Prospect Info: Devon Levi, G, Northeastern University (obtained in Reinhart deal) - Signed 3/17/23, Assigned 4/3/24

[Ralonzo]

Every NHL goalie wears some version of knee pads. A lot of them wear them under their hockey socks.

I get you, just used to at least seeing the knee/thigh protector outside the sock when using those butterfly pads that are designed to rotate. Also, they're decently bulky and it looked from that long view Levi had a "knee-sized" knee covered by sock. It's also nice to have those landing flaps on the inside knee since the pad will be perpendicular to the ice in front of the leg in the butterfly set when it rotates, and otherwise the knee would be bouncing off the ice, which is also an ouchie I dunno, maybe there's been technological advances in the years since I had ligaments.

 

[oldgoalie]

I get you, just used to at least seeing the knee/thigh protector outside the sock when using those butterfly pads that are designed to rotate. Also, they're decently bulky and it looked from that long view Levi had a "knee-sized" knee covered by sock. It's also nice to have those landing flaps on the inside knee since the pad will be perpendicular to the ice in front of the leg in the butterfly set when it rotates, and otherwise the knee would be bouncing off the ice, which is also an ouchie I dunno, maybe there's been technological advances in the years since I had ligaments.

my old gear never had those sewn in side knee protectors ("landing flaps"). those came much later; the Simmons pads I played with when I was doing inline (til I was 57, so 10 years ago...) had them and I thought they were awesome.

 

[Doug Prishpreed]

Mil

Miller was very raw when he arrived. He struggled due to poor positioning and overcommitting to shooters. He needed that time to adjust.

You can say the same thing about Quinn, Peterka, and Krebs. It turns out you can develop in the NHL too.

 

[PunchImlach is Alive]

Ok, this shit is just wild. I've never seen that before.

Would never cross my mind for a goalie to do that but now I'm kind of surprised more goalies aren't trying meditation during breaks.

 

[Jim Bob]

I get you, just used to at least seeing the knee/thigh protector outside the sock when using those butterfly pads that are designed to rotate. Also, they're decently bulky and it looked from that long view Levi had a "knee-sized" knee covered by sock. It's also nice to have those landing flaps on the inside knee since the pad will be perpendicular to the ice in front of the leg in the butterfly set when it rotates, and otherwise the knee would be bouncing off the ice, which is also an ouchie I dunno, maybe there's been technological advances in the years since I had ligaments.

It actually looks like he has black CCM knee pads on the outside of his baselayer that kind of blend in with everything as he does not appear to wear hockey socks. The picture from this year's Beanpot shows them the best. And he uses clear sock tape to hold them in place. You can definitely see the sock tape on the pics from last night.

 

[Dubi Doo]

Ok, this shit is just wild. I've never seen that before.

He's like a Samurai. Tom Cruise would be proud.

 

[Ralonzo]

He's like a Samurai. Tom Cruise would be proud.

What's the crease situation for the Tokyo Katanas?

 

[dotcommunism]

You can say the same thing about Quinn, Peterka, and Krebs. It turns out you can develop in the NHL too.

Come on, it's a lot different for a skater versus a goalie.

He's like a Samurai. Tom Cruise would be proud.

He's said before that it's inspired by the Jedi from Star Wars, particularly Qui-Gon Jinn in The Phantom Menace (and has been noted before, Qui-Gon does the meditation stuff a few minutes before he gets beaten in a duel and dies). So the samurai comparison is appropriate, as samurai movies were one of George Lucas's sources of inspiration.

 

[BB79]

Meditation is not really odd, good for him if it keeps his mind in a good place. If everyone practiced 15 mins of meditation a day the world might be a better place.

Indeed, but most goalies will go to the bench during tv timeouts, he made like he was then turned back like he changed his mind. Might be 1st game jitters, just keeping his mind calm. It'll be interesting to see what he does in his next start

 

[thomas vanek]

Indeed, but most goalies will go to the bench during tv timeouts, he made like he was then turned back like he changed his mind. Might be 1st game jitters, just keeping his mind calm. It'll be interesting to see what he does in his next start

this is a routine he has been doing since he played for Canada in the world juniors

 

[Dingo44]

Must watch this with the sound on

 

[ValJamesDuex]

Indeed, but most goalies will go to the bench during tv timeouts, he made like he was then turned back like he changed his mind. Might be 1st game jitters, just keeping his mind calm. It'll be interesting to see what he does in his next start

He's was doing it at Northeastern

 

[BB79]

this is a routine he has been doing since he played for Canada in the world juniors

So looks like the norm for him. Goalie habits are always interesting to study. As long as he keeps winning I don't care

 

[Diaspora]

this is a routine he has been doing since he played for Canada in the world juniors

Waiting for some rat/goon to bump him. The team reaction could be interesting.

