The Chicago Blackhawks are currently enjoying some rest and relaxation during the Olympic break. Most of the players are relishing exotic vacations in warm climates before practices start back up on Feb. 17.
Not so for veteran Ryan Donato. Instead, the Blackhawks’ forward is at home on daddy duty while he and his wife await the birth of their second daughter. It’s an exciting time for the young family. But Donato is also committed to doing everything he can to help propel the Blackhawks to the next level. The 29-year-old had a career season last year, posting 31 goals and 62 points. He’s not putting up those same numbers this season, but that doesn’t mean he’s not making an impact. Donato’s role has changed, and he’s had to adapt accordingly. Let’s explore what Donato has brought to the Blackhawks so far this season.
Donato’s Career Year in 2024-25
It’s pretty amazing the season Donato put together in 2024-25. In his seven previous seasons, his career highs were 16 goals (2021-22), 18 assists (2023-24) and 31 points (also 2021-22). It’s safe to say 31 goals, 31 assists and 62 points was a huge improvement. With these stats, Donato led the team in goals, was second in points (to Connor Bedard) and third in assists (to Bedard and Teuvo Teravainen). His 182 shots on goal was also a career high, and second on the team only to Bedard. Oh, and he ranked third on the team in hits (104).
How did this massive increase in production happen? Well, it wasn’t by accident. Donato worked hard on changing his dynamic in the 2024 offseason, concentrating on improving his skating and explosiveness. He sought out trainers Brett Strot and Natalia Zagorodnikova at Hockey International, a development center near Tampa, FL. (from ‘Ryan Donato’s 31-goal season for Chicago has surprising assist: One week in Florida’, The Athletic CHI – 4/14/2025).
Related – Breaking Down Ryan Donato’s Career Season for the Blackhawks
This certainly paid its dividends. Another piece to the puzzle was Donato’s placement in the lineup. His improved skating made him more dangerous on the ice. He was therefore more confident, and this led to more production. He gave the coaching staff little choice but to play him higher up in the lineup, especially on a team that was struggling to find success. Donato emerged as a forward who could complement Bedard, young phenom and new franchise cornerstone. Throughout much of the campaign, Donato played with Bedard on the top line and the top power play unit. This, in turn, gave him plenty of ice time and ample opportunities to excel; therefore leading to even more production.
It was a win-win for the veteran forward, and obviously one of the factors that led to Donato signing a lucrative four-year contract extension ($4 million annual cap hit) with the Blackhawks on June 18, 2025.
Blackhawks’ 2025-26 Season & Donato’s Deployment
This season is a little different story for Donato, and for the Blackhawks as a whole. They have very different personnel now, as they work to integrate young players with high ceilings into the lineup. Frank Nazar, Ryan Greene, and Oliver Moore come to mind. Nick Lardis came up and played in 21 games before being sent back down to the Rockford IceHogs, and he’ll likely be back before the season is over.
Even among the veterans, Andre Burakovsky was a huge addition to the lineup this year. He’s played the majority of the season so far on the top line with Bedard. Tyler Bertuzzi and Teravainen are also higher on the depth chart this season than Donato.
Donato’s placement has been more among the bottom-six forwards. He’s also now on the second power play unit versus the first. This has consequently affected his production. As of Jan. 18 at Blackhawks’ practice, Donato was in a slump of only two goals and four points through all of December and half of January (a span of 23 games). But head coach Jeff Blashill didn’t seem too concerned.
There’s always a tie between opportunity and production. I think there were times he spent higher up the lineup last year, so that’s going to lead to more production. What he’s done a good job of is two things I’d say. One, he’s taken the role he’s been given and tried to maximize that role. And that’s all you can do as a player. And he’s done a really good job of that, had a great attitude. Two, I asked him, like I asked all our players, to ultimately be a guy who can produce points and goals playing winning hockey; checking first. It’s one thing to score on teams that don’t win. We want to create an atmosphere here where guys are learning to score points but still play a complete game, and I think he’s working hard at doing that. So I’ve been happy with his effort, his attitude.
