Bobby Clarke and the Masterton

[The Macho King]

So I was killing time as a semi-drunk passenger on a 2 hour ride home tonight and came across this on HR:

Bobby Clarke Stats | Hockey-Reference.com

Clarke won the Masterton in '72, but it does not look like he missed significant time prior. Nowadays, the Masterton tends to be "came back from a serious injury/cancer/personal tragedy" - was it the same then? It just seems odd that a third year player without any serious injuries prior get that trophy. I was wondering if anyone had any insight.

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[Doctor No]

Was related to his Type I diabetes.

 

[Neutrinos]

He's a diabetic, so maybe that had something to do with it

 

[Doctor No]

He's a diabetic, so maybe that had something to do with it

You really think so?

 

[sr edler]

Would have been much more impressive if he was a professional athlete with type 2 diabetes. I took meds through a needle/syringe-a-day from a younger age than Clarke (7/13) for a different type of endocrinological disease (the Messi one, I'm 6'2 though), and it's not that big of a deal from a practical perspective.

Clarke's saying it himself here:

DiabetesCare.net Interview: T1 Diabetes Never Stopped NHL Legend Bobby Clarke

How did your life change after your diagnosis?

It was not a burden for me; I wasn`t afraid of needles. I think the burden was more on my mother. That was a time when there was only one type of insulin and the needles and syringes needed to be boiled. Food, of course, had to be measured too, so it was all those types of things that put an extra strain on my mother. But as far as I was concerned, if I was going to play hockey and travel, I had to learn how to recognize sizes and portions of food more so than calories.

So, perhaps the league should have given the Masterson to Yvonne Clarke instead.

I can actually see it as a type of advantage to have that type of disease as a young athlete because it gives you structure at a young age, as Clarke also alludes to.

Swedish soccer player Pär Zetterberg had/have type 1 diabetes and he was our first (I think, or one of them) youth professional when he moved abroad to play in Belgium at age 16.

 

[tony d]

Clarke has diabetes. I've read before that teams were hesitant on picking him in the draft because of his Diabetes.

 

[ted2019]

Clarke has diabetes. I've read before that teams were hesitant on picking him in the draft because of his Diabetes.

Their loss was the Flyers benefit. Lasted to the 2nd round (17th overall) because of his diabetes. Was easily the best player his draft year after everything was all said and done.