and I, we flew into St. Albert and drove (to Red Deer) from there. I think about how many times we’ve made the Edmonton - Calgary drive, going into training camps. Also, it brings back a lot of memories from just traveling the province with my grandpa, all the hockey tournaments, all the baseball tournaments and how much fun it was.
“I was truly, truly blessed, I had so much fun growing up playing, meeting teammates, it brings back a lot of memories.”
Longtime NHL forward Kelly Kisio was also called to the Hall Saturday - Kisio collected 658 NHL points over a playing career that included stops with the Red Wings, Rangers, Sharks before two campaigns with the Flames from 1993-95.
He then took the reins as GM of the Calgary Hitmen in 1998, leading the franchise to WHL titles in 1999 and 2010 over the course of a 13-year run with the club.
Being honoured by Hockey Alberta wasn’t top of mind for Kisio - now a scout for the Vegas Golden Knights - but he’s happy to be part of the Class of 2024.
“It’s an honour to be associated with some of the people going in like Jarome (Iginla), Dave (King), Shannon (Szabados), and Billy (Dea), you name it,” Kisio said. “It’s pretty neat stuff, I never even thought about it, didn’t give a second thought to it, and it’s come to. I’m very happy.”
Kisio’s coach with the Flames - King - earned his second provincial Hall of Fame induction Saturday after previously being named to Saskatchewan’s Hall nine years ago.
King served a three year stint as Calgary’s bench boss from 1992-95 after close to a decade in the city as head coach of Canada’s national team, a run that included a silver medal at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France.
King figures Alberta, and Calgary in particular, was the perfect place to help grow his coaching career.
“Alberta was a great place to be when I was a young coach, because we had George Kingston at the University of Calgary, Clare Drake at the University of Alberta, the Calgary Flames had Pierre Page, Tom Watt, Terry Crisp, it was a great time to be in the province,” King said. “I’m really proud of the fact that I was able to be one of the coaches of the Flames, it’s a great organization.”
In addition to Iginla, Kisio and King, there was a touch of Flames flavour in the team category, too.
The 2000-01 Memorial Cup champion Red Deer Rebels earned the call to the Hall, a group that was led by former Flames coach Brent Sutter and featured Calgary alumnus Jim Vandermeer on a deep blue line.
The evening featured laughter, stories, and a slough of hearty handshakes.
A night to re-kindle relationships and enjoy each other’s company.
“Hockey’s a great community and full of a lot of really nice people, people that once you stop playing, you just see around rinks or maybe at events like this,” said Iginla. “It’s always great to see them, old teammates, old coaches, people you share stories with, have been through a lot of battles with and had fun with, it’s cool.
“It’s fun to finally be here, I’ve had this one circled for a while.”
