Hockey Hall of Famer Jarome Iginla battling neurological issues after metal hip replacement

Jarome Iginla revealed an ongoing health battle the Hockey Hall of Famer believes might be due to complications from hip surgery.The 49-year-old former NHL great, a 600-goal scorer and two-time Olympic gold medalist, told Sportsnet he’s still trying to figure everything out.“Unfortunately I have been battling some health issues,” he said.“Some neurological issues.

I’m not entirely sure what it is, it may be from metal toxins from reaction to the cobalt hip.”The hard-nosed forward, who twice led the NHL in goals during a 20-year career spent with the Flames, Penguins, Bruins, Kings and Avalanche, had his hip replaced a few years after his final season in 2016-17, with cobalt-chromium components.The breakdown of the material can see debris and ions enter the bloodstream, causing various health issues.There are no concrete answers yet, however.“I need more time to figure it all out, but I’m still hopeful that I will recover fully,” he said.

“Things are slowly getting under control, thanks be to God.”Per Sportsnet, he has been dealing with high mercury levels in his body, while also working through energy, weight and speech issues due to medications.He’s been going through testing and medical consults for over a year.Iginla currently serves as a special advisor to Flames general manager Craig Conroy, a teammate from his days in Calgary where he rose to NHL stardom on his the strength of his scoring ability — he was one of the few sources of constant offense during the league’s “Dead Puck” era — and legendary toughness as a willing fighter when the occasion came.He broke the 30-goal plateau 12 times in his career — twice hitting the 50-goal mark en route to 625 career tallies and 1,300 points in 1,554 games to go with 1,040 penalty minutes.

He is Calgary’s all-time leader in goals (525), points (1,095), games played (1,219) and game-winning goals (83), and further cemented his status as a Flames legend during a run to the Stanley ...