Devon Levi

Early Life and Education

Devon Levi was raised in the Montreal suburb of Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Quebec, in a Jewish family. His father, Laurent Levi, is a software engineer, and his mother, Eta Yacowar, works as an office administrator at the software company they are building. Levi has a younger brother named James and has maintained a lifelong friendship with fellow goaltender Yaniv Perets, with the two playing on the same youth teams for several years. While his first language is English, Levi is also fluent in French, reflecting his Quebec upbringing. He attended Hebrew Foundation School for his early education before moving on to West Island College, where he graduated in 2019 and served as valedictorian. To accommodate his demanding hockey schedule, Levi pursued post-secondary education through online courses from Athabasca University while later majoring in computer science on scholarship at Northeastern University, where he was named to the Hockey East All-Academic Team for the 2020-21 season.

Youth and Junior Hockey Career

Devon Levi's hockey journey began with street hockey played on concrete, and he did not regularly play in goal until he was 11 years old. His organized youth career was spent with the Lac St-Louis Lions in the Quebec Midget AAA Hockey League (QMAAA) from 2016 to 2019, where he began as the team's youngest player at 14. He quickly distinguished himself as a standout student-athlete, winning the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association (MAAA) Governor's Award for Student Athlete of the Year and the Daniel Brière Award for Best Hockey and Academic Achievement in 2018. His on-ice prowess was recognized with back-to-back selections to the MAAA First All Star Team in 2018 and 2019, and he twice received the Federation of Athletic Excellence of Quebec (FAEQ)/Montreal Canadiens' Foundation Award and Scholarship for Athletic and Academic Excellence, which included bursaries of $1,500. Levi set a QMAAA record in 2019 for most saves in a 60-minute game, stopping 64 of 65 shots in a single contest. He also earned the MAAA Ken Dryden Trophy as the league's Best Goalie Prospect and the Patrick Roy Trophy as the best defensive player in the playoffs. He concluded his midget career holding the league record for career shutouts, with eight, a mark of consistent defensive performances throughout his youth career.

Levi advanced to the Junior A level for the 2019-20 season, joining the Carleton Place Canadians of the Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL) in the Ottawa area. In his lone season with the Canadians, he dominated the league statistically, posting a .941 save percentage, a 1.47 goals against average, and eight shutouts in 37 games, leading the CCHL in all three categories. His exceptional performance earned him a sweep of major junior awards at both the league and national level, with Carleton Place head coach Jason Clarke publicly stating he would bet his mortgage on Levi's future NCAA success. The season established Levi as one of the most dominant Junior A players in Canada, paving the way for his NCAA recruitment and eventual NHL draft selection despite his late-round status, as his statistical dominance was impossible for scouts to ignore.

Key Junior Hockey Honours (2019-20):

• CCHL Most Valuable Player
• CCHL Top Goaltender and Rookie of the Year
• CCHL Top Prospect and First Team All Star
• Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) Player of the Year
• CJHL Most Valuable Player and Top Rookie
• CJHL Top Goalie

NCAA Career and NHL Draft

Despite his late selection, 212th overall by the Florida Panthers in the seventh round of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, Levi's stock continued to rise based on his junior dominance. His NHL rights were traded on July 24, 2021, as part of a package sent from the Panthers to the Buffalo Sabres that also included a 2022 first-round pick used to select Jiří Kulich, in exchange for established forward Sam Reinhart. Levi had committed to play NCAA hockey for the Northeastern University Huskies, beginning with the 2020-21 season. However, a rib injury sustained at the 2021 World Junior Championships forced him to redshirt his entire first collegiate year, though he was still named to the Hockey East All-Academic Team for that season while beginning his computer science studies. Levi finally debuted for Northeastern in the 2021-22 season and immediately made an impact, beginning his career with consecutive shutouts and earning Hockey East Pro Ambitions Rookie of the Month honours for both October and November 2021. By mid-season, he had already set a new Northeastern record for shutouts in a single season, demonstrating his ability to translate his junior success to the collegiate level immediately against older and more experienced competition.

