Columnist image

SPORTSCENTRE Reporter

| Archive

Growing up in the Montreal area, Devon Levi met Roberto Luongo at a goalie camp.

"I remember seeing him in the rink and I went up to him and I wanted to introduce myself," Levi said. "He shook my hand with two fingers, because my hand was only as big as his two fingers. It was an unbelievable experience. He was one of my idols."

So, when the Panthers selected Levi in the seventh round, 212th overall, during October's National Hockey League draft, it was a thrill not only to hear his name called, but to know he would get a chance to work with Luongo, who oversees Florida's goaltending excellence department. And during Canada's World Junior selection camp the pair spoke multiple times. ​

"The biggest message, which stuck out to me is, 'Enjoy the moment. There might be a lot of pressure, but you only get to live that pressure once and pressure is a privilege.' He said he looks back on his experience at World Juniors to this day and he enjoyed it like crazy ... his message really, really touched me."

During this weird pandemic selection camp, which included 18 days in quarantine, Levi has emerged as the No. 1 goalie on Canada's depth chart. He will start the lone pre-tournament game against Russia on Wednesday and expects to play the full 60 minutes.

"We are extremely pleased with our No. 1 goalie at this time," said head coach Andre Tourigny.

Tourigny wasn't ready to say whether Prince George's Taylor Gauthier or Kamloops' Dylan Garand will dress as the backup.

Levi's rise is remarkable when you consider he wasn't even invited to Hockey Canada's virtual summer camp despite posting a .941 save percentage in 37 games with the Carleton Place Canadians and being named MVP of the Canadian Junior Hockey League.

"Not getting the call definitely fired me up and pushed me a bit harder," Levi said.

Hockey Canada's goalie coach, Jason LaBarbera, told TSN before the camp that Levi's performance at the 2019 World Junior A Challenge put him in the mix for the World Juniors.

"There's a ton of ability there," LaBarbera said. "He's a super skilled guy. Not the biggest guy [6-foot, 189 pounds], but his compete level and how he goes about things is really high-end. He hasn't been on the radar in the sense he's been playing junior A, but a lot of the NHL guys I talk to have a lot of good things to say about him." ​

Levi points to the World Junior A Challenge as a turning point in his young career. He led Canada East to a silver medal and was named MVP of the tournament.

"We made it to the semis, but I knew I had another gear and that's what I tapped into," he explained. "I just wanted to win so badly. We were overlooked by so many people. Canada East was supposed to be the first team out of the tournament and that just fired us up ... It was all mental. A huge part of hockey and especially goaltending is the mental side and being able to really focus and be able to get fired up and be super competitive. That takes a lot, but it can unlock a whole new game."

Levi faced adversity early in Canada's camp. The freshman at Northeastern University had to stay in a cohort quarantine with the two other NCAA players – Wisconsin's Dylan Holloway and Boston College's Alex Newhook – during the first week. He was scheduled to join the main group and start an intra-squad scrimmage the day that two players tested positive for COVID-19, which forced the camp into a two-week quarantine.

"I was just keeping busy," Levi said. "I was trying to improve. I didn't want to waste the two weeks. I brought my juggling balls into my room and did hand-eye exercises. I watched a lot of film. I watched past goaltenders in this tournament like Carter Hart and Joel Hofer. I did a lot of reading. I brought a book about mental training so I did a bit of that. I really tried to dial it in during the two weeks to make sure when I got back on the ice it would be a seamless transition."

The hard work paid off. Levi looked good in the two intra-squad scrimmages after camp resumed posting a 36-save shutout in the second one. And now he gets another shot at the Russians, who beat Canada East in double overtime in the championship game at the World Junior A Challenge. ​

---

After four straight days of 90-minute practices, Team Canada only spent an hour on the ice on Tuesday. Before the session, Tourigny told his players the workout would be shorter and so he wanted greater focus.

The practice ended with a battle drill, which saw players compete two-on-two with two nets set up around a faceoff circle.

"Our practices lately have been pretty intense and we're trying to get them as game-like as possible," said defenceman Thomas Harley, "but nothing compares to a game especially against a team like the Russians. They're real fast, real smart, real skilled so hopefully we can get our feet under us in the first and remember how to play hockey in the second and third."

 

Only five players on Team Canada have suited up in a league game this season so this one pre-tournament game is incredibly important. Tourigny admits he'​s not sure what to expect.

"I can talk to you about our guys for hours, about how they did in practice, how they adjust when we teach them different things, how they are off the ice, but in terms of knowing how they will react in games when the heat will be on, when mistakes will happen, when we will have breakdowns and stuff like that? I cannot tell you right now."

