Clark Donatelli


John Clark Donatelli is an American former professional ice hockey player and is the former head coach of the AHL's Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Donatelli was a long-time minor league player in the American Hockey League and International Hockey League. He played 35 games in the National Hockey League.

Playing career

Donatelli was drafted in the fifth round, 98th overall, in the 1984 NHL Entry Draft by the New York Rangers. After three seasons with Boston University and one with the U.S. national team, Donatelli made his NHL debut with the Minnesota North Stars during the 1989–90 season.
Donatelli played a full season with the International Hockey League's San Diego Gulls in 1990–91, and joined the NHL's Boston Bruins briefly in the 1991–92 season. After several seasons in the IHL and American Hockey League, as well as one in Roller Hockey International with the San Diego Barracudas, Donatelli retired in 1996.

Coaching career

After retiring, Donatelli took up coaching and eventually was named head coach of the Wheeling Nailers in the ECHL during the 2011–12 season. During the 2015–16 season, the Nailers' American Hockey League affiliate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins promoted him as the interim head coach as their head coach, Mike Sullivan, had been promoted to Pittsburgh Penguins. He became the permanent head coach of the WBS Penguins after the season ended. On June 28, 2019, it was announced that Donatelli had resigned from his position as head coach of the WBS Penguins due to personal reasons. Donatelli had a record of 154–94–20–9 with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, leading the Penguins to three Calder Cup Playoff appearances and a regular season title in 2016–17.

Career statistics

Awards and honors