Levi finished his remarkable rookie campaign with a .952 save percentage, tying Connor Hellebuyck for the second-best single-season mark in NCAA history. He backstopped Northeastern to the Hockey East regular season title and was awarded the Mike Richter Award as the top goaltender in college hockey, confirming his status as a premier prospect. In his sophomore 2022-23 season, Levi led Northeastern to a victory in the historic Beanpot tournament, earning both tournament Most Valuable Player and the Eberly Trophy for the best save percentage after stopping 63 of 66 shots across the tournament. He once again led all NCAA goaltenders in save percentage during the regular season and made history by winning the Mike Richter Award for a second consecutive year, the first player ever to do so.

Professional Career

He joined a crowded goaltending depth chart that included Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, veteran Craig Anderson, and Eric Comrie, creating competition for starts. Levi made his NHL debut on March 31, 2023, earning an overtime win against the New York Rangers, and he went on to play seven of the Sabres' final nine games of the season, recording five wins and gaining valuable early experience. Levi began the 2023-24 season on the Sabres' NHL roster and started the team's first four games, posting a record of 1-3-0 with a 3.26 goals against average and an .892 save percentage before suffering a lower-body injury that sidelined him for over two weeks. His performance was inconsistent upon return, including a game against the Boston Bruins where he allowed five goals on 18 shots before being pulled, leading to several reassignments to the American Hockey League's Rochester Americans to secure more playing time. During a stint with Rochester, Levi recorded his first professional point, an assist on a game-winning goal by Aleksandr Kisakov on March 1, 2024, an event that highlighted his ability to contribute beyond his primary goaltending duties.

On July 1, 2026, Levi, along with a seventh round pick in the 2028 NHL entry draft, was traded by the Sabres to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for a third round pick in the 2028 NHL entry draft. This trade marked a new chapter in his professional career. Levi is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who is a goaltender for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). His rights were originally traded to the Buffalo Sabres from the Florida Panthers in 2021. He had previously played for the Buffalo Sabres, making his debut in March 2023.

International Play

Devon Levi first announced himself on the international stage at the 2019 World Junior A Challenge, representing Canada East in the under-20 tournament. He stopped 77 of 80 shots across the event, led his team to a silver medal finish, and was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, attracting the attention of Hockey Canada's national program. His breakthrough performance came at the 2021 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships in Edmonton, where he played for Canada's national junior team. Levi posted a historic .964 save percentage and a 0.75 goals against average, both tournament bests, with his save percentage breaking the all-time record previously held by Carey Price since 2007. Levi recorded three shutouts in the tournament, becoming only the second goaltender ever to achieve that feat at the World Juniors, and he was named the IIHF Directorate Best Goaltender and to the tournament All-Star Team as Canada won the silver medal. Remarkably, Levi revealed after the tournament that he had played through the entire event with a fractured rib, an injury sustained in the opening game against Germany, which also caused him to miss his first NCAA season. His performances earned him a spot on Team Canada for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, though he did not see game action, serving as the third goaltender behind Matt Tomkins and Edward Pasquale during the Olympic tournament, which was his first experience at the senior international level.

International Achievements:

• 2019 World Junior A Challenge: Silver medal, Tournament MVP
• 2021 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships: Silver medal, Best Goaltender, All-Star Team
• Set World Junior Championship save percentage record (.964)
• One of two goaltenders with three shutouts in a single World Junior tournament
• 2022 Winter Olympics: Team Canada roster

Playing Style and Personal Attributes

Devon Levi is noted by analysts and coaches for his exceptional technical proficiency, quickness, and hockey intelligence developed from years of focused training. His style is built on efficient movement, sharp angles, and an advanced ability to track the puck through heavy traffic, skills honed during his youth and junior careers. Coaches have specifically praised his capacity to read developing plays and anticipate shooter tendencies, which compensates for not having prototypical NHL goaltender size, making him a student of the game who relies on preparation and intellect. A distinctive part of his routine involves a focused reset during every game stoppage, where he skates about 15 feet in front of his net, drops to his knees, bows his head, and employs deliberate breathing techniques to maintain mental clarity and concentration throughout the game, a ritual he developed to manage pressure. Academically accomplished, Levi balanced a demanding computer science major at Northeastern with his athletic commitments, earning all-academic team honours and demonstrating the discipline that also characterized his athletic development from a young age. His background as a valedictorian in high school and his receipt of multiple scholarships for academic and athletic excellence highlight the dual focus he maintained throughout his development as a player and a student, which has been a consistent theme from his Midget AAA days through to his professional career.

