My next player profile is on now-former Bruins Ryan Donato! Donato appeared in 34 games for the Bruins last season, in which he produced six goals and three assists. He also played in 18 games for the Bruins’ AHL affiliate, the Providence Bruins, through which he tallied seven goals and five assists. He was then traded at the deadline to the Minnesota Wild, for whom he went on to play in 22 games, in which he recorded four goals and 12 assists. Drafted in the second round (56th overall) of the 2014 NHL Entry Draft by the Bruins, Donato has appeared in 68 career NHL games, over which he has produced 15 goals and 19 assists. The 23-year old center and left wing has only played for the Bruins and Wild organizations over his professional career, which has spanned a little over one season as he turned pro following the end of his junior season at Harvard University in 2017-18.
Donato had a lot of hype surrounding him as he arrived in the NHL, and that was only heightened when he burst onto the scene with nine points in his first 12 games. However, this season, he was unable to match that and struggled to gain the trust of head coach Bruce Cassidy and stick on the roster. Even when he was with the big club, he often played very few minutes, mostly due to his defensive deficiencies, of which there are many. He was also unable to put the puck in the net like he was expected to, and was easily knocked off the puck when he had it. All of this and likely a few other factors led to his being included in the trade that saw Charlie Coyle come to Boston. Donato went on to flourish on Minnesota’s top line, where he saw more of an offensive role and increased ice time. He still has a lot of potential, and while some people are angry that the Bruins gave up on him so soon after watching him play in Minnesota, I still think it was the right move. He’s from Massachusetts, and while all players think that they would love playing at home for its obvious perks, the pressures of doing so can sometimes prove to be too much. Also, the expectations people had for him were way too high, and adding the pressure of playing at home on top of that, it was probably best for both the player and the team to move on.
Donato has a very good shot, and is known as a pure goal-scorer and sniper because of it. During his time at Harvard, he always produced several more goals than he did assists, although he does chip in some assists. He has strong offensive instincts, but as I alluded to above, he needs to show more care defensively and get stronger so he doesn’t get knocked off the puck so easily. His game is best suited to a mainly offensive role because of lack of defensive play, and he can also be a weapon on the power play. In addition to his hard shot, he often shows patience with the pucks, which only helps him to score. He likes to shoot a lot, so if paired with a playmaking center, he could end up being a major scoring threat. Bascially, think Phil Kessel, but hopefully less lazy, in better shape, and better defensively as he continues to mature and gain experience.
Obviously the only thing the Bruins can expect out of Donato next season is that they will play against him at most two times during the season, but Wild fans should expect a similar player, although improved in certain areas. For instance, it’s safe to assume he is working on getting stronger over the summer so he won’t be knocked off of the puck so easily. Other than that, he’ll still be an offensive threat, but it is unreasonable to expect him to produce at the same pace he did over his short stint with the team last season. Finally, he will hopefully begin to pay more attention defensively, but he will still be at his best when placed in a primarily offensive role and with a center who can help make up for his defensive deficiencies. Fans were wrong about what they’d see from Donato once, but hopefully that isn’t the case again this upcoming season. But, as I have said with all the others so far, we’ll just have to wait and see what happens come training camp and the beginning of the season.
Hockey Addict 