The year is 2013.
Here in Buffalo the Bills would continue their then historic playoff drought after finishing 6-10, and the Buffalo Sabres would finish their third straight season without a playoff appearance after finishing 5th in the Northeast Division.
The BillsMafia again would be looking forward to the NFL Draft, where they’d eventually pick EJ Manuel, from Florida State, in hopes he’d be the answer to their QB problems that began when Hall of Famer Jim Kelly retired in 1996. Ron Rolston is the head coach of the Buffalo Sabres, taking over for Lindy Ruff, who stood behind Buffalo’s bench for 16 seasons before being relieved of his duties.
The HarborCenter, which now stands just across the street from the KeyBank Center, had just broken ground to begin construction. The Pegula’s vision to make Buffalo a focal point for hockey in North America would revolve around this project, which would include two rinks on the 6th level, a hotel, and restaurants.
While the fan-faithful in Buffalo would go into another summer with nothing to celebrate, down at the present day Northtown Center in Amherst, the Jr. Lions from Dollard-Des Ormeaux would enter the North American Prospects Showcase as extreme underdogs.
The feared East Coast Selects team would be the heavy favorite. The Jr. Lions would open up that tournament against the Selects in round robin play, losing 6-0. Forward Justin Hryckowian, now a sophomore at Northeastern University, remembers the Selects as a team full of All-Stars for their 2001 age group.
“That team was a wagon. All-star team with kids from everywhere.”
The Jr. Lions, who were already facing an uphill battle to begin the tournament as the 7th seed, were now facing an early exit from the NAPS tournament, and a 6-hour drive back home to West Island in Quebec. Hryckowian looks back at the resilience of that squad from 2001.
“Our team was just a bunch of local kids who were having a good time and just trying to do our best, giving it our all.” While most teams for this tournament would recruit players from all over the world, the Jr. Lions were made up of whoever essentially showed up. “The only player that we added was Case McCarthy, who is at BU now. We never heard of him but we just picked him up because he needed a team. He showed up 6’0”, grown man, meanwhile we’re all little kids with baby fat.”
While the odds again stacked against them, the Jr. Lions did have one ace in their back pocket, and it wasn’t Case McCarthy. Before the team left for the NAPS tournament, they were in need of a goalie. Their previous two had left the team, when a very young, quiet Devon Levi walks into their locker room. Hryckowian remembers his introduction to “Dev” vividly. “The year of the NAPS tournament we were introduced to Dev. We never really heard of him. He came out of nowhere. He was a nice kid, but also quiet because he was trying to just fit in.”
The Lions would go undefeated for the rest of the tournament, and play the powerhouse East Coast Selects once again, but this time, their ace in the hole shut the door.
The Lions, would get a goal in overtime from Gregory Lapointe to seal the championship, but the real hero of the tournament was Mr. Levi. When asked how he felt, Devon didn’t shy away about how much that win and his teammates meant to him.
“This is my favorite team that I have ever played with and I hope to continue to play with my Lions teammates for many years to come,” said the excited 11-year old Levi in an interview with his hometowns West Island Chronicle. “I am so proud of all my teammates for how they played in Buffalo, and I love being their goalie.”
Devon would continue his career with the Lions until 2019, and most of that time he continued to play alongside teammate and best friend Hryckowian. The two formed a bond what was as strong as brothers. In 2019, Devon would join the Carleton Place Canadians in the CCHL.
That season, Levi would go on to have an astounding 34-2-1 record, with a .941 save pct, a 1.47 GAA, and 8 shutouts. Levi would then announce his commitment to play for Northeastern University on June 3rd, 2020.
Levi would first burst into the national spotlight during the 2021 World Junior Championships, where in 7 games he would go 6-1, post a 0.74 GAA, .964 save pct, and record 3 shutouts for Team Canada. Those three shutouts would go on to tie Justin Pogge for most all-time in a single World Junior Tournament. It was later revealed by Devon, that he played through the majority of the World Juniors Tournament with fractured ribs.
His athleticism was on full display despite the injury. The then Florida Panthers draft pick, was handpicked by Panthers legend and Hall of Fame goaltender Roberto Luongo. Luongo first met Levi at a goaltending clinic in Montreal when he was just 12 years old. Luongo, now heading the Florida Panthers Goaltending Excellence Program was adamant to Florida GM Bill Zito that they draft Levi in the 7th round of the 2020 NHL Draft. Looking back at that pick now, it would seem like a steal to pick such a promising talent so late in the draft.
Devon Levi, now a very highly touted Buffalo Sabres prospect, looks back on that tournament as the moment he fell in love with Buffalo, or at least that’s how his mother, Eta Levi sees it. “Buffalo has been such a special place for him. Unbelievable memories that he holds dear to his heart. We never kept gear. They took up too much space. But the Buffalo NAPS pads were sacred to him. So when he was traded to Buffalo, it felt like everything was coming full circle for him.”
If you’re a goalie parent, it’s not often you hold onto old equipment.
