Although Italy ultimately lost to Sweden in Wednesday's preliminary round game at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics to 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.
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.
Damian Clara, the first-ever Italian player drafted to the NHL, made his presence known despite falling to Sweden in the Men's Hockey preliminary round 👏
Clara got injured on this save and needed to leave the game after 46 minutes played. pic.twitter.com/Slj33dqT9f
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) February 11, 2026
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.
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.
