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Clint Malarchuk

Former NHL goaltender Malarchuk guest speaker at WolfPack scholarship breakfast

Jun 25, 2019 | 7:41 AM

KAMLOOPS, BC—Clint Malarchuk has led a very interesting and diverse life and he will be sharing his experiences as the guest speaker for the 2019 Thompson Rivers University WolfPack Scholarship breakfast.

The former NHL goalie and coach is also an author and a mental health advocate. He will be in Kamloops speaking at the Breakfast on Tuesday, September 24th at the Grand Hall at TRU.

Malarchuk played in the Western Hockey League for the Portland Winter Hawks and then moved onto the NHL playing with the Quebec Nordiques, the Washington Capitals and the Buffalo Sabres. After retiring with the IHL Las Vegas Thunder. He compiled a record of 141 wins, 130 losses, 45 ties, 12 shutouts and a saves percentage of .885.

He later served as head coach of the Thunder and then as a goaltending coach with the NHL Florida Panthers and Columbus Blue Jackets and was later a goalie consultant with the Atlanta Thrashers (now Winnipeg Jets) and the Calgary Flames before retiring in 2014.

He did this while at the same time suffering from high anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder and depression. Malarchuk nearly had his career and life tragically ended when he was cut by a skate blade across his neck during a game.

Malarchuk later wrote his memoir: “The Crazy Game: How I Survived in the Crease and Beyond” which was published in 2014.

He will be sharing his life experiences during his speech at the breakfast.

WolfPack Athletics Director Curtis Atkinson says,” We are thrilled to welcome Clint as our feature speaker at this year’s breakfast. Many of our supporters will remember Clint from his time on the ice as an NHL goaltender, but he has a powerful story to share about his life away from the rink. As a passionate mental health advocate, he now works to end the stigma of mental illness. His life story and message will touch those in attendance and I know he is excited to speak to our student-athletes and our supporters.”

Malarchuk is the sixth speaker since the Scholarship breakfast began at Thompson Rivers in 2014. Other notable keynotes include former NHL’er Sheldon Kennedy, Soccer legend Bob Lendarduzzi, Kelly Olynyk of the NBA Miami Heat, and Olympic skiing medalist Kelsey Serwa.

He adds, “Our scholarship breakfast is our most important annual fundraiser as it raises significant funds for student-athlete scholarships. The opportunity to have Clint as our keynote is an amazing opportunity for WolfPack supporters to hear an important message while supporting student-athletes.”

The 2019 TRU WolfPack Scholarship breakfast will begin on Tuesday, September 24th at 6:30 AM with the buffet breakfast set for 6:45 AM. You can purchase tickets by visiting the WolfPack website: www.gowolfpack.ca. and logging onto the events page.