Harvard Hockey 2025-'26: Crimson Ascending

[Skate79]

Ted Donato has stepped down.....was this rumored? Anyone see this coming?

Because I sure didn't!

As I said in my post, I'm not shocked by this news but it is surprising nonetheless. Probably caught the team by surprise. It will be hard on the assistant coaches as they will not be retained in all likelihood. The next coach will want to build the program his way with his people.

 

[Skate79]

Ted Donato has one of the greatest local hockey legacies in Massachusetts history. I'm open to any debate on this.

Hyde Park/Dedham kid
Catholic Memorial HS
Harvard University
US Olympic Team
Boston Bruins player
Harvard head coach

Any intelligent list of greatest high school hockey players in Mass history includes his name. He started the Catholic Memorial hockey dynasty in the 80s. He was a dominating high school player when the Catholic Conference ruled Mass hockey.

And here's a partial list of players who developed under him who went on to the NHL: Alex Killorn, Jimmy Vesey, Alexander Kerfoot, Sean Malone, Ryan Donato, Colin Blackwell, Adam Fox, John Marino, Ian Moore, Mitchell Gibson, Jack Drury, and probably more that I'm forgetting.

 

[Puck Boy]

I'm not shocked by this news. Surprised, yes, but not shocked. Why? Because I think Teddy saw the handwriting on the wall. College athletics has undergone a significant change since 2004 when he took over the program. The transfer portal and NIL have reshaped how teams build their rosters year over year. It was always difficult to recruit against Hockey East. Now it is becoming difficult within the conference. He knows it. And he's at the point in his life, with a new grandchild, where he can settle back and enjoy his family. Good for him and I wish him nothing but the best.

Now for what's to come. In order for Harvard to attract a top flight coach, two things need to change. We have to get an NIL program in place and we must use the transfer portal, as odious as that may seem to admissions. We also need to up our recruiting game with the Canadian Juniors.

Here are three possible scenarios for finding a new coach:

1. Poach a head coach from an established program. My first thought was Nate Leaman down the road in Providence. Nate got his start at Harvard as an assistant on Mark Mazzoleni's staff. He might be interested in coming back if Harvard made it financially attractive for him and got their act together with respect to NIL and the portal. It's a long shot but why not drop a dime and find out? It's not like Harvard hasn't tried this before - they went after both Tim Taylor and Joe Marsh when Ronn Tommasoni stepped down.

2. The Reid Cashman route. Poach a highly thought of and up and coming assistant coach from a successful program that is a strong recruiter and knows how to work the portal and the Juniors. Someone who can run a system that will

3. Former Harvard player. This is the most unlikely route. Teddy happened to be retiring as a player just when the whole Mazzoleni firestorm was at its peak. So the timing was right. Not sure it will work again but if I were to reach out to a former player, it would be Dominic Moore. He had a very good NHL career, is a high character individual and he might relish the opportunity to get us back on the national stage. I sat with Dom and his brother Mark at Bright Landry one night and to hear them talk hockey was special.

The elephant in the room is what happens to the current roster and the incoming freshman class. Some of the first years may decommit and go elsewhere as coaches look to poach. I had a friend from Dartmouth text me yesterday when the news broke - he thought Teddy made this decision now because the transfer portal is closed, thereby keeping the roster intact. At least for next season. Reid Cashman needed a couple of seasons to get the Green turned around. We need to give the new coach the same latitude to establish his program.

The times, they are a changin'

Regarding the comment on the transfer portal and the timing of Donato stepping down — based on my understanding of the NCAA rules, there will be a 15 day transfer portal window for Harvard’s players that opens five days after a new coach is named. If a new coach isn’t named within 30 days after Donato’s departure, on the 31st day a 15 day transfer portal window opens for the Harvard players. As a result, the players will still have a chance to test the transfer portal waters.

 

[Skate79]

Regarding the comment on the transfer portal and the timing of Donato stepping down — based on my understanding of the NCAA rules, there will be a 15 day transfer portal window for Harvard’s players that opens five days after a new coach is named. If a new coach isn’t named within 30 days after Donato’s departure, on the 31st day a 15 day transfer portal window opens for the Harvard players. As a result, the players will still have a chance to test the transfer portal waters.

Since Harvard has stated they are embarking on a national search, I would imagine a new coach won't be named until at least the middle of June. Maybe longer. It's also possible that the new coach could bring several players with him if Harvard allows for it. I think something similar happened when Mike Hastings went to Wisconsin.

 

[ROMD]

And if Harvard doesn't choose to get with the program on NIL and the portal , you would look for a coach to wind things down in the transition to dropping from D1 and getting replaced by a Hockey East team in the Beanpot. I can see both sides of the argument on whether Harvard should say yes to the portal but you really do have to choose not just for hockey but for basketball and possibly a few other sports. They also can't delay on the choice. It needs to be made in connection with the search for Teddy's replacement. What would be unacceptable is failing to choose and just "quiet quitting". Accessing the portal is probably more of the challenge for Harvard to stomach but they need to do it if they want to compete. A NIL program along the lines of other top hockey programs should be doable if there is a will to do it. Graham Blanks after winning the NCAA Cross Country Championship supposedly had a reasonable NIL arrangement.