Tourigny did work with 11 of these players as part of Canada's Hlinka Gretzky Cup team in 2018, but he believes that experience isn't as relevant any more.

"In a life of a 19-year-old kid two years is so much," he said. "It's so much of his life and his career. We have relationships with our players right now and we're happy with where we are, but I can't say exactly how they will react in a game. We need to play."

And Tourigny needs to coach. The reigning Canadian Hockey League coach of the year hasn't run a bench since March.

"That will be a challenge," he said. "It looks easy, just send the next guy over the boards, but to do a good job you need to have a feel for your team and make the right adjustments and especially use the right player in the right situation."

---

The exchanges between Levi and his defencemen will be interesting to watch.

"It's a work in progress right now," Harley said. "They keep the calls real simple so it's not too hard to mess up. It's just getting reps in practice and hopefully those translate into the game."

"When I go to play the puck we have two calls," Levi revealed. "We have 'up' and 'over.' Up is my forehand side, over is my backhand side and it's just very clear and very effective and we know how to get the job done. Obviously, if there's a read I'm going to have to make then I'm going to have the make the read and see who's open, but I trust my D to call the right thing."

---​

The Colorado Avalanche lead the way with three prospects on Team Canada. Vancouver Giants defenceman Bowen Byram, a returning player, has been joined by Halifax Mooseheads defenceman Justin Barron and Boston College centre Alex Newhook.

Are the three gravitating to each other a bit?

"I think so," said Barron. "It's pretty cool. I've had a good relationship with Bo and Alex. Growing up I played with and against Alex multiple times and so I've had a relationship with him for quite a few years and same thing with Bo. I've roomed with him a couple times at Hockey Canada events so it's pretty cool."

Barron also got a chance to meet fellow Nova Scotian and current Avalanche superstar Nathan MacKinnon during the summer.​

"Nate was looking for a defenceman to come out so he could do some more game-like drills and I was lucky enough to get an invite to one of those skates," Barron said. "It was cool to see Nate and start to build a relationship with him."

The skates were organized by Jon Greenwood, who coaches the Mooseheads defence. Shane Bowers, another Avalanche prospect from Halifax, also took part.

"For a practice with only three or four guys on the ice, Nate was very intense, very competitive and it's pretty easy to see that drive he has and it's obviously why he's one of the best players in the world," Barron observed. "I heard from Nate after the draft and it was a cool feeling and special to be part of an organization with so many guys from the Maritimes."

MacKinnon made a big impression on Barron, but it also seems like the 19-year-old stood out to the star centre.

"Nate's been texting and calling Joe for the last week telling him we have to take Justin Barron," Alan Hepple, Colorado's director of amateur scouting, said after the Avalanche picked Barron 25th overall.

The comment was included in a behind-the-scenes video, which was posted by the team.

"He's the pick Nathan was ho​ping we'd get," Sakic confirmed later in the same video.

"I got a few good reps on him," Barron said with a chuckle, "and he got the best of me a couple of times. It was fun to get out there and compete against him and his speed and his hands."

What was going through his mind when he defended MacKinnon in a one-on-one situation?

"I couldn't even tell yo​u," Barron said. "Just try, I guess, not to let him make you look stupid."

---

Tuesday night was the first game in nine months for Team USA centre Alex Turcotte. While training in Los Angeles, the Kings prospect focused on becoming a better goal scorer.

"Just shooting from different areas, changing the angle, trying to find different ways to score more," he explained. "That was the biggest thing I worked on."

Turcotte produced nine goals and 17 assists in 29 games with the Wisconsin Badgers last season.

"I've always had a pretty good shot, it's just I've always opted to be a pass-first player and that's more my game," he said. "Just that mentality to shoot is what I've really worked on and got that in my head and just being more of a dual threat. It's all a mentality thing and having that confidence to pull the trigger."

Turcotte also worked on improving his conditioning, which he says will help him maintain his level later in games.

And while he's been waiting to play, Turcotte has been watching his old team quite a bit and he likes what he sees from his buddy Cole Caufield.

"He's holding onto the puck longer," Turcotte observed. "He's being a playmaker as well as a great goal scorer and shooter. He's carrying the play a lot and making his teammates around him better and that's awesome to see ... He's definitely one of the best players in this tournament and he's hopefully going to light it up for us."

---

Lines at Team Canada's practice on Tuesday:

 

Quinn - Cozens - Dach

Holloway - Newhook - Pelletier

Perfetti - McMichael - Krebs

Zary - Byfield - Suzuki

Mercer, Tomasino

 

Byram - Drysdale

Harley - Schneider

Guhle - Barron

Korczak (R) - Spence

 

Levi

Gauthier / Garand