Awards and Recognition

Throughout his hockey career, Devon Levi has accumulated a significant collection of awards and honours at every level of play, reflecting his consistent excellence. His early recognition included the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association Governor's Award and the Daniel Brière Award in 2018, followed by two FAEQ/Montreal Canadiens' Foundation scholarships for his combined academic and athletic performance. His junior hockey season in 2019-20 was particularly decorated, earning him the most valuable player and top goaltender awards in both the Central Canada Hockey League and the national Canadian Junior Hockey League, a rare sweep of major accolades. At the international level, his MVP performance at the 2019 World Junior A Challenge and his Best Goaltender award at the 2021 World Junior Championships are central to his reputation as a clutch performer for Canada. His collegiate career is defined by being the first two-time winner of the Mike Richter Award as the NCAA's top goaltender, along with Beanpot Tournament MVP and Eberly Trophy honours in 2023 for his role in a historic Boston tournament victory. This pattern of recognition demonstrates a trajectory of a player who has been identified as exceptional by coaches, leagues, and governing bodies from his midget hockey days through to his professional entry, with each award building upon the last.

Selected Major Awards:

• Mike Richter Award (NCAA Top Goaltender): 2022, 2023
• Beanpot Tournament Most Valuable Player: 2023
• IIHF World Junior Championship Best Goaltender: 2021
• World Junior A Challenge Most Valuable Player: 2019
• CJHL Player of the Year and Top Goalie: 2020
• CCHL Most Valuable Player and Top Goaltender: 2020
• MAAA Ken Dryden Trophy (Best Goalie Prospect): 2019
• MAAA Governor's Award (Student Athlete of the Year): 2018

Questions about Devon Levi

What team does Devon Levi play for?

Devon Levi is a goaltender for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was traded to the Oilers by the Buffalo Sabres on July 1, 2026. The Florida Panthers originally drafted him in 2020 before trading his rights to the Sabres in 2021. He played college hockey for the Northeastern University Huskies.

What records did Devon Levi set at the World Juniors?

At the 2021 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, Devon Levi ended the tournament with a .964 save percentage, topping the all time record established by Carey Price in 2007. He became the second goaltender ever to record three shutouts in the tournament. He was named the Best Goaltender of the tournament and to the tournament All Star Team. His 0.75 goals against average was also the best in the tournament.

Did Devon Levi win the Hobey Baker Award?

No, Devon Levi did not win the Hobey Baker Award. He won the Mike Richter Award as the top college goaltender in both the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons. He became the first player to win the Mike Richter Award for a second consecutive season. He led Northeastern to the Hockey East regular season title and a Beanpot tournament victory.

Where is Devon Levi from?

Devon Levi is from Dollard des Ormeaux, Quebec, a Montreal suburb. His first language is English, but he also speaks French. He attended Hebrew Foundation School and then West Island College. He played youth hockey for the Lac St Louis Lions in the Quebec Midget AAA Hockey League.

What round was Devon Levi drafted in?

Devon Levi was drafted 212th overall by the Florida Panthers in the seventh round of the 2020 NHL entry draft. In 2021, his rights were traded to the Buffalo Sabres. He was traded along with a 2022 first round pick for Sam Reinhart. He was later traded to the Edmonton Oilers in 2026.

What is Devon Levi's college save percentage record?

Devon Levi finished his NCAA career with the second best career save percentage in NCAA history. In the 2021-22 season he had a .952 save percentage, tying Connor Hellebuyck for the second best single season save percentage in NCAA history. He won the Mike Richter Award in both the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons. He led the country in save percentage during the regular season in the 2022-23 season.

Sources and further reading

• Devon Levi (Wikipedia)
• Devon Levi, Team Canada, Olympic.ca (olympic.ca)

Checked by the Garbutt Disposal desk. Last updated 2026-10-20.