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Ducks' 21-year old phenom named rising trade candidate after Olympic stardom
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- Ducks' 21-year old phenom named rising trade candidate after Olympic stardom
Ducks' 21-year old phenom named rising trade candidate after Olympic stardom originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Anaheim Ducks watched one of their youngsters put on an impressive show at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy.
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It's a performance that may have created a notable trade candidate.
Damian Clara played goalie for the host nation Italy, and while the Italians were generally overmatched, Clara was not.
Daily Faceoff's Matt Larkin thinks that could lead to Clara being a logical trade candidate as the NHL's deadline approaches on March 6.
"The host Italian team had no chance at a deep run but still hung around in games longer than pretty much anyone expected," Larkin writes. "A big reason why? The inspired play of Ducks prospect Clara. He faced 146 shots in just four games and managed a .911 save percentage, which was pretty miraculous given he shared a group with mighty Sweden and Finland and surprise Group B winner Slovakia. Clara's name hasn't been the subject of trade talk at all, but the Ducks have a young rising star entrenched as their No. 1 in Lukas Dostal."
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There's at least a bit of precedent for a trade like this one.
"As they continue their ascension into a Western Conference contender in the coming years, they may find themselves in a position to acquire a star player, and doing so may require sacrificing a good prospect," Larkin writes. "Could that be Clara? This could be Anaheim's version of the Florida Panthers trading Devon Levi to the Buffalo Sabres to get Sam Reinhart."
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Clara was the No. 60 overall draft pick in 2023. He has played in Sweden and in the AHL, but not yet in the NHL.
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The Ducks could use this performance to view Clara as a long-term backup. But if another team was especially intrigued by Clara's play, maybe that could set up a trade.
