Family ties will help Donato in quest to play for Bruins

BOSTON --When Boston Bruins center prospect Ryan Donato returns to Harvard this fall for his junior season, he'll have a familiar teammate.
Donato's younger brother, Jack, will be a freshman. They'll be coached by their father, former NHL forward Ted Donato.

"I can't wait. It's going to be fun," Ryan said at Bruins development camp earlier this month. "It's going to be a family reunion every game."
Donato, a second-round pick (No. 56) of the Bruins in the 2014 NHL Draft, had 40 points (21 goals, 19 assists) in 36 games last season for Harvard, which lost in the semifinals of teh NCAA Frozen Four. One might think Donato, 21, would be in a rush to leave school early and turn pro like so many other prospects have.
But he's actually content to return to Harvard, and not just because he'll have a chance to play with his brother. He wants to make sure when he makes the move to professional hockey, his readiness for an NHL career will be the best it can be.
"Obviously it's every kid's dream to play in the NHL once you get that stick in your hand," Donato said. "But I think over the years, one thing I've learned, guys come from everywhere and every process is different. I think if I can do my best to get myself best prepared for not just hopefully making the NHL but trying to make a career out of it, I don't want to just jump in there when I'm not ready."
Part of that means being set to handle the rigors of the pro game. Donato estimates he has gained 20 pounds since he was drafted. At Bruins development camp, he checked in at 6 feet tall and 191 pounds but still flashed the speed that makes him a promising prospect.

Donato, a native of nearby Scituate, Massachusetts, hasn't shied away from most challenges in his career, including following his father to Harvard and then agreeing to play for him there. Being drafted by the hometown Bruins, who also drafted his dad (No. 98, 1987), intensified the spotlight. The elder Donato, a forward, had 347 points (150 goals, 197 assists) in 796 games with eight teams during his 13-year NHL career.
Ryan Donato's success has inspired the expected clamoring for him to get on with the next phase of his career. But publicly, the Bruins are being patient with his development and his decision to continue playing college hockey. After Donato had an impressive four-day showing at development camp, general manager Don Sweeney was confident the speedy player is on the right path.
"We've always thought Ryan's skillset was excellent," Sweeney said. "He's going to play center this year, and I've talked to Teddy about that. We're excited to see him play there. It puts a lot more responsibility, more two-way responsibility, on him. It'll be interesting because he's a primary shooter and he has an unbelievable release. There aren't a lot of shooting centermen in the National Hockey League.
"But Joe Sakic scored an awful lot of goals. So players that have that skillset, he can complement better players, and I think that's what we're excited about."
The Bruins are excited and willing to wait for Donato, who knows he'll soon be following his father's career path again.
"Obviously I was nervous [when I was drafted]," Donato said. "And now I'm even more nervous because it's getting closer and I'm obviously nervous. But I'm getting more excited as it approaches and taking it day by day and just trying to enjoy every step."