BOSTON (AP) — The Boston Bruins lost to Pittsburgh in the competition for Jarome Iginla. That should make it tougher for them to beat the already powerful Penguins in the playoffs.

It was a bitter battle to lose, of course. Especially considering Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli thought he already had the Calgary Flames’ all-time leading goal scorer in the fold.

A few hours later, Iginla was a Penguin.

Just like that.

“We believed we had a deal,” Chiarelli said, at about noon on Wednesday for the Flames’ captain and the top prize in the NHL trade market.

But Iginla had a no-trade clause which allowed him to choose his destination from teams that made offers. And shortly before midnight on Wednesday, Calgary general manager Jay Feaster called Chiarelli with the bad news: Iginla had chosen the Penguins and Sidney Crosby.

“It’s tough. I mean, we’re talking about a really good player,” Chiarelli said. “This kind of stuff happens. It shouldn’t, but it does. The reality of no-movement and no-trade clauses, it’s going to happen more. It’s a disappointment, but you get back on your horse and you go out there and find some more players.”

A few days ago, the Bruins offered defenseman Matt Bartkowski and minor league forward Alexander Khokhlachev for Iginla. The final offer also included a first-round draft choice.

“We were informed around noon (Wednesday) that we had the player,” Chiarelli said.