In fact, in 25 years of playing the position, I’ve never held onto any of my old gear. It was either donated or sold. “Even at such a young age, he was adamant and steadfast that we never get rid of his Buffalo NAPS equipment. It’s always been special and thats why when the trade occurred, the first thing that came to our minds was how much he already loved Buffalo.” Buffalo fans got their first glimpse of the Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Quebec native at Sabres Development Camp this past offseason, where Levi would wow the crowd with his athleticism, while making difficult saves look routine.
In a shootout attempt, Jack Quinn thought he slipped one by Levi after he lost his footing and was falling backwards. But Levi in a desperate attempt to recover, was able to get his glove on the puck to stop it before crossing the goal line. The save would set the twitter world on fire, and even had announcer Dan Dunleavy comparing Levi to Hall of Famer Dominik Hasek.
Devon Levi will have the opportunity to tend the same crease as former greats. Greats like Don Edwards, Tom Barasso, Dominik Hasek and Ryan Miller, who was recently inducted into the Buffalo Sabres Hall of Fame and had his number retired.
Last year’s recipient of the Mike Richter Award, an award he is again nominated for this season as college hockeys top goaltender, Levi posted some eye-popping numbers. With a 1.54 GAA, a .952 save pct, and 10 shutouts, Levi had one of the greatest seasons in recent NCAA history.
For reference, Ryan Miller in 2000-2001 posted a 31-5-4 record with a 1.32 GAA, .950 save pct, and 10 shutouts. In fact, many believe Levi was robbed of the Hobey Baker Award, which was also given to another goaltender. This year he’s ended his season with 17-11-5 record, 6 shutouts, a 2.25 GAA and a .932 save pct. Most notably, Levi would help lead the Huskies to a Beanpot Championship, where he would win the Eberly Award, given to the tournaments best goaltender, and would be named the Beanpot’s Most Valuable Player.
The tournament would end in a shootout, where Levi would stop all three Harvard shooters, one of which was a stellar glove save that Levi would toss away with confidence and swagger.
I had the opportunity to meet both Devon Levi and Justin Hryckowian last year on my podcast “2 Goalies 1 Mic”. This was right before Devon had made the decision to return to school. Before having them both on, I knew little about the relationship between the two. But over the last year, what I have learned is that they are indeed as thick as thieves.
On the show, they told stories about meeting, growing up, playing together with the Jr. Lions, and rejoicing when Devon called Justin to tell him he committed to Northeastern University, and that they’d be playing together once again. Devon said, “The best phone call I ever made in my life was the one I made to Ritz,” when thinking back to that joyful phone call. While many publicly don’t know it, I believe that was quietly a reason he did decide to return to school. Along with wanting the opportunity to win the Beanpot Tournament, and chase a National Championship, I think he wanted one more year of playing with his best friend. When looking back on their time together, Justin, who was just named next years captain of the Northeastern Huskies, doesn’t shy away from what it meant to him.
“It was everything. We owe the Lions so much. We were just kids showing up and having fun together every day. Falling in love with the game as it went. We maximized every day by learning and getting better every chance we got. Those were the days. We look back on those days now, and we talk about how those are what made us who we are now. Its incredible playing together all the way up until now. I’ve learned so much from him and I hope he has from me as well. The growth has been insane by both of us and I can’t wait to see us keep growing.”
Devon, and his family have gone through an emotional roller coaster since that trade to the Buffalo Sabres was announced, and after getting to know Devon, and his mother Eta, there is one thing I’m very certain of. Devon was built for Buffalo. He’s someone the people of this city can embrace and rally around. He respects the game as much as he loves it, and he’ll wear the Sabres logo with pride every night. He’s the kind of player that will understand and value of what it means to be a Sabre, and how much this team means to the people of Buffalo.
On March 17th, Devon Levi would become a Buffalo Sabre, signing his 3-year entry level contract.
Before the signing was announced, Levi would also be named Hockey East’s Goaltender and Player of the Year, and was nominated for the second year in a row as a Hobey Baker Award finalist.
However, I’d imagine these accolades will pale in comparison to when he makes his debut a second time in Buffalo, NY. It will be a moment he has been waiting for since he first stepped foot in Buffalo back in 2013 for the NAPS tournament.
We didn’t know a ton about #1 at Northeastern back when he was dealt to Buffalo in the Sam Reinhart trade, but over the past two seasons, one thing is certain. Buffalo has been waiting for a competitor in net like #27 (The number Levi will wear for Buffalo) since Ryan Miller left in 2014.
It’s been a long journey since he began his career playing out of the Dollar Civic Center back home in Quebec. But it’s a journey that has finally come full circle, because tonight he will make his NHL debut against Buffalo native Patrick Kane and the New York Rangers, nearly 10 years after he and the Jr. Lions first stepped foot in the Northtown Center en route to a NAPS Championship.
Congratulations Devon, enjoy the moment, and we’ll see you at the KeyBank Center. 7 PM sharp.
The post From Dollard to Buffalo, The Devon Levi Story appeared first on Trainwreck Sports.
