OverDrive - Iginla on his memories playing with Canada, the experience in the tournaments and winning a gold medal

Episode Date: February 20, 2025

Olympic Gold Medalist and Former NHLer Jarome Iginla joined OverDrive to discuss his memories of playing for Canada, the experience in best-on-best tournaments, representing the country, winning a gold medal and more.

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hockey hall of famer, one of our favorites. Back on the show, here's Jerome McGinlay. you doing Jerome hey Brian good how you doing hey we're doing great man I mean you're you're a Canadian you you must be jacked for tonight what are you expecting out of this game oh very excited yeah it's been fun to watch it I'll tell you I never saw saw that last U.S. kind of game. I didn't see that start coming. Loved it. I'm not sure what to expect tonight, but I think it's going to be a great game. And I know a lot of my family friends were watching and looking forward to a lot of bragging

rights on the line. Well, you know, you played in the Olympics, you played in World Cups. You mentioned the game on Saturday Do you ever wish you could go back and drop the gloves? You know against the Americans like an oh for something like that It was that giving you kind of flashbacks like man. I wish I could have fought Keith Kachuk 20 years ago Keith Kachuk is a pretty big guy pretty tough guy. Yeah You know, he was always hard to play against,

but no, definitely it was one of those, like I say, I was shocked to see it, but it was exciting. It's to see the passion, that energy, and it's part of what makes hockey so special is the skill, the speed, the intensity, that you never know what to expect on the physicality. And, oh yeah, it makes it, it brought back a ton of memories and how much of an honor to play for Canada and how much fun in the whole country watching.

Well, Iggy, you talked about energy and, you know, butterflies, all of that type of stuff, heading into a game. I mean, was it a lot different? You've played in a Stanley Cup final, you've played on the biggest stages, was it treated differently or did you personally and the guys in the dressing room treat it differently? Could you feel a different energy before these big games? Well, before the big ones for sure. I mean playoffs that's why it's so exciting and then you know I got to play in a few game sevens and

It feels like those it's you know the game goes quick. It's so yeah, you get the nerves you get the butterflies You know the starts important but these tournaments are different for sure the this was a little bit of a short one, but You know it usually takes guys a little bit to to get comfortable, to know your lines, know where you fit in, to also you know when you're a young guy get over the awe of being you know with Crosby or McDavid or guys that even though you're a peer you know for me it was Lemieux, Elijah, and Sackett playing with these guys and then to settle in and find that groove. So You know the Canadian fan. I was pretty pretty excited to see the last game McDavid and McKinnon and

Crosby's look like they really Roll and and I like that for our chances tonight the whole team with Jerome McGillin You mentioned kind of your idols on those teams back in the day, in 02 in particular, and obviously, Iserman and Sackick are legends, but Mario is just like Mario, he's like Sid. Like he's the equivalent of Sid for this team, and you mentioned you're kind of in awe and you're looking up to these guys,

but I'm curious how much comfort you got, Jerome, walking into the room being like, Mario's here, and he's ready to play. Like how much do you think the younger guys will draw of Sid walking in the room being like, Mario's here and he's ready to play. Like how much do you think the younger guys will draw of Sid walking in the room being like, I've been here, I've done it, I got you, follow suit. How much of that factored into your mentality in 02 in particular, walking into the room

behind Lemieux, Iserman, Sackett, et cetera? Yeah, you're 100% correct. 02, you know anytime you play for canada it's uh... it's a kind of pressure to honor and exciting but it's a kind of pressure you know it is uh... that expectation of uh... winner box and uh... that's what it is so

uh... you know it all too i remember we didn't have a a great start to the tournament we lost the sw Sweden big time and you know as a young guy there, that was my first time, I was you know just excited to be there but if we would have shown up the day after, I remember coming after we got trounced by Sweden the first game and people are all over us and you see Mario and you see Joe and they like nothing big, nothing happened. You know, it's a new day, they're smiling, they're ready to go.

And we took our cue from them, you know, it's one of those things, literally, you look at them, you're like, okay, Mario's fine and he's joking with us. And if they would have been tighter, you know, a little off, we, I'm sure it would have went through the whole team. So yeah, you're right, Sid's been through this a lot and I'm sure guys looking at him are amazed. I remember when I played with Mario Otoo, he was literally the best player in the world. He's 36 and been through his health

issues and Sid out here, how smart he is and how competitive and determined he's already had. I agree. I think people can come and just focus on themselves as young guys and bring the energy and you never know what's going to happen in the game and the different parts. But it is nice to be able to look down and know you have Sid and McDavid and McKinnon and that's pretty impressive and awesome group to follow. So Iggy, you talk about all the guys who are great players, but really everybody in that room is a leader

or a captain on their team or is a go-to guy for their respective club team. How does it sort out so quickly throughout the tournament? Kind of who paces the team or who is the leaders? Is it just the best players like you mentioned, a guy like Mario joking around the next day or is it fall on younger guys who have been great players throughout the league? We talk about Sid right now but McDavid is the best player in the world. Would he take a leadership role in that dressing room or does he just

