Oettinger Gets King Clancy Nod
Dallas Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger was named a nominee for the King Clancy Memorial Trophy, the NHL award that recognizes leadership on and off the ice. (x.com) The Stars’ announcement praised him as a “leader on the ice” and a “difference-maker off it,” highlighting his locker-room and community impact heading into playoff conversations. (x.com)
Dallas just picked its King Clancy Memorial Trophy nominee, and the name is the same goalie it is counting on two weeks before the Stanley Cup Playoffs start: Jake Oettinger. The National Hockey League says the award goes to the player who shows leadership on and off the ice and makes a real community contribution. (nhl.com) This is not a leaguewide finalist list yet in the way fans usually talk about awards. Each of the National Hockey League’s 32 teams submits one nominee, and Dallas chose Oettinger as its 2025-26 representative. (nhl.com) The league’s selection committee includes Commissioner Gary Bettman plus former King Clancy Memorial Trophy and National Hockey League Foundation Player Award winners. The winner gets a $25,000 donation for a charity of his choice, and his team can receive up to $20,000 more for a related community event. (nhl.com) Dallas built Oettinger’s case around one program: Jake’s HopeCrew. The Stars say he has spent the past four seasons partnering with HopeKids and the Dallas Stars Foundation to create game-day and off-ice experiences for children with serious illnesses and their families. (nhl.com) At selected home games, Oettinger brings a HopeKids guest and family into the building, has the child recognized on the video board, and meets them after the game. The Stars also say he hosts a Jake’s HopeCrew skate so families can share the ice with him instead of only seeing him from the stands. (nhl.com) The team added one detail that shows how broad the program has become. After Oettinger won Olympic gold in 2026, the Stars say he teamed up with the National Hockey League Players’ Association, Amazon, HopeKids, and the team foundation for a behind-the-scenes visit, and Amazon donated $10,000 in his honor. (nhl.com) This lands at a moment when Oettinger’s on-ice job is getting heavier, not lighter. Dallas has already clinched a playoff berth for a fifth straight season, and the club says its first-round series will be against the Minnesota Wild when the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs begin on April 18. (nhl.com) That matchup puts Oettinger in the middle of the story twice over. He is a Minnesota-born goalie from Lakeville, and Dallas notes that he helped finish off Minnesota in the teams’ last playoff meeting in 2023. (espn.com, nhl.com) He is also still one of the league’s busiest starters. ESPN lists Oettinger at 32 wins, 12 regulation losses, 6 overtime losses, a 2.61 goals-against average, and 3 shutouts in 51 games this season. (espn.com) So the timing here is pretty simple even without the sales pitch. Dallas is heading into another playoff run with a 27-year-old goalie who is already central to its season, and the league just put his off-ice work on the same day’s agenda as the postseason push. (espn.com, nhl.com, nhl.com)
