Report: Chicago Blackhawks Having Extension Talks With Ryan Donato

Chicago Blackhawks forward Ryan Donato is viewed as one of the NHL's top trade candidate for the deadline. However, they have not closed the door on keeping him around.

According to TSN's Pierre LeBrun, the Blackhawks are having ongoing extension talks with Donato. In addition, LeBrun reported that the Blackhawks have informed teams that they would "need to be blown away" for them to trade Donato.

There's extension talks going on between the Blackhawks and pending UFA Ryan Donato, let's see if Chicago can extend him today. If not, the Hawks have been telling teams all week they need to be blown away to move him.
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) March 7, 2025

Hearing that the Blackhawks are working hard to keep Donato around is not surprising in the slightest. The 28-year-old forward has been nothing but excellent for them this season and has emerged as a key part of their lineup because of it. In 60 games this season, he has set new career-highs with 23 goals, 23 assists, and 46 points. It has been an impressive year for the Massachusetts native, and it would be big for the Blackhawks to keep him in Chicago because of it.

However, if they do not come to terms on a contract extension over the next handful of hours, it will be fascinating to see what they decide to do with him. They would need to decide if they are okay with the prospect of losing him for nothing through free agency on July 1 in this scenario.

We will now need to wait and see what happens with Donato and the Blackhawks from here.