It's impossible to separate Tij Iginla's name from his scouting package, and the Flames shouldn't resist adding another Iginla as a face of the franchise
In another week, it’s possible the Calgary Flames will have another Iginla in the fold.
Of course, there’s no guarantee that Tij Iginla — son of local legend Jarome Iginla, the current special advisor to the Flames GM Craig Conroy — will still be available by the time Calgary is on the clock.
Maybe that would be for the best.
Imagine the pressure of trying to live up to the family name in the same city that witnessed most of Jarome’s Hall of Fame playing career? It’s also public knowledge the Flames’ top need is at the centre position, and the younger Iginla is a technically a winger.
And yet, it’s impossible not to get caught up in the idea that the 17-year-old playmaker could carry on the legacy his father started in Calgary.
Both Conroy and the senior Iginla are asked about it in every pre-draft interview, and both of them are reading from the same script. Jarome says he’s staying out of the talks when Tij is on the docket. Conroy says the franchise is taking the name out of the evaluation.
But you can’t ignore the Iginla name. Stellar genetics aside, think of the knowledge Tij Iginla has absorbed from his dad over the years.
The name is embedded with the numbers. The Calgary Flames’ scouting director Tod Button has been with the club since 1997. His brother, Craig Button, was head scout for the Dallas Stars when they drafted Jarome in 1995 before trading the prospect to the Flames.
Unbiased? Impossible.
Prediction: If Tij Iginla is available when the Calgary Flames are called to the stage at the Sphere in Las Vegas, they’ll be calling his name.
The Flames reportedly have a dozen names they think would be worthy of their ninth-overall draft pick. A handful of them are forwards.
On Craig Button’s last prospect ranking ahead of the draft, only Macklin Celebrini and Ivan Demidov were listed higher than Tij Iginla.
He shot up most prospect rankings after a 47-goal, 84-point season with the Kelowna Rockets (64 games). Then he added nine goals a half-dozen assists in 11 playoff games and was elevated once again. He was also a top forward for Team Canada as they won gold at the U-18 World Championships.Other top forwards include Cayden Lindstrom, Konsta Helenius, Trevor Connelly, Berkly Catton, Cole Eiserman, and Beckett Sennecke. Unless the positional piece is a deal-breaker.
Lindstrom, Helenius and Catton are listed as centres on Button’s list — but there have been question marks about Lindstrom’s best fit at the NHL level. On NHL.com’s Central Scouting Bureau rankings, Iginla is actually listed at centre as well.
The plot thickens.