The National Hockey League (NHL) today announced Minnesota Wild defenseman Matt Dumba as the team’s nominee for the 2023 King Clancy Memorial Trophy, awarded to the player who best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice and has made a noteworthy humanitarian contribution in his community. The NHL will announce the finalists for the 2023 King Clancy Memorial Trophy later this month.
Dumba, 28, has long worked to make hockey a more inclusive sport, with the ultimate goal of eradicating racism from the game completely. The recipient of the King Clancy Memorial Trophy in 2020, a finalist for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy in 2021 and the Wild’s inaugural Tom Kurvers Humanitarian Award winner in 2023, Dumba has contributed his time, money and efforts to a number of community initiatives throughout his career. Dumba hosts the annual Matt Dumba Hockey Without Limits Camp, a free youth camp designed to bring more diversity and inclusion to the game. On February 10, 2023, the third iteration of the camp took place at Guidant John Rose MN OVAL in Roseville, Minnesota. Over 300 youth hockey players from The Herb Brooks Foundation, New Directions Youth Ministry, Hockey is for Me, Mosaic Hockey Collective, DinoMights, Athletes Committed to Educating Students (ACES), Minnesota Special Hockey, Sled Hockey, Blind Hockey, Deaf/Hard of Hearing Hockey, Interfaith Action and American Indian Youth Enrichment attended the event.
In June of 2020, Dumba joined forces with six other current and former NHL players to help form the Hockey Diversity Alliance (HDA). The HDA seeks to promote diversity at all levels of the game, using community outreach and engagement with youth to make the game more accessible and affordable to all people. Dumba has led fundraisers and made donations in support of numerous charities and nonprofits, including the Lake Street Council in Minneapolis, ActionDignity in Calgary, Athletes Committed to Educating Students and the New South Wales Rural Fire Service in Australia.
The 6-foot-0, 184-pound native of Regina, Saskatchewan, recorded 14 points (4-10=14), 99 shots, 81 penalty minutes (PIM), 116 blocked shots and 104 hits in 79 games played this season. For his career, he has played in 598 NHL games, all with Minnesota, and recorded 236 points (79-157=236), 399 PIM, 26 power-play goals, 699 blocked shots and 816 hits. He ranks first in franchise history in hits by a defenseman, is tied for first in franchise history with six overtime goals and has served as an alternate captain for Minnesota since the beginning of the 2021-22 season.
(info courtesy of Wild)
