After 27 memorable years wearing Harvard crimson—first as a player, then as a coach, and even as a parent—Ted Donato has announced he will step down as head coach of the men's hockey program at the end of the academic year.

"It is with immense gratitude that I have decided to end my tenure at Harvard," Donato said in a statement. "I am proud and grateful for all the incredible moments, everlasting memories, and relationships from my 27 years connected to the University as a student-athlete, coach, and parent."

Donato returned to his alma mater in 2004 to take the helm, and he leaves a legacy that will be hard to match. Just last December, he became the winningest coach in Harvard men's hockey history, notching his 325th victory to surpass his own former coach, Bill Cleary. Under his leadership, the Crimson captured four ECAC Tournament championships (2006, 2015, 2017, and 2022) and made eight NCAA Tournament appearances. The 2017 season was particularly special: Harvard won the regular-season title, ended a 24-year Beanpot drought, and reached the Frozen Four for the first time since 1994.

However, the program has faced challenges in recent seasons, posting a losing record in two of the last three years before finishing .500 in the 2025-26 campaign.

Donato's connection to Harvard runs deep. He captained the Crimson to their only NCAA Championship in 1989 before being drafted by the Boston Bruins in the fourth round of the 1987 NHL Draft. He went on to play 793 games in the NHL, recording 347 points, and was named one of the 100 most legendary players in Bruins history in 2023—the first American-born player to lead the team in goals. On the international stage, he led Team USA in scoring at the 1992 Winter Olympics. His son, Ryan, did the same in 2018, making them the only father-son duo to accomplish that feat and just the third father-son pair ever to play in the Olympics.

With Donato's departure, Harvard becomes the third Ivy League program to search for a new head coach this season, joining Yale, where Jeff Hamilton recently stepped down. The question now is: who will be the next leader to guide the Crimson into a new era?