In the last three games before the break, Donato was deployed on the third line with Jason Dickinson and Ilya Mikheyev, as they have at times earlier in the season as well. This is the ultimate shutdown, checking line; with all three players embodying what Blashill is describing above. Their main job isn’t to score goals; it’s to be hard to play against and shut down the opposition. But this trio can also be an offensive threat, both individually and cumulatively. It paid off for them most recently in the contest against the San Jose Sharks on Feb. 2. This line combined for three goals, with Donato boasting two goals and four points. The below tally exemplifies the kind of effort he puts in night in and night out.
signed, sealed, 𝙙𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙙🫡 pic.twitter.com/CN8IQ5wVM9
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) February 3, 2026
When the Blackhawks return from break, we don’t know what the lines and pairings will look like moving forward. But it’s clear this trio is an excellent combination. It could also be Donato’s ticket to more production.
A Veteran Putting in the Work
I sat down with Donato in training camp in October, to ask him about his continued offseason training. He went back down to Florida again over the summer to work with his trainers at Hockey International. I was curious if they worked on more of the same, or if they had added to it (you can read the entire interview here).
Last year was more lower half, like worrying about what position my legs are in, posture, that kind of stuff. And then this summer, we worked on that (again). I went down there (to Florida) twice this summer. First time we went down there was lower body, making sure we’re keeping on top of that. And the second time I went down there was upper body. So we tied the lower body with the upper body. So it gave you another 5 to 10% more to work on. Hopefully make those lower body habits feel better, because your upper body is working with you more.
The Boston, Massachusetts native said he needed to get some games under his belt before he could really assess the benefit of the training. So I asked him about it again right before the Olympic break.
Yeah, I think it definitely has (helped). I think skating-wise, I’ve maintained a lot of the same speed from last year. And that’s part of the process, is maintaining and not dipping. I think as you get older, you face more challenges throughout the league, especially as the season goes on. Even young guys, it gets more tiring. And to see that it hasn’t dipped is something that I’ve worked on. Obviously, it’d be nice to be like, oh, all these strides that I made completely changed, and I’m way faster. But realistically, being able to say that I haven’t dipped in numbers, as far as speed and that kind of stuff has definitely been helpful to see. And I do think it’s tied along. I talk to the people in Florida that I work with all the time, and sometimes they might be like, hey, there’s one or two things that you’re doing differently. We need to fix these. And then I try and fix them in a game and I’m like wow, it made a big difference.
As Donato referenced above, it’s not easy to maintain peak production, especially as the season progresses. Not to mention the condensed schedule because of the Olympic break. Yet Donato feels he has maintained, as well as added the necessary tweaks along the way. The fact that’s he’s seen a recent boost in production through all this is a positive sign.
Donato’s Role Moving Forward
Donato currently has 13 goals and 12 assists for 25 points through 57 games this season. He’s on pace for 19 goals, 17 points and 36 goals through 82 games. Sure, that’s not anywhere near his production last season (31G, 31A, 62P). But it is higher than his previous career highs, with the exception of one assist.
- Donato on pace for 19 goals in 2025-26 (previous career high of 16 goals)
- Donato on pace for 17 assists in 2025-26 (previous career high of 18 assists)
- Donato on pace for 36 points in 2025-26 (previous career high of 31 points)
*the above is with the exception of his 2024-25 numbers
Considering Donato’s more limited role and opportunities so far this season, he’s still making solid contributions to the team. Let’s also not forget he’s a team player, and won’t complain about the role he’s given. Plus, his energy and tenacity set a perfect example to the younger players on the right way to play.
Will Donato continue to play with Dickinson and Mikheyev moving forward, or will he be relegated to more of a fourth line role? Heck, it’s entirely possible he could even move up in the lineup. He’s shown he’s capable of producing there.
Related – Blackhawks Hoping Olympic Break Rejuvenates Them for Final Stretch
What will his numbers look like at the end of the season? Can he live up to a pace that’s better than his production before his breakout 2024-25 campaign? None of that really matters anyway. Because he’s still making positive contributions to the team in other ways. What we do know is that Donato will adapt to the role he’s given and put his nose to the grindstone. That’s just the kind of player he is.
