Malarchuk, who was born in Grand Prairie, Alberta, played junior hockey in the Western Hockey League. He went on to play professionally in the NHL for the Quebec Nordiques, the Washington Capitals, and the Buffalo Sabres, and in the IHL for the Las Vegas Thunder.

After leaving the NHL as a player, he served as head coach of the IHL Las Vegas Thunder and the Idaho Steelheads. He was then a goaltending coach for the NHL Florida Panthers and the Columbus Blue Jackets. He became the goaltending consultant for the Atlanta Thrashers in 2010, going from there to the Calgary Flames, and retiring from the team in 2014.

No job in the world of sports is as intimidating, exhilarating, and stress-ridden as that of a hockey goaltender. Clint Malarchuk did that job while suffering high anxiety, depression, and obsessive compulsive disorder and had his career nearly literally cut short by a skate across his neck, to date the most gruesome injury hockey has ever seen. This autobiography takes readers deep into the troubled mind of Malarchuk, the former NHL goaltender for the Quebec Nordiques, the Washington Capitals, and the Buffalo Sabres. When his carotid artery was slashed during a collision in the crease, Malarchuk nearly died on the ice. Forever changed, he struggled deeply with depression and a dependence on alcohol, which nearly cost him his life and left a bullet in his head. In A Matter of Inches, & The Crazy Game ,Malarchuk reflects on his past as he looks forward to the future, every day grateful to have cheated death—twice.