If anybody in the city had a right to scream last Sunday afternoon, it was Cole Donhauser.
The Railers forward scored a goal in the second period that was a pretty one, a nifty finish to a textbook odd-man rush with linemates Lincoln Hatten and Jordan Kaplan. It cut Worcester’s deficit in half, from 2-0 to 2-1, in a game it eventually lost to Trois-Rivières, 5-2.
What about the scream?
It was Donhauser’s first goal since Jan. 2. The drought covered a span of 47 games and 99 shots, give or take a couple. Both were Worcester pro hockey records for a forward, breaking marks set by IceCats winger Ross Wilson 29 hockey seasons ago.
Wilson went 27 games and 77 shots between goals. His drought ended in St. John’s, Newfoundland, on Feb. 21, 1995. Wilson converted a breakaway and when the puck went in the net, you could hear him scream.
“I wanted to scream for sure,” Donhauser said of his goal. “I definitely needed to feel a little bit of pressure come off my back.”
He did not have much of a chance. It took only a couple of seconds for him to be surrounded by teammates after the red light went on.
Donhauser and Wilson played hockey the same way. Wilson was hard-nosed, a hard worker on every shift, excellent defensively. Those IceCats were outscored by 66 goals. Wilson was plus-6, best on the roster.
During the drought Donhauser occasionally thought he might never score again.
“Those thoughts always creep into your head,” he said. “It had definitely occurred to me. It helps to have roommates, teammates that help talk you through it. You can’t dwell on it too much. It’s a long season. You have to stay consistent, keep an even keel.”
Donhauser grew up in Buffalo. The Railers are his third pro team. This is his third season here following brief ECHL stops with Idaho and Greenville in 2023-24. Sunday’s goal was his 20th in a Worcester uniform. Donhauser has missed only five games in his Railers career and compiled 183 PIM.
Not bad for a Yale economics major.
While at Yale, Donhauser was coached by Worcester hockey legend Keith Allain. If this city is a blue-collar town indeed, that would explain Allain’s approach to coaching.
“He was amazing, and a hard coach to play for,” Donhauser said, “in that we had hard practices. He made you work hard every day, and you knew that going to the rink. He demanded a lot of you but knew that you had it in you.
“He definitely got the most out of his players. I wasn’t always the best defensive guy growing up, but he is definitely a big part of why I’m a good defensive player as a pro.”
Donhauser actually has a hat trick of connections to the city. He plays here, was coached by Allain in college and was recruited by Holy Cross.
“That was my first visit to a college campus,” he said. “I was happy to be able to talk to any Division One school and I loved Holy Cross. It was such a beautiful campus.”
In three seasons at Yale, an ECAC school, Donhauser scored 12 goals in 80 games. Those numbers are similar to his Railers ones. However, you have to be careful with ECAC stats. It is a conference where a 3-1 game is considered a blowout.
What a wonderful hockey world it would be if every pro team had 10 forwards who could score 30 goals each. That is not the case, has never been the case, will never be the case.
That’s where Donhauser comes in. He will prevent more goals than he scores. Some of that is because he kills penalties so well.
“Ever since junior hockey I’ve been a PK guy,” he said. “Any extra time on the ice is awesome and to be relied on to kill penalties is really great. I try to be in the right spot. I feel that a big part of my game is that I have a really good stick.”
He will block a shot if necessary but that kind of courage can lead to time on the injured list.
“I’m not afraid to block shots,” he said, “but you don’t want to if you don’t have to. When I was killing penalties with Anthony Callin, he’d say ‘if you’ve blocking shots you’re in the wrong position.’”
Donhauser has spent most of 2026 in the wrong position to score goals. Sunday it was right place, right time. The Railers don’t necessarily expect 30 goals out of him, but they would love to see a lot more of what they saw against Trois-Rivières.
