Nick Bonino
Nicholas Bonino is an American former professional ice hockey player. He was a center for 15 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Anaheim Ducks, Vancouver Canucks, Pittsburgh Penguins, Nashville Predators, Minnesota Wild, San Jose Sharks, and New York Rangers, as well as one season in the ICE Hockey League for HK Olimpija. Bonino represented the United States three times, winning a bronze medal twice.
Prior to beginning his collegiate career at Boston University, Bonino was drafted in the sixth round, 173rd overall, in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft by the San Jose Sharks. However, his playing rights were traded to the Anaheim Ducks before he could sign or play for the team. Bonino played three seasons with the Boston University Terriers before embarking on his professional career with the Ducks. Although he played with the HC Neumarkt-Egna during the 2012–13 NHL lockout, Bonino spent the majority of five years within the Ducks system before being traded to the Vancouver Canucks. His tenure with the Canucks spanned one season before he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Bonino became a significant member of the Pittsburgh Penguins and played a huge factor in the Pittsburgh Penguins becoming the first back to back Stanley Cup champions of the salary cap era. His play in the 2016 Stanley Cup playoffs was a significant factor in the Pittsburgh Penguins winning the Stanley Cup as he led the team in assists. Along with his linemates Phil Kessel and Carl Hagelin, the trio was nicknamed the HBK line and noted for their strong play during the playoffs.
Early life
Bonino was born on April 20, 1988, in Newington, Connecticut, to Joanne and Steven Bonino. His mother is a speech therapist while his father works for BellSimons, an air conditioning system supplier. As a youth, Bonino played with the Connecticut Clippers Peewee Minor team and he helped them win the 2002 Atlantic Youth Hockey League playoffs. He finished his tenure with the team holding their all-time record in goals, assists, and points.Playing career
Minor
Bonino began his high school career at Farmington High School in Connecticut before transferring to Avon Old Farms. While at Farmington, Bonino played under the tutelage of Mike Barone while leading the school to its first state championship. In his junior year, Bonino scored three goals to lift Farmington over North Branford for the NHC Tournament title. He later scored another hat-trick to lead Farmington to the a CIAC Division II boys' hockey finals against Trumbull. His play as a sophomore drew attention from University of Maine men's assistant coach Grant Standbrook and Avon Old Farms coach John Gardner. Although he impressed Gardner with his playmaking ability, the coach was concerned with his skating skills. In spite of this, Bonino led the team to its first state championship by scoring the game-winning goal with 12:28 left in the second overtime.After scoring a state single-season record 68 goals, Bonino transferred to Avon Old Farms for his senior year. While at Avon Old Farms, Bonino captained the team to the New England Prep championship in 2007. As a member of this team, he played on a line with brothers Tom and Cam Atkinson to win the Avon Old Farms Christmas Hockey Classic over The Frederick Gunn School. He also committed to play collegiate ice hockey at Boston University for the men's ice hockey team on a hockey scholarship after offers from Providence, New Hampshire, Yale, and Union. Leading up to the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, Bonino was ranked 117th among North American Skaters in the NHL Central Scouting Bureaus Mid-Term Rankings. Bonino was eventually drafted by the San Jose Sharks in the sixth round, 173rd overall.
Collegiate
Bonino played for the Boston University Terriers at Boston University from 2007 to 2010. There, he enrolled in the university's College of Arts and Sciences. Bonino made his collegiate debut on October 13, 2007, where he tallied two assists in the 4–4 tie with the Alaska Anchorage Seawolves. He later scored his first collegiate goal in a 6–2 loss to the Michigan Wolverines on October 27. Bonino was recognized as the Hockey East Rookie of the Week on November 5 after he combined for three points in two contests against the UMass Lowell River Hawks, including the game-winning goal. The following month, Bonino recorded his first multi-goal game in a 4–3 loss over the River Hawks. In February, Bonino and the Terriers went 8–1–0 and its lone loss to Boston College did not count against them in the Hockey East standings. Bonino finished his freshman season playing in 39 of 40 games and ranking fifth on the team in scoring with 16 goals and 13 assists for 29 points.Bonino returned to the Terriers for the 2008–09 season, where he broke out offensively to help lead the team to the 2009 NCAA National Championship. The Terriers began the season strong by winning the Ice Breaker Invitational title over the Michigan State Spartans. Following the tournament, Bonino, and Colin Wilson were named to the All-Ice Breaker team. Through the first seven games of the season, Bonino and Wilson tied for the conference lead in scoring with 12 apiece and tied for third nationally in points per game, at 1.71. Although he was producing, the Terrier's coach Jack Parker noticed that his defensive game was lacking and subsequently benched him for one game. Upon returning to the lineup, Bonino recorded five goals and an assist over his next six games. Bonino's success continued into the annual Beanpot tournament where he helped the Terriers erase a 2–0 deficit against the Harvard Crimson and scored the first of three shorthanded goals in a 5–2 win over the Northeastern Huskies. His efforts during the tournament earned him the 2009 Beanpot MVP and Co-Player of the Week honors.
