It was a memorable NHL debut for Ryan Donato.
The 21-year-old forward, who signed with the Bruins on Sunday, scored a goal and added two assists for Boston in a 5-4 overtime loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday.
Donato had been set to skate on the third line for the Bruins, but an upper body injury to veteran Rick Nash meant that the debutant was bumped to the second line alongside David Krejci and Danton Heinen. Donato didn't have to wait long for his first goal in the big leagues, as he hammered a one-timer to finish a give-and-go with Torey Krug at 5:41 of the second period for Boston's opening marker of the night.
He would pick up his first NHL assist later in the period on a Riley Nash power play goal before adding a helper on Krejci's game-tying goal midway through the third period.
Unfortunately for the Bruins, Cam Atkinson found the winner for the Blue Jackets in overtime. The Columbus goal spoiled a historic debut by Donato, who became the first Boston player to record three points in his first NHL game in nearly 18 years.
Ryan Donato (1-2—3) became just the second player in @NHLBruins franchise history to record three points in his NHL debut (also: Jarno Kultanen, Oct. 5, 2000). #NHLStats #CBJvsBOS pic.twitter.com/GM9GNY9LV3
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) March 20, 2018
Having completed his collegiate career with Harvard last week, Donato also competed for the United States in last month's Olympic Games. The Boston native was the leading scorer for the Americans with five goals in Pyeongchang.