Clutterbuck Playing the Hits

Considering Cal Clutterbuck has thrown 3,626 hits during his 16-year career, it's hard to recall specific collisions, but there's at least one that stands out to the Islanders veteran.
It came during Clutterbuck's first season with the Islanders in 2013-14, when he was finally able to knock over the man mountain that was 6'3, 245 lbs. defenseman Douglas Murray.

"Douglas Murray was the hardest one to hit if you tried to run into him," Clutterbuck said. "I got traded here and the first game he played at the Coliseum I knocked him over for the first time. I was joking with the boys and I said 'it took me seven years to knock him over fellas.' It's a proud moment for me. At the end of the first period, he was looking the other way, I just ran into him and knocked him over. It was a big deal for me. He was that big."
In fairness, Clutterbuck said that Murray, who was a longtime San Jose Shark, but was playing in Montreal when Clutterbuck finally toppled him, probably hit the hardest of anyone he's played against. (For what it's worth, Duncan Keith and Cale Makar have proved to be the most evasive when it comes to dodging Clutterbuck checks.)

Physicality is Clutterbuck's calling card, even more than his wrist shot, chirping, A+ hockey name, or early-career mustache(s). His 3,626 hits are six shy of Dustin Brown (3,632) for the most in NHL history, though hits have only been recorded since the 2005-06 season. Matt Martin is third on that list with 3,471.
"It just maybe shows that I've been able to be consistent with it for a long period of time," Clutterbuck said. "That's always been part of my identity as a player and it continues to be."
Being one of the most prolific hitters takes a physical toll, as Clutterbuck takes contact every time he dishes out a hit. The 3,626 hits don't count all the times he's been on the receiving end of a check, nor does it count missed hits into the boards, post-whistle scrums, fights etc. Clutterbuck suffered a series of back injuries in the 2018-19 season, including a reported stress fracture, two slipped discs and two rotated vertebrae, which he played through, and needed shoulder surgery last year. There have been some flukier injuries, like a skate cut on his wrist after knocking over Patrice Bergeron, which kept him sidelined for a bulk of 2019-20, but aside from that, Clutterbuck's played at least 70% of games in every Isles season.
"Sometimes it hurts, sometimes it doesn't," Clutterbuck said. "You're just so used to it. At the beginning of every season, you just take a couple and get reminded of how much it hurts, that day or the next day. But for some reason, like two or three weeks, your body just kind of seems to settle into this position where you're in a little bit of pain all time."

Even at 35, he's still doing his job enthusiastically. His 64 hits lead the team and are eighth in the NHL. dishing out 10 hits in a game against Tampa Bay on Oct. 22 and another nine against the Rangers on Oct. 26.
"I think I have an ability to do it," Clutterbuck said. "Some guys are better at it than others. Same as passing and shooting and skating, there's a skill that that goes into it, a pop that when you do it properly to try and prevent yourself getting hurt and even other people get hurt."
Over time, Clutterbuck's been able to refine his physical game to the point where he even has a specific weight he likes to play at, a four-pound window that allows him to throw his body around, while protecting it. He felt he was too lean at times in Minnesota and he's been too heavy at others, which didn't work for him.
"It's a league where if you do it the wrong way, then you can get into some trouble and you could hurt some people," he said. "It's not why you do things, you do things to be effective. It's a combination of things. I'm just happy I'm still in one piece."
There's more to Clutterbuck's game than just throwing the body. He's one of the team's most-used penalty killers, averaging 2:12 SH TOI/GP and a leader in the locker room. His wrist shot has always had plenty of zip, but after joining up with Martin and Casey Cizikas on the Islanders Identity Line in 2014, he's fully embraced the grinding side of the game.

"He's obviously a key guy for us in many different ways," Head Coach Lane Lambert said. "He's a guy that demands a lot from himself first and foremost and when you do that, you can also take ownership and help other players along. He does a really good job of that and obviously, his physicality speaks for itself."
Clutterbuck recently became the 20th player to suit up in 600 games for the franchise and the first to do so after debuting with another team.
"He's been a huge impact on this on this franchise for a long time," Martin said. "A lot of years, a lot of games and he always comes and plays the same way and puts his body on the line. He makes that sacrifice and is a guy that plays in a lot of situations and has been key to our success."
Clutterbuck said he wasn't aware he was on the cusp of passing Brown. There's no trophy for being the league's hits leader in a season - something he's been three times and Martin's been five times. When the goal is to grind down defensemen during a game and provide energy, it's hard to identify an end target, there are just a series of moving ones.