But those big-league battles on the ice are hardly the toughest challenges Leland Irving has faced in his lifetime.
When he was 7 years old, Irving was just like any other Canadian boy his age, playing minor hockey and dedicated to a dream of making it to the NHL. But unlike other boys who spent their time off the ice in the playground, Irving spent his enduring rounds of chemotherapy, in a fight to overcome rhabdomyosarcoma.
If you’ve never heard of rhabdomyosarcoma before, it’s because it’s an extremely rare form of cancer that often presents itself in children under the age of 19.
The cancer was discovered in Irving after a biopsy revealed that what appeared to be an insect bite above his ear was indeed a cancerous tumor. After removing the tumor, Irving endured 13 months of chemotherapy before doctors could successfully say he was cancer free.
While chemotherapy is the most commonly used treatment for various types of cancer, it is a grueling ordeal, especially for children.
To sum up the treatment as simply as possible, the chemotherapy agents act by killing cells in the body that divide unusually rapidly. While this does target the cancerous cells, it also tends to affect other parts of the body, like bone marrow cells, the digestive tract and hair follicles.
So you can imagine that, even though the treatment is aiming to cure the cancer, it also leaves the patient feeling really, really crappy.
And all the while Leland Irving was going through this painful process, he continued to play hockey and managed to miss only one practice and one game.
16 years later, Irving has been healthy and enjoying the payoffs of such a struggle, saying “it’s helped me work that much harder for everything I’ve got.”
And at the age of 23, Irving does have a lot under his belt, now the official backup goalie for the Flames as Henrik Karlsson is out with an injury. And his teammates have nothing but praises to sing for Irving, calling him confident, solid and a great player all around.
But as he rises through the ranks of the NHL, you can count on Irving to remain humbled by the experience he went through as a child.
“I feel like I hold a special place in my heart for any kids —-or anybody—- who had to go through cancer or is affected by this terrible disease,” says Irving. “I hope to give anyone who’s had to go through their own battles a little bit of hope and realize that things can work out, and as you can see I am still able to live my dreams.”
After 3 years with the WHL's Kamloops Blazers, Iginla was drafted first round, 11th overall in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft by the Dallas Stars. In one quick trade, the Calgary Flames acquired their future most prized posession, and in the years to come, the Dallas Stars were left to wonder what their franchise could have been with Iginla on their side. The first couple of years as a Flame came with many ups and downs for Iginla. Among the highs were a spot on the NHL All-Star Rookie team, as well as becoming the runner-up for the Calder Memorial Trophy. The lows came in the form of contract complications. The Flames had not anticipated such success to come with the acquisition of the young player. Iginla had to make some sacrifices in order to remain on the roster, attending training camp without a contract and purchasing his own insurance to relieve the team of financial responsibility for any injuries that might occur. His sacrifices paid off. The following year, Iginla signed a contract with the Flames worth $4.9 million US, and reached his career high with 29 goals and 63 points. Iginla's reputation was on the rise in Calgary. The following 2 seasons saw him top each previous career high . By 2002 he nearly doubled his goal output and was awarded both the Lester B. Pearson Award and the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy. It was also the year Iginla truly wielded the Midas touch, winning gold as a part of Team Canada at the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City.
