Down on the Farm: Back to Where It All Began

Life may have come full circle last summer when Graeme Clarke arrived in the Twin Cities with his father Chris, in preparation for the 2024-25 season. His dad proudly showed him around the town where they all used to live in the early days of the family.

Graeme was born in Waconia, MN but doesn’t remember his short stint in the State of Hockey. His Canadian parents, Chris and Trish, who were each earning their Masters’ degrees at the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry.

The couple concluded their studies in 2002 and returned home to Ottawa with their first born in tow. The family expanded with a second boy, Brandt, who was followed by a sister, MacKenzie.

The Clarke household was full of commotion as all three of the Clarke children became gifted hockey players. Brandt is a defenseman for the LA Kings after they drafted eighth overall in 2021. MacKenzie plays defense for the St. Lawrence University women’s team.

“It was every game you could think of inside and outside the house,” said Graeme. “Hockey being the main one that we did the most. Sometimes it got competitive.”

All three adopted their father’s passion for the game who played hockey growing up and can still be found at the rink today.

“I think he guided us into hockey,” said the Wild prospect. “We all took a loving for it at a young age. We played winter hockey, followed by spring hockey and then it was almost year-round. It was just something we wanted to do, and we never wanted to stop.”

Some of the best games took place in the family’s “Shooter Room”.

“There’s a room in the basement where you can close the door, so you didn’t wreck every other part of the basement,” he said with a laugh. “My dad laid some tile down and then put up a big tarp-net combo. We would be down there for hours, ripping shots and different games. Sometimes, we would put on gloves and pads, and someone would shoot and the other would be a goalie. It was some fun stuff.”

It wasn’t long before Graeme found himself playing for his hometown team, the OHL’s Ottawa 67’s. He said playing in Ottawa was “really cool” and something he will cherish forever, capped by the 67s OHL Finals appearance in 2019.

The New Jersey Devils selected Clarke 80th overall in the third round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. He began his pro journey with the AHL’s Binghamton Devils in 2020-21 and remained in the Devils system for the next three years.

In his third season, Clarke hit his stride with his best professional season. He scored 25 goals and totaled 58 points in 68 games with the Devils AHL affiliate in Utica. His success set the stage for a special season in 2023-24.

The right wing surpassed the 20-goal plateau for the second straight season and collected 49 points. It was a special season for Graeme, as he experienced what he called two of his greatest hockey memories.

On Jan. 3 he was recalled by the Devils and Graeme made his NHL debut three days later against the Vancouver Canucks. Clarke skated 15 shifts for 9:32 of ice time with a +1 rating in New Jersey’s 6-4 home loss.

“It was really cool,” said Clarke. “I had family and a couple of friends there. Everything was special, just like everyone says. It was great going out for warmups with my helmet off skating the did the rookie lap.”

Other than winning a championship, there are not many hockey memories bigger than an NHL debut. Unless you are Graeme and Brandt Clarke. The pair became only the second set of brothers since 1997 to compete in the AHL All-Star Classic.

It was a family affair at TCH CU Arena in San Jose for the AHL All-Star Classic with Graeme representing Utica, and Brandt, a rookie representing the Ontario Reign, LA Kings AHL affiliate.

The brothers went head-to-head in the skills competition. Brandt edged Graeme in the puck relay and bested him in the accuracy shooting drill. The older brother relinquished bragging rights.

“I was in the East and we didn’t meet up at all during the season,” said Graeme. “But then we were able to go to San Jose together. Our parents were there. We competed against each other in a couple of skills competitions.

“That is one of my most fun and fondest memories in pro hockey. Just being able to do that experience with him.”

When the season ended, Clarke was prepping for the upcoming season when he was informed, he had been traded to the Minnesota Wild. After four seasons in the Devils organization, New Jersey traded Clarke for forward Adam Beckman on June 21, 2024. The trade was a bit of a shock.

“Just one summer day, you get a call that it‘s happened,” explained Clarke. “Then you’re with another organization. It was quick. It was also cool because I had a little bit of the Minnesota ties.”

After training camp with Minnesota, Clarke was assigned the club’s AHL affiliate in Iowa. Admittedly so, the Iowa Wild had a rough start to the season and have been trying to climb the standings ever since.

Like the club, Clarke was slow out of the gates. He didn’t play until November after an injury in training camp delayed his Iowa debut. In his first ten games, the 23-year-old managed three points.

Fast forward to March and the Wild have the player they traded for last summer.

Iowa is playing its best hockey of the season and chasing a playoff spot. Clarke has been an integral part Iowa’s late-season surge. Over a seven-game stretch to close out February and begin March, the Wild forward posted ten points off two goals and eight assists. Graeme even played hero on back-to-back nights on the road with an overtime game-winning goal and a shootout winner the following evening.

“Graeme is very talented,” said Iowa Head Coach Brett McLean. “He has a great shot, poise with the puck, and good offensive IQ.

“What got him going was he started competing extremely hard and playing well away from the puck. Now his game is in good spot. His confidence and offense have taken off, especially when he has a shoot-first mentality like he’s done lately.”

“I like to drive the play,” said Clarke. “When it’s going well, I’m driving the play with the puck on my stick. I have a shoot-first mentality, too. I think when I’m shooting the puck a lot, that is an indicator my game is on.

“If I’m doing things that I want to do, like taking control of the play and finding ways scoring areas to get my shot off. I feel like I can beat goalies clean if I can get looks.”

With his recent surge in Iowa, Clarke’s NHL aspirations may be attained in the state he was born—the State of Hockey.