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Italy goalie Damian Clara leaves with injury after historic 46-save performance
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- Italy goalie Damian Clara leaves with injury after historic 46-save performance
Italy goalie Damian Clara leaves with injury after historic 46-save performance appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
Although Italy ultimately lost to Sweden in Wednesday's preliminary round game at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics t o the tune of a 5-2 score, the host team still earned a ton of praise for the way it held itself up against a powerful squad, in large part as well because of the performance in front of the net by goalie Damian Clara.
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However, Clara was not able to finish the game , as he had to leave the ice due to an injury, according to hockey writer Derek Lee.
" Ducks prospect Damian Clara's night ends after suffering what appears to be a groin injury on a fantastic save on Elias Pettersson . Unfortunate for the Italian, but a strong performance that he can be proud of with 46 saves," Lee wrote in a social media post on X, formerly Twitter.
The 21-year-old Clara was apparently injured during a fantastic play he made while turning away a shot from Sweden star and Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Pettersson.
The first Italian-born player to be selected in the NHL draft, Clara surely raised his hockey profile with his valiant effort between the pipes in Italy's opening game in the Olympics.
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The Anaheim Ducks , who took him in the second round of the 2023 NHL Draft , must also be ecstatic over the way their goalie prospect performed, though they are also certainly hoping that his injury is not a serious one.
With Damian Clara injured, Davide Fadani stepped in and finished the goalkeeping duties for Italy, which will next face Slovakia in Group B play.
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