Last season, no Division 1 college team rostered more National Hockey League draft picks than Harvard.
Yes, you read that correctly. Harvard staked a claim that had long been made by the likes of Michigan and Minnesota or Beanpot foes Boston College and Boston University.
The world of college athletics is changing in many ways, but Harvard is by no means a newcomer in terms of attracting high-caliber hockey talent just as it attracts high-caliber students from across the country and beyond.
“We’ve been fortunate to have some unbelievable players come through the program, especially since I’ve been here,” Harvard junior defenseman and co-captain Ian Moore (Concord, Mass.) said.
“Playing with these guys and seeing them go on to the NHL is special, and it’s a testament to our coaching and development. … Harvard’s obviously a great school, but it also puts you in a spot where you have a great opportunity to take that next step as a hockey player, eventually to pro hockey.”
The historic program’s list of NHL alumni has grown greatly under 20th-year coach Ted Donato (Dedham, Mass.). Eighteen All-Americans and 22 NHL players have graced the roster during Donato’s time behind the bench.
Three members of the most recent team — forwards Sean Farrell (Hopkinton, Mass.), Matthew Coronato and defenseman Henry Thrun (Southboro, Mass.) — went straight to the NHL after signing their first professional contracts last March. Donato’s alumni group also includes 2021 Norris Trophy winner Adam Fox, a back-to-back Stanley Cup champion in Alex Killorn, and many more.
Looking ahead, three of the Crimson’s seven freshmen arrived on campus as NHL draft picks ahead of this season. Among them are two locals up front in former Nobles star Ben MacDonald (Weston, Mass.) and St. Sebastian’s product Michael Callow (Boston, Mass.).
Additionally, in this summer’s recruiting cycle, 10 of the top players in the country committed to Harvard.
How has Harvard put together such a long pro pipeline? It all starts with one word that its players and coaches alike speak of — culture. The culture is formed by the team’s veteran leaders and trickles down through the rest of the roster on an annual basis.
“I think we’ve really tried to focus on recruiting the right types of student-athletes, players that appreciate the great opportunities that you get at Harvard,” Donato said. “With the number of our players in the NHL now and the draft picks, kids look at this as a place that offers the best of both worlds and can combine two things that are very important to them in their academics and athletics.”
There are certainly other schools in New England and elsewhere that offer a great all-around package for a student-athlete, but few compete at as high a level on both fronts and have continually churned out as much NHL talent as Harvard.
On the ice, Donato has led the Crimson to 298 career victories, six 20-win seasons, four ECAC Hockey championships and eight NCAA tournament appearances, including six in the last seven completed seasons.
Winning in the present is important, but Donato and his staff — including assistant coaches Jim Tortorella and James Marcou — also put a major focus on developing players to help make sure that individual and team successes continue for years to come.
“College in general is a place for development, where we’re very lucky to work with kids during an important time in their lives,” Donato said. “We’re fortunate to have kids of high character, and in coordination, I think we’ve done a good job developing kids to have success after they leave. The NHL is a dream for a lot of young players, so being able to live that out after coming to a school like Harvard I think is a pretty special combination.”
Donato credits Marcou for his work in the areas of skill development, one-on-one instruction and video analysis, which have been key to many players’ ability to fully achieve their goals both within the program and beyond. Marcou specializes on the offense and power play, while Tortorella works with the defense and penalty-kill units.
One unique aspect of the Crimson’s professional pipeline is that it doesn’t solely include highly touted first-round draft picks. Many developments were made and contracts were earned at Harvard.
“The guys who come here know what they’re signing up for (academically), and I think it has translated really well to their work ethic on the ice. We’ve had some real high-level people come through, as well as hockey players,” Marcou said. “A lot of the (alums in the NHL) put in the time here for three or four years, and they’ve gone on and had success. … That process is something we talk about a lot as coaches with certain guys who we think will take that jump.”
Among the best recent examples of the incredible best-of-both-worlds environment provided in Cambridge is Thrun, a double-major at Harvard who finished as a two-time All-American before debuting in the NHL with the San Jose Sharks before the end of last season.
Thrun was a role model for every underclassman in the program, especially for a defenseman like Moore, a 2020 third-round draft pick of the Anaheim Ducks himself who will be taking over a captain’s role this season.
“The coaches have been here, so they’ve seen it with those guys who have gone on to the next level. They continuously show us film, talk about their practice habits, what stuff they were doing to get better,” Moore said. “Henry was one guy I really looked up to. He was just a leader for us on the blue line and a great teammate on and off the ice. His habits and details were something that younger guys can see and try to (replicate).”
Now with a ‘C’ on his jersey, Moore will be one of the players tasked with continuing the program’s tradition as a new season begins.
Losses to graduation and the pros will make this Crimson team quite a bit younger, but the next wave is talented in its own right and should have plenty of opportunity to contribute to on-ice success right away.
“We’ll be particularly young just with the way (the roster) cycles, but I think our strengths will be in our team speed and the defense corps,” Donato said. “I think Ian Moore will be a tremendous leader for our team back there. He’s someone who was impactful while playing some big minutes right away as a freshman. His experience playing at world juniors and watching guys like Henry Thrun are key elements of building that culture that we talk about. … You can really develop and learn in that environment.”
Who will be the next in the line to the NHL? Time will tell.
