Damian Clara (born 13 January 2005) is an Italian professional ice hockey player who is a goaltender for Brynäs IF of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) while under contract to the Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted 60th overall by the Anaheim Ducks in the second round of the 2023 NHL entry draft. He is the first Italian player to be selected in the NHL entry draft.
At age 15, Clara played at the Red Bull Hockey Academy in Salzburg, Austria, for two years before joining Färjestad BK's under-20 program in 2022. During the 2022âÂÂ23 season with Färjestad's under-20 team, he played 35 games and recorded a 17âÂÂ17âÂÂ0 record with a 2.79 goals against average and a .903 save percentage.
On 29 June 2023, Clara was drafted 60th overall by the Anaheim Ducks in the 2023 NHL entry draft.
Clara was loaned to Brynäs IF of the HockeyAllsvenskan for the 2023âÂÂ24 season, where he played 34 games posting a 25âÂÂ8âÂÂ0 record with a 2.23 goals against average and a .912 save percentage. In the playoffs, he went 10âÂÂ1 with a 1.68 goals against average and a .931 save percentage en route to a promotion for Brynäs IF to the Swedish Hockey League (SHL).
On 3 June 2024, Clara signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Anaheim Ducks, but was loaned back to Färjestad BK for the 2024âÂÂ25 season.
Clara was the backup goaltender behind Maxime Lagacé for Färjestad BK throughout the 2024âÂÂ25 SHL season. He played 21 games and had a 9âÂÂ10âÂÂ0 record with a 3.19 goals against average and a .878 save percentage. On 14 February 2025, Clara's contract with Färjestad BK was terminated at the recommendation of the Anaheim Ducks, who had his National Hockey League (NHL) rights. On 15 February, he signed with Oulun Kärpät of the Finnish Liiga for the rest of the 2024âÂÂ25 Liiga season. After Kärpät's season ended, the Anaheim Ducks assigned Clara to the San Diego Gulls, their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, where he played two games and went 0âÂÂ1âÂÂ0 with a 3.15 goals against average and a .898 save percentage.
Clara first played internationally at the 2021 World Championship for Italy, becoming the youngest goaltender to dress at the World Championship. He represented Italy in Division 1B (third level) of the 2022 World U18 Championship where he played four games and had a 2âÂÂ2 record with a 3.02 goals against average and a .906 save percentage. Later in the same season, he played for Italy in Division 2A (fourth level) of the 2022 IIHF World Junior Championship where he played three games recording a 2âÂÂ0 record with a 1.20 goals against average and a .942 save percentage. In 2023, he played in three tournaments for Italy; the World U18 Championship, World Junior Championships and World Championship. Italy played in Division 1B for the World U18s and World Juniors, and in Division 1A for the World Championship. Clara played for Italy in both the 2024 IIHF World Championship Division 1A (second level) and the 2025 IIHF World Championship Division 1A, where Italy was promoted to the top division for the 2026 tournament.
On 16 June 2025, Clara was one of the first six players selected to represent Italy in the 2026 Winter Olympics as the host nation.