Bonino finished the month of February tallying multiple points in five contests to lead the team with 14 points. He continued strong into March by remaining on the Terrier's top line with John McCarthy and Brandon Yip. Bonino tallied a career-best five points, while the line combined for 12 points, in an 8–2 road win over the Providence Friars on March 5. Bonino subsequently became the first Terrier in nearly 11 seasons to record a five-point game. The Terriers finished with an 18–5–4 record in conference play while Bonino finished with 18 goals and 32 assists for 50 points. As the Terriers qualified for the 2009 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey tournament, Bonino helped lead the team to their first Frozen Four in 12 years and was subsequently named to the All-Tournament Team with teammates Matt Gilroy, Kieran Millan, and Jason Lawrence. He then led the team to an NCAA National Championship over Miami University by first providing an assist to Zach Cohen to bring the Terriers within one goal, and then by scoring the game-tying goal with 17.4 seconds left in the third period to force overtime. While competing in the tournament, Bonino's playing rights were traded to the Anaheim Ducks with goaltender Timo Pielmeier in exchange for Travis Moen and Kent Huskins on March 4, 2009.
Prior to the 2009–10 season, the Terriers lost eight members from their national championship squad but kept five players who had tallied at least 23 points. Despite this, the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Men's College Hockey Preseason Poll ranked Boston University third amongst collegiate hockey teams. Bonino was specifically singled out for Inside College Hockey's 2009–10 Preseason All-America Second Team. While entering his junior season with these high expectations, Bonino went scoreless in his first two games of the season before being sidelined with a shoulder injury. He recovered in 21 days and tallied two assists in his return to the Terrier's lineup to secure a 6–4 win over the Merrimack Warriors. Bonino continued to produce offensively following this game and recorded six goals and 12 assists through the next 22 games to rank second on the team in scoring behind Kevin Shattenkirk. On January 29, Bonino became the 77th Terrier in program history to record 100 career points after he tallied three assists in a win over the UMass Minutemen. At the time, he also ranked fourth in career points among active Hockey East players.
Professional
Anaheim Ducks
Bonino concluded his collegiate career on March 21, 2010, by signing a two-year, entry-level contract with the Anaheim Ducks. After signing with Anaheim, he immediately joined the team and replaced Ryan Getzlaf in the lineup to make his NHL debut on March 26, 2010, in a game against the Edmonton Oilers. He scored his first career NHL goal in Anaheim's next game against the Dallas Stars; the goal was assisted by Teemu Selänne. He finished the year playing in nine games and registering one goal and one assist with six penalty minutes.Bonino returned to the Ducks for their 2010 Conditioning Camp prior to the 2010–11 season. After attending their training camp, Bonino was reassigned to the Ducks' American Hockey League affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch, to start the season. He began the season strong by tallying two goals and seven assists through his first eight games for Syracuse to lead all rookies in assists and ranked tied for second in scoring. His playing efforts were recognised by the coaching staff and he earned his first NHL recall of the season on November 1. Upon joining the Ducks, Bonino played on a line with fellow rookie Kyle Palmieri and veteran Todd Marchant. However, he soon suffered a foot injury in December following a win over the Boston Bruins and was listed as day-to-day. Once he recovered, he played in two more games but was reassigned to the AHL after he remained pointless. While playing with Palmieri in March, Bonino accumulated four goals and 14 assists for 18 points in his final 14 games. He finished the regular season tied for fifth in assists and tied for 11th in scoring while also leading the team in assists and plus/minus. As the Ducks qualified for the 2011 Stanley Cup playoffs, Bonino was recalled again and made his post-season debut in Game 2 against the Nashville Predators. He played a third-line center role between Matt Beleskey and Brandon McMillan as the Ducks were forced to change their lineup following Bobby Ryan's suspension. Once the Ducks were eliminated from playoff contention, Bonino signed a one-year deal to remain with the Ducks on July 15, 2011.