Teddy did a great job recruiting. In fairness, his player development was less consistently effective. He did bring in some really talented staff at various times and the high points of his tenor seemed to coincide with some of his more talented staff recruits.

 

[Skate79]

And if Harvard doesn't choose to get with the program on NIL and the portal , you would look for a coach to wind things down in the transition to dropping from D1 and getting replaced by a Hockey East team in the Beanpot. I can see both sides of the argument on whether Harvard should say yes to the portal but you really do have to choose not just for hockey but for basketball and possibly a few other sports. They also can't delay on the choice. It needs to be made in connection with the search for Teddy's replacement. What would be unacceptable is failing to choose and just "quiet quitting". Accessing the portal is probably more of the challenge for Harvard to stomach but they need to do it if they want to compete. A NIL program along the lines of other top hockey programs should be doable if there is a will to do it. Graham Blanks after winning the NCAA Cross Country Championship supposedly had a reasonable NIL arrangement.

Teddy did a great job recruiting. In fairness, his player development was less consistently effective. He did bring in some really talented staff at various times and the high points of his tenor seemed to coincide with some of his more talented staff recruits.

Agree with your points on NIL and the portal. No coach who has aspirations of winning a NC will come to Harvard if the University doesn't have a policy in place and is ready to execute it. I think once Paul Pearl left, the staff support that Teddy counted on went with him. Harvard is notorious for not paying market rates and living in the Boston area is quite a bit more expensive than say Ithaca, NY or Providence, RI. Or Hanover, NH.

It's true that player development was a sore spot although players like Casey Severo improved from his freshman season. So did Matt Morden and Sean Keohane. Others like Mason Langenbrunner and Ben McDonald have not and probably will not find their games. Marek Hejuk other than the goal against BC in the Beanpot did nothing in his four years in Cambridge. That has to change if Harvard is to compete in their own conference, let along against HE.

 

[Skate79]

By now, everyone should know about the proposed 5 to 5 rule change the NCAA is considering for men's college hockey. This podcast is a good starting point for understanding what is at stake: https://www.uscho.com/2026/05/12/po...en-discusses-ncaa-5-in-5-eligibility-proposal.

There is a lot to unpack as far as Harvard is concerned. One thing that jumped out at me right away was the fact that Harvard does not extend eligibility to its athletes. Once you have accumulated the necessary credits to graduate, that's it. I suppose the players could choose to not take a full course load and extend their time in Cambridge to a 5th year. I'm not sure how the University would react if it saw the hockey team as a whole only taking two or three classes per term. Pretty sure the deans will have their say at some point. Tough time to be looking for a new coach if you're an Ivy school.

This rule if it does go through hurts the Crimson even more because they will be going up against schools with players who have extended eligibility opportunities. At some point, every couple of years, Harvard will have a very young team possibly going up a 4th and 5th year senior laden squad where they will be at a distinct disadvantage. BC, BU, Quinnipiac, Northeastern, Providence, the list goes on and on.

Part of me wonders if Teddy knew about this and if it spurred him to make the call to retire. So much has changed since he took over the program and with Harvard not using the transfer portal and a non-existent NIL strategy, this new rule may have been the straw that broke the camel's back for TD.

 

[ROMD]

By now, everyone should know about the proposed 5 to 5 rule change the NCAA is considering for men's college hockey. This podcast is a good starting point for understanding what is at stake: https://www.uscho.com/2026/05/12/po...en-discusses-ncaa-5-in-5-eligibility-proposal.

There is a lot to unpack as far as Harvard is concerned. One thing that jumped out at me right away was the fact that Harvard does not extend eligibility to its athletes. Once you have accumulated the necessary credits to graduate, that's it. I suppose the players could choose to not take a full course load and extend their time in Cambridge to a 5th year. I'm not sure how the University would react if it saw the hockey team as a whole only taking two or three classes per term. Pretty sure the deans will have their say at some point. Tough time to be looking for a new coach if you're an Ivy school.

This rule if it does go through hurts the Crimson even more because they will be going up against schools with players who have extended eligibility opportunities. At some point, every couple of years, Harvard will have a very young team possibly going up a 4th and 5th year senior laden squad where they will be at a distinct disadvantage. BC, BU, Quinnipiac, Northeastern, Providence, the list goes on and on.

Part of me wonders if Teddy knew about this and if it spurred him to make the call to retire. So much has changed since he took over the program and with Harvard not using the transfer portal and a non-existent NIL strategy, this new rule may have been the straw that broke the camel's back for TD.

The rejected NCAA hockey counterproposal was even worse. Between the rejection and the bipartisan Cantwell-Cruz legislation being proposed, Harvard is marginally better. The legislation regularizes NIL and restricts portal use to one time. The whole set up will disrupt the existing talent pipeline and that might work to Harvard's advantage with a savvy new coach. Serious challenges of course remain. Presumably the new coach will be announced shortly.