 

[BB79]

View attachment 679685

What's the crease situation for the Tokyo Katanas?

Is there a Taro Tsujimoto on the roster?

 

[CaliSabresfan24]

 

[Reddawg]

Waiting for some rat/goon to bump him. The team reaction could be interesting.

Interesting like watching a pack of animals feast on a hyena

 

[Ralonzo]

Metro division teams in particular seem to have little respect for the "stay on your side of the ice" unwritten rule at stoppages, beginning of periods, etc. They'll wander into the opposing zone, simulate shots & goals, chirp the goalie. There used to be consequences for even crossing the (red) line with a skate.

 

[CaliSabresfan24]

Do it Donny....Do it.

 

[Jim Bob]

This will be interesting.

 

[TheMistyStranger]

I tried to temper my expectations of Levi over the past year. After seeing his performance in the game against the Rangers , and rewatching the highlights a few times, I'm really struggling to continue to temper my expectations. He's so athletic, and so fast, that it's almost impossible to not project him as being a legitimate upper echelon NHL goalie. There's room for improvement, but his fundamentals are incredible.

 

[TehDoak]

He's so athletic, and so fast, that it's almost impossible to not project him as being a legitimate upper echelon NHL goalie. There's room for improvement, but his fundamentals are incredible.

We all should absolutely pump the breaks.

Plenty of goalies have had outstanding rookie seasons and dropped off the face of the earth. Whether it's the pro lifestyle, the long season, or simply the fact that shooters get the book on goalies after a season or so and adjust.

I like Levi, I think he has a strong future. But....

#1. He should get a full AHL year.
#2. Absolutely nothing is guaranteed at this point.

Eichel was the answer...until he wasn't. Risto/Zadorov were going to be our elite shutdown d-men...until they weren't. Myers was going to awkwardly skate us to a cup. Hell, I have a 40th anniversary Cody Hodgson jersey in a closet somewhere.

At this point, we should have some sort of miracles requirement before anointing anyone a Sabres Savior. We've seen far too many false prophets.

 

[truthbluth]

We all should absolutely pump the breaks.

Plenty of goalies have had outstanding rookie seasons and dropped off the face of the earth. Whether it's the pro lifestyle, the long season, or simply the fact that shooters get the book on goalies after a season or so and adjust.

I like Levi, I think he has a strong future. But....

#1. He should get a full AHL year.
#2. Absolutely nothing is guaranteed at this point.

Eichel was the answer...until he wasn't. Risto/Zadorov were going to be our elite shutdown d-men...until they weren't. Myers was going to awkwardly skate us to a cup. Hell, I have a 40th anniversary Cody Hodgson jersey in a closet somewhere.

At this point, we should have some sort of miracles requirement before anointing anyone a Sabres Savior. We've seen far too many false prophets.

Without getting into history, I like Levi a lot. But he’s a prospect. Linus Ullmark became a stud in his D+10 season. Goalies have, nearly always, taken a few pro seasons to become good. The expectations right now for Devon are impossibly high. Literally, impossible. Let’s cool it a little and appreciate that he’s a unique prospect, with a genuinely rare aura of excitement around him and realize he’s going to play in Rochester next season and he isn’t going to dominate every game he plays…probably.

 

[old kummelweck]

I tried to temper my expectations of Levi over the past year. After seeing his performance in the game against the Rangers , and rewatching the highlights a few times, I'm really struggling to continue to temper my expectations. He's so athletic, and so fast, that it's almost impossible to not project him as being a legitimate upper echelon NHL goalie. There's room for improvement, but his fundamentals are incredible.

He got the job done, but looked very raw to me. Hopefully the jitters are out of the way now that he got the home win under his belt.

 

[DapperCam]

We all should absolutely pump the breaks.

Plenty of goalies have had outstanding rookie seasons and dropped off the face of the earth. Whether it's the pro lifestyle, the long season, or simply the fact that shooters get the book on goalies after a season or so and adjust.

I like Levi, I think he has a strong future. But....

#1. He should get a full AHL year.
#2. Absolutely nothing is guaranteed at this point.

Eichel was the answer...until he wasn't. Risto/Zadorov were going to be our elite shutdown d-men...until they weren't. Myers was going to awkwardly skate us to a cup. Hell, I have a 40th anniversary Cody Hodgson jersey in a closet somewhere.

At this point, we should have some sort of miracles requirement before anointing anyone a Sabres Savior. We've seen far too many false prophets.

It will be interesting how they approach his development. If he performs well the rest of this season and is the best goalie in training camp next year can they really put him in the AHL? What message does that send to the rest of the team about icing the best roster and trying to win?

A good solution to this conundrum would be to bring in a legit NHL starter in the off-season, so Levi isn’t the obvious best goalie in the org. Then they can send him down, and bring him up when he is 100% ready.