It’s been a bumpy ride at times during his career, but on Wednesday night, Calgary Flames’ forward Nazem Kadri added another individual milestone to his hockey resume – suiting up for his 1,000th career NHL game.
A career that kicked off as a confident – and sometimes cocky – kid, Kadri was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs seventh overall in 2009 and battled his way into an NHL spot. He played one game for the Maple Leafs in 2009-10, making his NHL debut, but didn’t really get a legitimate taste of the show until 2010-11 when he suited up for 29 games during the regular season.
Nine seasons later, Kadri was a penalty-drawing, pesky player that thrived on getting under the skin of his opponents – and sometimes the on-ice officials as well. Still, he became a productive piece of the Maple Leafs lineup with two 30-goal seasons in 2016-17 and 2017-18.
Kadri Reached the Top of the Mountain in Colorado
Still, playoff suspensions led the Maple Leafs to eventually pull the trigger and move the veteran forward on July 1, 2019, trading him to the Colorado Avalanche where he spent three seasons further perfecting his craft.
The confidence stayed, but the maturity continued to grow. It was in Colorado that Kadri became a vital piece to a core that included Mikko Rantanen, Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar – a core that would go on to win the Stanley Cup in 2021-22.
That season, Kadri tallied a career-high 87 points in 71 games, including his fourth career 20-goal season. Even playing injured in the playoffs, Kadri added seven goals and 15 points in 16 games, playing a major role on route to the Stanley Cup win.
Kadri Secured the Bag in Calgary
From the Cup win to a parade in his hometown of London, Ontario, as the first Muslim-born player to win the Stanley Cup, Kadri signed a long-term deal with the Flames returning to Canada to continue his impressive career.
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Once again, Kadri has been relied upon as a leader and a major offensive role player since joining the Flames. Three straight 20-goal seasons, including a career-high 35 in 2024-25, and the 35-year-old continues to put together a strong individual career – on top of the team accolades.
Now, Kadri has become the 411th player in NHL history to play 1,000 games in the regular season and he has done so through so much adversity. He’s also just the 38th active player to reach the milestone and, as it stands, has a lot more hockey ahead of him.
As for his 1,000th NHL game, he finished the game with a goal in a 5-1 win over the Blue Jackets for his Flames, becoming just the second Flames player to score in his 1,000th career game. The other being Martin Gelinas back in 2003.
