A smile crept over Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Seth Jones’ face when he was asked about Ryan Donato’s performance during the Hawks’ 6-2 win over the Nashville Predators on Friday night.
The forward had two goals and two assists — the first four-point game of Donato’s career — to mark his second three-game point streak in three weeks.
Donato has a career-high 18 goals, placing him back atop the Hawks’ leaderboard and putting him on pace for 27.
“Not bad at all,” Jones said of the eighth-year forward. “He’s hotter than burnt toast. He’s awesome right now. He’s working hard. He always has that work ethic and that’s where his game really stems from.”
Added Donato: “I always say it’s my faith. I pray a lot. Things have been great this year. A lot of good things. I have a new daughter at home, and I think that’s the key for me.”
In the second period alone Friday, Donato scored and assisted on power-play goals by Connor Bedard and Jones. Donato really put on a show for the various scouts (at least 13) in attendance, including representatives of the Columbus Blue Jackets, Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning.
He already had been a likely trade target — the deadline is March 7 — but he has placed a big, flashing red lamp by his name now.
Donato carries a manageable $2 million cap hit and will be an unrestricted free agent after the season.
If 33-year-old Taylor Hall fetched a third-round pick, what could you demand for a 28-year-old Swiss Army knife-style forward, who leads the team in even-strength points (28) and is one of only two Hawks forwards who has a plus rating (plus-1) on the road?
“You can really put him anywhere,” Jones said. “He’s got the work ethic to be on the fourth line and the skill set, the shot to be one of your top-six forwards.
“So he’s been very versatile for us. He’s been good on the power play. We put him in that faceoff position and he wins a lot of them back for us. And I think that gives our power play a lot of success, a lot of confidence, so he’s been great all over the ice.”
What’s that worth to a playoff contender looking for bottom-to-middle-six depth?
Before you respond, you first have to answer: What’s Donato worth to the Hawks in the long term?
Brandon Hagel once held similar high esteem among his Hawks peers, and his March 2022 trade to the Tampa Bay Lightning for two first-round picks and two prospects launched the rebuild in earnest.
It also left a bad taste in the locker room.
It signaled to veterans such as Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane that the dynasty window was closed in management’s eyes, whether they liked it or not.
This season’s Hawks have the second-worst record record in the NHL at 17-31-6 — far from playoff contention — but they are trying to build the foundation for the next contender.
Team leaders such as Jones and Nick Foligno have railed about the team lacking identity pieces in the past, but you can start to see the faint glimmer of them coalescing around Bedard.
You see it with Frank Nazar, who’s becoming as much of a scoring threat on the penalty kill as he is on five-on-five.
“His speed alone puts a lot of guys on their heels,” Jones said. “He’s diving for pucks all the time, he’s forechecking. We haven’t had a lot of speed in our lineup the last couple years.”
You see it with Landon Slaggert, who has slid onto Bedard’s line like he belongs, hasn’t had a negative rating in five games and had the brazenness to take on Luke Schenn in a fight.
“I don’t think he had any idea what he was doing,” Donato said with a laugh. “Afterward, he was like, ‘Oh, boy.’”
But Donato said of Slaggert’s overall game, with or without the puck: “He’s an animal.”
Added interim coach Anders Sorensen of Slaggert: “To me he’s a lot like Brandon Hagel in a lot of ways. When you’re watching plays, it’s the same mentality, constantly on the puck. The effort’s there all the time.”
Donato has given that kind of effort all season. Are there more highly skilled forwards? Absolutely.
Could the Hawks trade Donato for a third-rounder or higher, then re-sign in the offseason? They could, and that would seem to be the shrewd move.
Maybe the Hawks let him test the market so you they could get him back at a bargain.
But they would be taking a risk letting him walk out the door for the lure of greener pastures — not only money but a more talented roster.
And what message would that send to the young nucleus?
Yes, they understand it’s a business and that no one’s irreplaceable, but the Hawks have someone who arguably has pushed the culture forward in his small way, and they casually would bid adieu?
It has been one step forward, two steps back for too long with the franchise.
At what point do you stop stockpiling picks and stick with your roster-building?
Donato may have the profile, to some, of a journeyman who has the lottery in a contract season, but his influence shouldn’t be underestimated — even on coaches.
“He’s very invested emotionally, very invested (in) what we’re trying to accomplish … with the details and the habits, and he’s talking with the young guys,” Sorensen said. “He’s a good voice on the bench as well.
“He’s been really good, and … him and Connor (Bedard) have found some chemistry here.”
Nazar said Donato has been very approachable as a sounding board for the young players and an example to follow.
“He works his tail off and he’s always going,” Nazar said. “Being able to see that competitive side pay off and how that works at this level is really awesome. It definitely helps. Look at today, (you) see a lot of guys smiling walking out of here. … That’s what happens when we go out there, put up a lot of goals in a game.
“It all starts from Dono’s play, from Slags fighting, from other guys making big plays — just feed off each other.”
That goes up and down the line.
Bedard, Jones, Teuvo Teräväinen and others have played markedly better lately, even though it’s inconsistent and doesn’t often translate to wins — yet.
You have to start with a foundation of small successes where you can find them and then cultivate them.
Donato has shied away from discussing trade rumors in depth, but, as Sorensen alluded to, he said he’s invested in the Hawks’ future and wants to stay in Chicago.
“I hope so,” Donato said. “I want to do the right things, be a mentor for some of the younger guys.
“I know how hard it is, especially when you’re not winning every night. It’s tough. But at the same time, we have a lot of great leaders in this room, guys that I look up to too, and there’s definitely a good group of guys in here.”
Ultimately, Hawks brass has to make the same kind of judgement call with Donato that it made Hagel, albeit under different circumstances.
But he Hawks should keep other factors in mind beyond cap money and draft capital — or “burnt toast” might be the bad taste left in their mouths.
