There’s a lot to like about Ryan Donato’s new contract with the Blackhawks

One of the younger members of the Chicago Blackhawks has just signed a nice contract not only for himself, but for the team.

On Wednesday, Donato signed a four-year contract extension to stay in the Windy City through the 2028-29 season. It comes after a massive uptick in production from the 29-year-old this past year, where he set career highs in goals (31), assists (31) and points (62). It marked the first time that Donato scored at least 20 goals and over 31 points in a single season.

On Thursday’s edition of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Frank Seravalli and Tyler Yaremchuk explain why Donato’s contract looks great on paper.

Tyler Yaremchuk: I actually kind of like this deal for the Chicago Blackhawks…If you keep playing with skill, keep playing him on the power play…I think you’re getting a perennial 20-goal guy.

Frank Seravalli: We have enough track record for Ryan Donato now, to know the NHL, what you can reasonably expect is something like half that, which is still pretty decent for a guy that you’re expecting to play in your bottom six, but has shown that for a thin Blackhawks team can play up in your lineup if you need him to and can find a way to compete and produce. It’s the best of both worlds for the Blackhawks. They get some term, and for Donato…he finds a home that he likes and enjoys and is comfortable. Maybe that unlocks some more productivity. For the Hawks, you can either pay Donato and give him $4 million, or you could go on the market and maybe pay more and deal with the devil that you don’t know. So, they decided to go with the familiarity for both sides, Hawks and Donato, and I think that makes sense because as the cap continues to increase, if he’s playing 3C for you at $4 million, you’re not complaining about that.

You can watch the full segment and entire episode here…