'A Pleasure To Watch'

When Miikka Kiprusoff arrived for his first NHL training camp in the late 90's with the San Jose Sharks, it was another Flames legend that immediately caught the eye of the young Finnish netminder.

"I knew Verny (Mike Vernon) was going to be there. I was always secretly watching him, how he practiced, what he was doing, Kiprusoff said. "Superstar, great goalie, one of the best in the league. You know, you're a young guy, a little bit shy, maybe try to say hi, but right way he was great with us, the young goalies, he was helping us out."

While the interaction was minimal between the two in that first camp, it was the start of a connection that would go much deeper than both men realized at the time.

Vernon, already a two-time Stanley Cup champion, would play his final season in San Jose before moving on, and eventually finishing his illustrious Hall-of-Fame career back where it all started in his hometown Calgary. In the 2000-01 season, Kiprusoff would see his first NHL action, playing five games with the Sharks - before eventually following Vernon to Calgary after the trade in 2003.

It was as a Flame - in the same crease as the man he watched in that first camp - that Kiprusoff found his home, becoming one of the top goaltenders in the NHL.

"He's one of the best goalies. Kipper was very special," said Vernon, one of Kiprusoff's biggest fans during his nine seasons in Calgary. "When I retired and came back here I loved going to the games, because I loved watching the goaltenders. ... He was acrobatic, he used his tools and he was a pleasure to watch. I just enjoyed watching him and I enjoyed him off the ice.

"He was just an easy going guy and nothing ever seemed to rattle him, which was amazing. It kind of reminded me of Grant Fuhr a bit. Nothing seemed to faze him. Kipper had that aura about him, he just kept playing. It was kind of cool observing that as an ex-goaltender and watching him."

Just like the fans did for nearly a decade.

"They knew they were going to get a show and they knew they were going to get goaltending," Vernon said. "As soon as he came here, he created that… and he created the buzz around the Calgary Flames."

On March 2, Vernon will look on as No. 34 is raised to the rafters as the second goaltender in franchise history to have his number retired, right alongside his own No. 30.

"He was in Calgary and he was always great for me, good friend and great goalie and that means a lot," Kiprusoff said.

"I'm the elder statesman and it's kind of nice that he recognizes me in that, and I appreciate that," acknowledges Vernon, who will be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in November.

The goalie fraternity is a close one, especially among the best to play the position. Vernon and Kiprusoff will be forever linked as two of the best in franchise history - and there's a mutual respect between the two puck-stoppers, whose banners will occupy the same air at the Scotiabank Saddledome.

"That's what I love about him the most. He just went out and played the game and he played it hard every night and gave it his all," Vernon said.

"That's what I saw. It was just fun watching him."