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Prospect Info: Devon Levi, G, Northeastern University (obtained in Reinhart deal) - Assigned to Roch 11/18/24

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Jim Bob

Jim Bob

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ingoalmag.com

Devon Levi Meditates In-Game to Refresh, Refocus - InGoal Magazine

Levi shares the details of his in-game routine
ingoalmag.com ingoalmag.com

Meditation and breathing technique have long been tools used by goalies right up to the NHL to try and stay calm and focused, but Devon Levi has taken it to the next level.

Levi drops to his knees near the hash marks, facing his net, and meditates during every TV timeout, something he tried first at the World Junior Championships to manage the extra time he’d never had in-game before, and has continued into the NHL with the Buffalo Sabres.

“I’m meditating. I’m focusing on my breathing,” Levi explained recently on the InGoal Radio Podcast. “There’s so much chaos going on in the rink, so I close my eyes and kind of just take myself out of it for a second and just focus on my breathing. It kind of calms the nervous system down and allows me to refocus. A lot of times when I’m playing, there’s thoughts going in and out of your head and it’s important to kind of just let them go in and out, so that little break that I have during the TV timeouts kind of lets me let thoughts kind of sit for a second, recognize I don’t need to focus on this and let it go. That’s basically the foundation of meditating.”

The practice has quickly become a focal point on broadcasts and in the media, with Levi telling reporters in Buffalo his choice of meditation poses came from of a shared love with his dad for Star Wars. It’s his personal spin on the “Duel of Fates” scene from Episode I: The Phantom Menace in which Jedi Qui-Gon Jinn (played by Liam Neeson) and Obi-Wan Kenobi (played by Ewan MacGregor) are in a duel with Darth Maul. A force field separates the combatants at one point and Neeson’s character drops to his knees, closes his eyes and starts meditating.

For Levi, the act allows him to refocus and refresh amidst his own nightly battle.


“You’re so focused on stopping the puck throughout the whole 60 minutes, which if you have that full focus throughout an entire game, non-stop with the pauses, that’s like a three-hour focus compared to a 60-minute focus,” he said. “That TV timeout just gives me an opportunity to mentally kind of just leave the rink, just take a breath and focus on something else.”

Levi said the in-game practice refreshes more than just his mind.

“It’s definitely physical too. My body is more replenished from breathing. Mentally, you’re a bit sharper because you’re getting oxygen into your brain,” Levi said. “There are things you end up focusing on during a game that you don’t want to be focusing on. (For example) you just make a save but it’s poorly executed, and you’re hard on yourself and maybe you’re thinking too technically. Me, personally, I’ll take a second and just close my eyes: ‘okay, I don’t need to be technical right now. There’s nothing going on. It’s just me and nothingness, so why am I thinking about technique right now?’ So, I’ll just close my eyes and think about my breath. Now is a good time to think about my breath and when I open my eyes, the present moment says I’m in a game so now it’s time to focus on the play and on the game developing.”

It didn’t take long for other players to try and get Levi out of his zone. Florida Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk skated up and started talking to Levi while he was mediating.

“Tkachuk chirped me once while I was there, but I was kind of zoned out and just focused on my breath and what I was doing that, so it didn’t really bother me,” Levi said. “I knew (he as there) but it’s just like one of those thoughts that come in, and then they just flow out.”
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SnuggaRUDE

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Dubi Doo

Dubi Doo

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Jim Bob said:
ingoalmag.com

Devon Levi Meditates In-Game to Refresh, Refocus - InGoal Magazine

Levi shares the details of his in-game routine
ingoalmag.com ingoalmag.com
Click to expand...
As someone who has dealt with intrusive thoughts in the past, this is great advice if you're dealing with unwanted thoughts that are causing anxiety:

"A lot of times when I’m playing, there’s thoughts going in and out of your head and it’s important to kind of just let them go in and out..."

Hyper focusing on a certain thought will only cause more problems. Just understand that your brain can be a dickhead sometimes. Allow that thought to pass through no matter how bad it is.

Levi really does seem mentally further along than most goalies his age. Hopefully, it allows him to progress faster as well.
 
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Doug Prishpreed

Doug Prishpreed

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TheMistyStranger said:
Probably molten metal from the heat of the lightsabers. So the numbers are "metal" and the blades are melting them.
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There are lightsabres in there? I guess I'm not able to tell what I'm looking at...kind of messy from a design perspective imo, though it still looks cool. I like abstract art just fine lol.
 
cybresabre

cybresabre

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Doug Prishpreed said:
There are lightsabres in there? I guess I'm not able to tell what I'm looking at...kind of messy from a design perspective imo, though it still looks cool. I like abstract art just fine lol.
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the metal things with the screws are the handles for the lightsabers and the (blades? @TehDoak, help us out) are blue and extend behind the Buffalo text and melt the 27. You'd definitely cut your hands as the bottom screws are not flush.
 
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Jim Bob

Jim Bob

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theathletic.com

The NHL’s top breakout goalie candidates for 2023-24: Devon Levi, Dustin Wolf and 5 more

Identifying the young goalies with the talent and opportunity to take their game to the next level.
theathletic.com theathletic.com

Devon Levi, Buffalo Sabres​

No goalie enters the 2023-24 season with a higher expectation of a breakout than Sabres rookie Devon Levi. The 21-year-old made his NHL debut late last season and impressed with a 5-2-0 record and .905 save percentage.

Levi has succeeded at every level, including a great college career at Northeastern University, where he became the first goalie to ever win the Mike Richter Award as the NCAA’s best goalie two years in a row. He performed for Canada in the 2021 World Junior Championship, posting a ridiculous .964 save percentage in seven games.

The Sabres let Levi get his first taste of the NHL in March and April, and he fit right in. He’s not the biggest goalie, but his positioning is great thanks to his quick reads and strong skating.

What elevates Levi above other talented young goalies heading into this season is his clear path to a No. 1 job. The Sabres declined to bring in goalie help this summer, and with only Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen as competition, Levi could cement himself as the workhorse goalie quickly. Considering the high overall expectations for the Sabres, it’s a lot to ask from a goalie in his first full season as a pro, but Levi’s talent is obvious so it will be a fascinating storyline to watch unfold.
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debaser66

debaser66

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Mar 10, 2012
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Dubi Doo said:
As someone who has dealt with intrusive thoughts in the past, this is great advice if you're dealing with unwanted thoughts that are causing anxiety:

"A lot of times when I’m playing, there’s thoughts going in and out of your head and it’s important to kind of just let them go in and out..."

Hyper focusing on a certain thought will only cause more problems. Just understand that your brain can be a dickhead sometimes. Allow that thought to pass through no matter how bad it is.

Levi really does seem mentally further along than most goalies his age. Hopefully, it allows him to progress faster as well.
Click to expand...
Certain techniques are also very benificial if you are dealing with addiction or psychosomatic diseases.
 
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