Levi, Sabres goalie prospect, facing bigger expectations at Northeastern
Enters second season after being named top player at position in NCAA men's hockey
By
Heather Engel
NHL.com Independent Correspondent
The Buffalo Sabres goalie prospect didn't play in 2020-21 because of an injury, but sparkled last season, when he won the Mike Richter Award as the top goalie in NCAA men's hockey.
"I'm going to treat it like it was last year," Levi said during Sabres development camp in July. "I still have a lot to prove. I definitely think I have more to give. … I want to get better. I want to do better, and obviously be mindful of not putting too much pressure on myself where I have to carry the whole team."
Last season he set a Northeastern record with 10 shutouts and led the NCAA with a .952 save percentage in helping the Huskies to their first Hockey East regular-season title. He was named the NCAA Rookie of the Year and Hockey East Goaltender of the Year, and was a top-10 finalist in voting for the Hobey Baker Award, given to the top player in men's NCAA Division I ice hockey, after finishing 21-10-1 with a 1.54 goals-against average in 32 games.
"It's an additional challenge that you're going to face at the pro level, for sure," the 20-year-old said. "You play so many seasons that coming off a good season, how are you going to do it again? That's the question. A lot of people have a hard time with that. It's easy to get caught up in thinking you're the best and you came off a really good season and trying to manage expectations. So I'm really looking forward to going into that challenge and managing it and learning how to do it."
Mike Condon, his goaltending coach at Northeastern, will be there to help. The former NHL goalie didn't know much about his pupil before taking the job before last season. But he was familiar with Levi's play at the 2021 IIHF World Junior Championship, where Levi had a .964 save percentage in seven games for Canada to break the tournament record held by Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price (.961 for Canada in 2007). Condon also had heard NHL players Levi has skated with in the offseason speak very highly of him.
"He came as advertised, if not more," Condon said. "I've never really seen anybody play like the way he played last year."
When the two of them first connected, Levi was already eager to learn, armed with notes and a fervent curiosity, very receptive to whatever his goalie coach would throw his way.
"He knows what he has to do," Condon said. "He knows how far he has to go and where he's been. And with all that going around his head, he can still be mindful of the moment. That's an incredibly precious skill that's going to serve him well for many years to come."
Athleticism, mobility and quickness are among the key assets for Levi (6-foot, 184 pounds). But Condon said what especially stood out were his "unbelievable" reads, with the goalie coach marveling at Levi's ability at his age to anticipate what players will do and study them in the moment. Levi, who is majoring in computer science and business, has long had a studious nature, and those who know him mention how bright he is.
"He thinks like an engineer," said Marco Raimondo, Levi's personal goaltending coach since 2018. "There's a very science-based way to the way he thinks and processes the game. It's like, 'If I do this, this, this and that, this will be the final answer.' He's always calculating what will be the right place for him to be in order to hit the highest probability to make the save."
While Levi is methodical, he still boasts a pure joy for the game, Raimondo said.
"He doesn't get fazed or concerned with what's kind of going on around him," Raimondo said. "He just loves playing the sport and he's able to just zone in and have fun being a goalie. … He went pretty much from like a virtual unknown to this incredible goaltender who performed super well on the World Junior stage, and everybody started to get to know him. But he's always stayed true to himself."
Levi developed his confidence and his game in Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Quebec, a Montreal suburb. After two seasons of midget AAA hockey with Lac St.-Louis, he took an unconventional path for his age and talent level, returning for a third season before moving on to Carleton Place of the Central Canada Hockey League in 2019-20. He was selected by the Florida Panthers in the seventh round (No. 212) of the 2020 NHL Draft and traded to the Sabres in the deal for forward Sam Reinhart on July 24, 2021.
"I've kind of taken a slower path my whole life where I was a late bloomer," Levi said. "I played three years of midget, I went to play in a lower-level junior hockey league, and it's worked for me. I just focus on my development and I'm getting better every day. I've never really chased the highest level. I've just let it come. When the time is right, it'll come. So I'm just waiting for that.
"I feel really good and I'm confident in my abilities to be able to play. But I don't think it will be bad to go back to college one more year, get better and come back even more ready."
