A Flame From the Past: Chris Clark

Do you remember Chris Clark?

Every once in a while, we take a look at a player who once played for the Calgary Flames in a series called “A Flame From the Past”. This player has to have played a significant number of games for the Flames. I’ll put every Flames’ season into a Wheel of Names, and this time, it landed on the 2002-03 season. In this article, we’ll take a look at Chris Clark.

Born in South Windsor, Connecticut, Clark played his junior hockey in the New England Junior Hockey League before joining Clarkson University for the 1994-95 season. A few months before starting his collegiate career, Clark was drafted 77th overall by the Flames in the 1994 draft.

In his rookie season, the right winger scored 12 goals and 23 points in 32 games. His play regressed the following season, scoring just 10 goals and 18 points in 38 games, but posted 23 goals and 48 points in 37 games in his junior year. Clark’s final season of collegiate hockey saw him score 18 goals and 39 points in 35 games, turning professional after the 1997-98 season.

His first professional season was spent with the Saint John Flames of the American Hockey League, scoring 13 goals and 40 points in 73 games. The following season was split between the Flames and their AHL team, where he picked up an assist in 22 National Hockey League games and 16 goals and 33 points in 48 AHL games.

In 2000-01, it was much of the same for Clark. In 29 NHL games, he scored five goals and six points, but most of his season was spent with their AHL team, where he scored 18 goals and 35 points in 48 games. However, he won the Calder Cup in the AHL that season.

The 2000-01 season was Clark’s final in the AHL until the end of his career, as he became a regular with the Flames in 2001-02. That season saw him score 10 goals and 17 points in 64 games. Clark scored 10 goals in 2002-03 and 10 goals in 2003-04, amassing 22 and 25 points in 81 and 82 games, respectively.

Clark was also a part of the Flames team that went to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals, where he scored three goals and six points in 26 games. The 2004-05 season was a lockout year, with Clark playing in Switzerland and Norway. That ended his Flames’ career, as he was traded to the Washington Capitals for a 2006 sixth and seventh pick to the Washington Capitals.

Immediately, the Flames had seller’s remorse as Clark’s career flourished with the Capitals and a young Alexander Ovechkin. He doubled his production in 2005-06, scoring 20 goals and 39 points in 78 games. In 2006-07, Clark scored 30 goals and 54 points in 74 games, but that happened to be the high point of his career as injuries began to take over.

In 2007-08, Clark played just 18 games, scoring five goals and nine points, with his season being derailed thanks to a groin injury. The following season saw him score just one goal and six points in 32 games, but he also played his final eight post-season games that season.

After 38 games in 2009-10 where he scored four goals and 15 points with the Capitals, Clark was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets. He finished the season with three goals and five points in 36 games. Clark’s final NHL season was in 2010-11, scoring five goals and 15 points in 53 games. In 2011-12, he played just six games with the AHL’s Providence Bruins before calling it a career.

Although the second half of Clark’s career was injury-filled, the Connecticut native is still involved in hockey, serving as the general manager of the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters, a role he’s held since 2019.