Levi could become first repeat Richter Award winner as NCAA's top goalie

There has never been a repeat winner of the Mike Richter Award, given to the top goalie in men's NCAA Division 1 hockey every year since 2014. But it could happen this season.

Devon Levi of Northeastern, the winner last season, is back for his junior year and looks to be a top contender again.
Three past winners are playing important roles for NHL teams: Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets (UMass Lowell, 2014), Thatcher Demko of the Vancouver Canucks (Boston College, 2016) and Jeremy Swayman of the Boston Bruins (Maine, 2020).
The winner of the 2023 award, named for the former New York Rangers great, will be announced in April during the NCAA Frozen Four in Tampa.
In alphabetical order, here are 10 goalies who figure to be in contention.
Magnus Chrona, Denver
The 22-year-old senior is 9-4-0 with a 2.33 goals-against average, .908 save percentage and one shutout in 13 games this season for Denver, after going 28-8-1 with a 2.11 GAA and .911 save percentage for the NCAA champion last season.
Selected by the The Tampa Bay Lightning in the fifth round (No. 152) of the 2018 NHL Draft, he was traded to the San Jose Sharks for defenseman Frederik Claesson on April 12, 2021.
Drew Commesso, Boston University
The 20-year-old junior has played well after missing time in October with an injury; he's 6-2-0 with a 2.41 GAA and .915 save percentage in eight games this season.
One of 11 Richter Award semifinalists last season, Commesso represented the United States at the 2022 Beijing Olympics. He was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the second round (No. 46) of the 2020 NHL Draft.
Jakub Dobes, Ohio State
The 21-year-old sophomore is 9-6-1 with a 2.31 GAA, .913 save percentage and one shutout in 16 games this season. Dobes was a Richter Award semifinalist as a freshman last season, when he was 21-12-2 with a 2.26 GAA, .934 save percentage and three shutouts in 35 games.
He was selected by the Montreal Canadiens in the fifth round (No. 136) of the 2020 draft.
Devon Levi, Northeastern
The 20-year-old junior is the likely frontrunner to become the first goalie to win the Richter Award a second time. He's 7-4-3 with a 2.11 GAA, a .936 save percentage that's third in the nation and has made 436 saves, fourth in the country.
Levi won the Richter Award last season following a sophomore season for the ages, when he was 21-10-1 with a 1.54 GAA, led the nation with a .952 save percentage and a school record 10 shutouts.
Selected by the Florida Panthers in the seventh round (No. 212) of the 2020 draft, he was traded to the Buffalo Sabres with a first-round pick in 2022 for center Sam Reinhart on July 24, 2021.
Yaniv Perets, Quinnipiac
The 22-year-old junior, a good friend of Levi's (they're each from Dollard-Des-Ormeaux, Quebec), is 10-1-3 with a 1.84 GAA, .920 save percentage and three shutouts in 14 games.
A free agent, Perets was a Richter Award finalist last season, when he was 22-5-2 with a 1.17 GAA, .939 save percentage and an NCAA-leading 11 shutouts.
Blake Pietila, Michigan Tech
The 22-year-old senior is 9-3-2 with a 1.90 GAA and .933 save percentage in 14 games and leads the nation with four shutouts.
Undrafted, he was a Richter semifinalist last season, when he was 21-13-2 with a 1.91 GAA and .918 save percentage in 37 games.
Erik Portillo, Michigan
The 22-year-old junior is 9-4-0 with a 2.84 GAA and .908 save percentage in 13 games. Portillo was a Richter semifinalist last season, when he went 31-10-1 with 2.14 GAA, .926 save percentage and three shutouts in 42 games to help Michigan reach the Frozen Four.
He was selected by the Sabres in the third round (No. 67) of the 2019 NHL Draft.
Tommy Scarfone, Rochester Institute of Technology
The undrafted 22-year-old sophomore is 10-1-0 with a 2.46 GAA and .923 save percentage in 11 games for the first-place team in Atlantic Hockey.
As a freshman last season, he was 8-9-1 with a 2.46 GAA, .919 save percentage and two shutouts in 20 games.
Liam Souliere, Penn State
The undrafted 23-year-old junior leads the nation in wins this season; he's 11-2-0 with a 2.06 GAA, .924 save percentage and two shutouts in 14 games; he made 17 saves in a 3-0 win on Nov. 4 against Michigan, which was ranked No. 1 in the polls at the time.
Last season, Souliere was 7-7-1 with a 2.88 GAA and .905 save percentage in 15 games.
Dylan St. Cyr, Michigan State
The 23-year-old grad student is 10-4-1 with a 2.13 GAA, .934 save percentage and two shutouts in 15 games this season.
St. Cyr transferred from Quinnipiac, where he was 10-2-1 with a 1.16 GAA and .936 save percentage in 13 games. The free agent is the son of Manon Rheaume, a goalie who was the first woman to play in an NHL preseason game with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 1992 and won a silver medal with the Canadian women's team in the 1998 Nagano Olympics.