Monday, 17 July 2017

{coyotes} Iginla, Doan ponder retirement while searching for contract: report

 

Free agent forwards Jarome Iginla and Shane Doan want to play in the NHL this season but are having difficulty finding someone to sign with.

The veterans each told Kamloops This Week that they have been in contact with multiple teams.

"At 40, you want to be on a contending team," Iginla said last week. "With the parity in the NHL, there are probably 15 teams that have a chance. … You factor all that in, along with family. At this point, we're still uncertain."

Iginla had 27 points (14 goals, 13 assists) and was minus-30 in 80 games for the Colorado Avalanche and Los Angeles Kings last season.

"I know last year I had a tough year, probably the toughest of my career," he said. "I look at it as fuel. I think I can bounce back and score goals and help a team in different areas."

Neither Doan, also 40, nor Iginla has won the Stanley Cup. Doan advanced to the Western Conference Final in 2012, when the Coyotes lost to the Kings in five games. Iginla went to the Stanley Cup Final with the Flames in 2004, when Calgary lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning in seven games.

Doan, who has been the Phoenix/Arizona Coyotes captain since 2003, said he is looking for a one-year contract.

"It's pretty hard to find that," he said. "Pretty much impossible at this point. … We're just kind of waiting and seeing. We've talked to four or five teams."

The Coyotes decided on June 19 to not retain Doan after 21 seasons with the franchise, which relocated from Winnipeg after the 1995-96 season, his first in the NHL. He played last season on a one-year, $4.8 million contract, and had 27 points (six goals, 21 assists) in 74 games, his lowest total in a full NHL season since 1998-99. He is the Coyotes' all-time leader in goals (402), assists (570) and points (972).

Iginla is coming off a three-year, $16 million contract he signed with the Avalanche on July 1, 2014. They traded him to the Kings before the 2017 NHL Trade Deadline on March 1. After spending 16 NHL seasons with the Calgary Flames from 1996-2013, Iginla has played for four teams (also Pittsburgh Penguins and Boston Bruins). He ranks third among active players behind Jaromir Jagr and Joe Thornton with 1,300 points (625 goals, 675 assists) in 1,554 NHL games.

"If I keep playing, I look forward to that. I'll be ready," Iginla said. "If I don't, I've had a great run and I'm very thankful for that."

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