defer to maybe the older guard? If I'm guessing, I think he takes the leadership. I think guys look to him right away and obviously Sid and yeah, McDavid being right at the top of the game. They know, you know, people play against him day in, day out. They know the impact he has. So I think everywhere he goes, he does have that. But one thing I think Hockey Canada does a great job is they prepare right

from, you know, under 17 programs to the U18 to World Juniors. You see how much pressure is on those guys, those young guys. But each time you get used to dealing with a little more pressure, you get used to coming together quickly in a team and whatever role you're given, you sign up for it, you just you do it so you learn these things all along the way because each one feels like the biggest tournament biggest game in the world playing for Canada whether like I said U17 and now being four nations and next year super pumped for Olympics so yeah

it's one of those things these guys have all been used to it and I didn't check but I'll bet you every single guy played for Canada right before and you get you get you wait and see what the coach has. You're not sure when you show up to these. But I'll tell you, you're pretty excited if they give you a spot on McDavid's line or Sid line because you know, you know, that's probably one of the top lines and going to be playing loss with Jerome McGinley and one of the top lines and gonna be playing lots with Jerome McGinley and one of these teams gonna win tonight and then we're gonna

resume the NHL play on Saturday so everyone's gonna be back in the room basically by tomorrow certainly by Saturday and you know your two gold medals in 0-2 and 10 were both against the Americans you know the first in Salt Lake the second in Vancouver what was it like going back into the room afterwards and specifically with your American teammates what was it like going back into the room afterwards and specifically with your American teammates? What was that like after you won gold and you beat the US? Oh yeah, it was awesome and they were different.

I get asked a lot which one was better and they were, I go back and forth. So like, oh, to Canada hadn't won in 50 years and then Pocky at the Olympics. So trying to break that drought. We got off to a tough start. And then also those are guys, like I said, that I looked up to when I was 12 and 13 and 14 and watching Rock'em, Sock'em on the bus and watching these guys be in the highlight reels.

And now I'm playing with Lemieux and on the line with Joe Sackick. So that was really really special and then when we wanted it was like super exciting. You know, New Canada was watching at home and I was a young kid whereas 2010 being in Vancouver, home soil, an awesome Olympics, the whole you know the whole city was was partying the whole time and enjoying it and it was kind of trying to finish it off the right way. It was nerve-racking. That one was, when they tied it up late, like in the last 30 seconds, whatever it was, it was

hard to take. It was guys were in the room, it was quiet, nobody said a word for probably the first five minutes and then I think Neidemar said, oh okay guys, someone's going to be a hero tonight. Then you get refocused and, but when we won that one, it was like peewee throwing our gloves around. It was, you know, what you dream about on the outdoor rink, but it was also a lot of big relief because, you know, as Canadians and hockey players, we wanted to do our part to try to finish the Olympics the right way and we also knew we'd never hear the end of it if the US won. So Iggy, we had prongs on last week and he was talking about the Vancouver one.

I believe it was Drew Doughty who was kind of late for a meeting, kind of showed up, kind of slept in. I mean, everyone has their different approach to the game, but I mean, were you surprised as to, you mentioned the anxiety and everything that comes with the pressure, but here's a young kid that was like, yeah, I can find a way to sleep through my alarm and just kind of walk in with the fans and show up and probably played 28 minutes that night. Oh yeah, he's a special, special character for sure, and it is cool. lock in with the fans and show up in probably played twenty eight minutes that night or a special left back to character for sure that it's cool it's like

you can see the intensity in some of the guys in and everybody's intent in their own way to get to this level and be successful but yeah i got to carry it so much different uh... you can see you know conwood david or mckinnon across we can see that intensity and then you look and Drew Dowdy loves competing he looks like he's always having fun and never never gets flustered and yeah I remember that and it was probably happened to the right guy because it didn't bother him at all and you know he's a big you know I've slept through stuff before too and it

would have bothered me a lot more if it was at that meeting and he was the right guy. So, yeah, pretty awesome that it worked out. Yeah, well, it's going to be a fun one tonight and the whole country is waiting for it and we'll see how it plays out. Hopefully, it plays out like in 10 and 02, right, Noonels? Yeah, Iggy, I got one last one before you go because we were talking about this earlier in the week and O-Dog brought this up.

So he was in the building on Saturday night and it was electric and Mario walked out and the crowd went nuts. But O in his mind all of a sudden had this daydream and he said, what would you do if Mario came out and he was holding the flag but the other guy on the other side was Spengler Cup silver medalist Jason Strudwick if they announced Jason Strudwick and Mario Lemieux. Like, he would have passed out from surprise. What do you make if Struddy walked out with Mario Lemieux? Haha, well, you know, I've never thought about it. Nobody has, but oh, yes.

I know Struddy's a proud Canadian. He definitely wouldn't have looked as athletic as Lemieux, that's for sure. Long skinny legs. He'd be looking to fight though you'd probably be doing pretty well yeah all right well Iggy we always appreciate you doing this enjoy the game tonight enjoy the resume resuming of the NHL I guess on Saturday as well and we'll catch up again down the road thank you for this hey thanks for having me, guys. Have a good night. You got it. There's a Jerome McGinley lights, camera action. The 2025 Juno Awards are hitting Vancouver on March 30th.

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