[3][4] He did not decide to focus on hockey until the age of 14, when Pinto suffered a clavicle fracture during football practice that left him temporarily unable to play another sport.

In his final season there, he recorded 34 goals and 31 assists for 65 points in 54 games and was part of the 2018 USA Hockey National Championship team.

[10] Pinto committed to playing the 2019–20 season with the North Dakota Fighting Hawks and was considered the top recruit for that year's incoming freshman class.

[12] After undergoing the mandatory quarantining period,[12] Pinto made his NHL debut late in the 2020–21 season and scored his first goal on May 5, 2021, against the Montreal Canadiens against Jake Allen.

During his fourth game of the year, he was hit into the boards by Mario Ferraro of the San Jose Sharks and left with a shoulder injury.

[18] As a restricted free agent, a contract dispute led Pinto to miss the entire 2023 training camp and the first weeks of the 2023–24 season.

[27] Growing up in New York, Pinto was a childhood fan of the Pittsburgh Penguins, crediting Sidney Crosby and the 2009 Stanley Cup Finals as inspiration for his ice hockey career.