St. Albert arena to be renamed after hometown hockey hero Jarome Iginla

An Alberta arena in the hometown of retired hockey player Jarome Iginla will be named after him at a ceremony this weekend.

St. Albert Mayor Cathy Heron posted on Facebook on Monday that the Akinsdale Arena will be renamed after the former National Hockey League player best known for his long run with the Calgary Flames.

“How lucky are we to have such a role model for our hometown hero,” Heron wrote.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "How lucky are we to have such a role model for our hometown hero," Heron wrote.

“Please join us this Sunday to celebrate the renaming of Akinsdale Arena to Jarome Iginla Arena.”

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Iginla, better known to hockey fans as Iggy, grew up in St. Albert and spent time playing for the St. Albert Eagle Raiders minor hockey team.

He later embarked on a 23-year NHL career before announcing his retirement last summer.

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Most of his NHL career was spent playing in Calgary. While with the Flames, Iginla had 525 goals, 570 assists and 1,095 points in 1,219 games. Then, after nearly 16 seasons, Iginla was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins in March 2013. He then finished his career with stops in Boston, Colorado and Los Angeles.

READ MORE: Jarome Iginla’s No. 12 jersey to be retired Saturday in tribute from Calgary Flames

The St. Albert arena will be renamed at a ceremony scheduled for Sunday afternoon. According to the City of St. Albert’s website, Iginla will be joined by his friends and family as well as Heron and members of the local city council.

St. Albert is located just northwest of Edmonton, the city where Iginla was born.

–With files from Global News’ Melissa Gilligan