OTTAWA – It takes impressive mental fortitude to get through everything Clarke MacArthur has battled these last few years and yet he admits that his mind briefly began to wander when he found himself back in the playoff cauldron at TD Garden last weekend.
In a building that is equal parts boisterous and belligerent, he couldn’t shake the memory of the Game 7 collapse he experienced with Toronto there four years earlier: “That kills me, that game.”
And so there was a sense of déjà vu on Sunday afternoon with his Ottawa Senators trying to move past a stubborn Boston Bruins team.
“When they tied it 2-2, I was like ‘come on,”’ MacArthur said Thursday. “It flashed through my mind – ‘not this s— again.’ It hit me right in the game. I was like ‘ah man,’ you know how that building erupts like that.
“It’s crazy there, it’s absolutely insane.”
That he was the one to silence it with the overtime winner to propel Ottawa into a second-round date with the New York Rangers says a lot about where he’s at, and where he’s been.
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In the here and now, it was a massive goal for the city and franchise. It probably meant even more than that to a 32-year-old winger who has played less than 15 games the last two seasons because of multiple concussions.
His phone hasn’t stopped in the days since, leading up to Game 1 against the Rangers here on Thursday night.
“It’s lit up,” said MacArthur. “A lot of texts now. A lot of friends now, got a lot of friends back. It was pretty cool – everyone was really excited for me.”
He has been overwhelmed by the number of messages he got from fans through his Instagram account. Some of those simply included well-wishes, but many have come from people seeking advice on how to deal with their own concussion issues.
All MacArthur has been able to share with them is what worked for him – most notably a procedure that involves realigning the spine called “upper cervical chiropractic.”
“I really believe (it was) the big difference for me,” he said. “I went and seen this Dr. (Jim) Moore in Stittsville here. Every week I go, or every two weeks, for alteration. It’s kept the headaches away.
“I really believe that has a big part in it.”
He also leaned on the support of former NHLers Colby Armstrong, Ryane Clowe and Tim Connolly, who all reached out with some advice of their own.
What makes MacArthur’s playoff heroics even more unlikely is the fact the Senators declared him out for the season on Jan. 20 after he was unable to gain the necessary medical clearance needed to play. That was an incredibly difficult time – he had significantly ramped up his skating and exercise regimen in anticipation of a return – so MacArthur headed to Florida to gain some separation from the team.
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“I got away from everything,” he said. “I don’t know if that helped me heal or what, but it definitely made me want to come back and really push it hard. Maybe that was a blessing in disguise what happened in January.”
The medical clearance finally arrived during the last week of the regular season and MacArthur scored twice in the opening-round series against Boston.
His value to the team has been both spiritual and measurable. An extremely popular guy in the dressing room, MacArthur has given coach Guy Boucher another power-play option and Ottawa clicked along at 21.7 per cent in the opening round.
“A top two-line guy, you’re not going to find that on the corner of the street,” said Boucher.
Added captain Erik Karlsson: “We missed him all year.”
MacArthur is still taking things day by day as he gets reacclimatized to hockey at its highest level. He suffered four concussions over an 18-month period and is understandably concerned about the possibility of another one.
It hasn’t been something he’s completely blocked out of his mind over the 10 games since his return.
“It’s hard to do,” said MacArthur. “You either trust that you’re healed or you don’t. I trusted that I was fully healed and I knew if I took a hard hit or if I gave a hit, and it wasn’t there, then I knew it’s just not right. So far – knock on wood – it’s been good.
“The first couple games were definitely a little nerve-wracking.”
He is settling in and feeling more comfortable now.
This is the first time in his career he’s reached the second round of the playoffs, and given the journey to get here, he plans to enjoy it.
“You’re playing with house money now,” said MacArthur. “You just want to go out and enjoy it.”