As with the previous season, Bonino was reassigned to the AHL after attending the Ducks training camp prior to the start of the 2011–12 season. He began the season strong by leading the Crunch with two goals and 11 points over their first nine games. He was soon recalled to the NHL level on October 31 while Jean-François Jacques was assigned to the Crunch. He made his season debut the following day against the Washington Capitals, playing 11 minutes, 49 seconds before suffering a hyperextended knee. Upon recovering, he was reassigned to the Crunch for a short moment before being recalled to the NHL level on December 6, 2011. While Saku Koivu recovered from an injury, Ducks head coach Bruce Boudreau gave Bonino a chance on the second line between Bobby Ryan and Teemu Selanne. In this new role, he earned longer ice time and ended his 30-game pointless streak with his second career goal in a game against the Dallas Stars. Bonino was eventually moved down to the Duck's third line between Jason Blake and Andrew Cogliano on January 6, which also began the teams' seven-game point streak. He immediately made an impact between Blake and Cogliano as they combined for four goals and 11 points through a three-game period. He suffered a lower-body injury during a loss to the St. Louis Blues, which kept him out of two games. Once he recovered, Bonino experienced his best game of the season on March 19 against the Sharks. During the game, he played on a line with Ryan and Palmieri and tied his career-best plus-three rating while also tallying a career-high three assists en route to a 5–3 win. His hot streak continued as the season concluded as he posted six points in his last nine games. Bonino finished the season with five goals and 18 points through 50 games with limited penalty minutes. He also blocked 39 shots and ranked third on the team in faceoff wins and faceoff attempts.
As a restricted free agent at the conclusion of the 2011–12 season, Bonino was extended a qualifying offer by the Ducks. Bonino originally filed for arbitration before agreeing to sign a two-year, $1.4 million deal to avoid arbitration. When the 2012–13 NHL lockout began in September, Bonino remained in California to train with some Ducks teammates and other NHLers. He eventually signed a lockout contract with HC Neumarkt-Egna in the Italian Serie A2 league, which included an opt-out clause if the NHL resumed play. During his time in with the Italian Serie A2 league, Bonino accumulated 26 goals and 26 assists for 52 points through 19 games. In January, Bonino returned to North America and was named to the Ducks' opening night roster when the lockout ended. Although Anaheim began the season with a 5–1–1 start, Bonino went scoreless in his first six games before scoring his first NHL hat-trick in a 7–4 win over the Los Angeles Kings on February 2, 2013. He scored two more goals in February before missing 20 games to recover from a lower body injury incurred on March 10. Bonino returned to the Ducks lineup on April 21 and he was slotted into the second line centre role between Palmieri and Selanne. While playing the final four games of the regular season, Bonino combined for three points on the power play. He finished the regular season with 13 points, including five goals, which tied a career high. This continued into the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs where he opened the scoring in Game 1 against the Detroit Red Wings for an eventual 3–1 win. Bonino became one of Anaheim's most reliable centers during the opening round, routinely taking faceoffs at both ends of the ice and winning half of them. He also scored the game-winning goal in Game 5, although the Ducks would lose the seven game match.
Bonino returned to the Ducks for the 2013–14 season, his last with the team. This would prove to be a breakout season for him, hitting career highs in goals, assists, and points. Bonino played in the Duck's home opener against the New York Rangers but suffered a lower body injury after taking a slap shot off the leg. After returning from the injury, Bonino emerged as a consistent scoring threat for the Ducks while playing on their fourth line. By December, he was one of five skaters to play in every game while averaging 16:07 of ice time. He was also used on both the first power-play unit and on the penalty kill. At this time, he had also recorded 10 goals and 25 points while on pace for 21 goals and 37 assists. Bonino also helped the team in faceoffs by winning 50.4% of his draws and led all Ducks' forwards with 28 blocked shots. Before suffering a right wrist injury after colliding with Philadelphia Flyers forward Zac Rinaldo in late January, Bonino ranked third on the team with 16 goals and 24 assists for 40 points. He returned to the Ducks lineup for a short while, accumulating one goal and three more assists, before being sidelined with a foot injury in mid-March. Bonino finished the regular season with 22 goals and 27 assists for 49 points and a +14 rating as he helped the Ducks maintain a record of 54–20–8, the best mark in franchise history. As the Ducks qualified for the 2014 Stanley Cup playoffs, Bonino's success during the regular season continued into their postseason contests against the Dallas Stars and Los Angeles Kings. During the first round of the Western Conference playoff series, Bonino lifted the Ducks to a 5–4 overtime win over the Stars in Game 6 to send them to round two.