Henrik Sedin Wins NHL’s King Clancy Award for 2016
By Jeremy Davis
7 years ago
So here I am, minding my own business, writing some draft junk, and what ho! A Canuck won something at the NHL Awards? After that season?! Well I’ll be.
Vancouver Canucks captain Henrik Sedin is the 2016 recipient of the NHL’s King Clancy Trophy, awarded to the NHL player “who best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice and who has made a significant humanitarian contribution to his community.”
Go Hank!
Henrik’s leadership on the ice is well known – I mean, he’s the team captain and all. This season, Henrik took his leadership to entirely new heights, defending his younger teammates in scrums and yelling at people who looked at him the wrong way – though I’m not sure that’s why he received this award.
Off the ice, Henrik, and brother Daniel, have been pillars of the Vancouver community for a decade and a half. As has been the norm since Pat Quinn ran the show in the late 80’s and mid-90’s, Henrik spends plenty of time visiting children’s hospitals around the province. Hank has been involved in, or supported, a large number of initiatives including Jeans Day (which helped BC Children’s Hospital Foundation raise over $1.1 million in 2016), Canuck Place Children’s Hospice, and the Canucks Autism Network (which touches home on a personal level for me).
One of his best known charitable accomplishments in the $1.5 million joint donation that he and Daniel made to help build a brand new Children’s Hospital in 2010, not long after re-upping with the Canucks on a five-year deal. In typical humble Sedin fashion, they even tried to keep the donation anonymous, but they were persuaded by the Foundation to put out a press release in order to draw more awareness to the fundraising campaign.
One of the Sedins’ more recent contributions has been the creation of the Sedin Family Foundation, which lauched ‘Clubhouse 36’ this past season at elementary schools in Surrey to “provide a safe, structured out-of-school program for kids aged 6-12 to learn, build confidence and have fun“.
Previous winners of this award include fellow countrymen Henrik Zetterberg and Daniel Alfredsson. Henrik Sedin is the second Canuck to win this award, following Trevor Linden, who has the 1998 recipient. Trevor had this to say about Henrik’s accomplishment:
“Henrik is a consummate leader and mentor for his teammates who embodies the principles of honesty, integrity and discipline. He has an innate ability to inspire and motivate others through his work ethic and desire to compete at the highest level. Alongside his brother Daniel, Henrik has brightened the lives of children and families in his adopted province of British Columbia for over 15 years. We are proud to see him recognized for his many contributions both on and off the ice.”
Henrik will have to make some room in his trophy cupboard, which already includes a Hart Memorial Trophy, an Art Ross Trophy, an Olympic Gold Medal, a World Hockey Championship Gold Medal, a Golden Puck (1999 Elitserien MVP), a Viking Award (2010 Best Swedish player in the NHL), and a pile of Canucks team awards.
The Canucks have already patched a video together on this, so enjoy.
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