Anaheim Ducks select first Italian-born goaltender Damian Clara with No. 60 overall pick in 2023 NHL Draft
The Anaheim Ducks have selected goaltender Damian Clara with the No. 60 overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft held in Nashville, Tennessee.
Damian Clara from Italy is the youngest goaltender in history of the #IIHFWorlds to appear on a roster and the youngest player in modern history.🇮🇹👏
Only two players were younger at their first World Championship – and that was over 80 years ago.😮 @fisg_it pic.twitter.com/xWvV1zEeG7
Clara, who hails from Brunico, Italy becomes the first Italian-born goaltender ever to be drafted in the National Hockey League. The 6-foot-6 netminder currently plays for Färjestad BK in the Swedish J20 Nationell League. This past season, he posted a 17-17-0 record and a 2.79 goals-against average to go along with a .903 save percentage.
The monster netminder was able to show off why he is the future of Italian goaltending this year at both the IIHF U18, U20, and World Championship tournaments. Clara was named the Best Goaltender at both the U18 D1B and U20 D1B tournaments while winning both his games at the World Championship D1A tournament, picking up a bronze medal at each level.
Daily Faceoff prospect analyst Steven Ellis had this to say about Clara, “At 6-foot-6, Clara uses his size to his advantage, and scouts think teams will take a chance on him for his size alone. Plus, goaltenders from smaller hockey countries typically spend their whole career trying to scratch and claw their way onto pro team’s radars.”
Clara will return to Sweden for another season of hockey. He has been loaned to Brynas IF of the HockeyAllsvenskan where he will battle it out for the starters position. Clara joins a Ducks prospect pipeline that includes Leo Carlsson, who was selected No. 2 overall yesterday.