Last season, Levi, a 21-year-old defenseman, attended a training camp in Charlotte that, due to the NHL’s lockout, was as deep and as competitive as any camp the team will ever hold. With some older players who would go on to become important players for Charlotte already pushed out of the picture by the likes of Justin Faulk and Bobby Sanguinetti starting in the AHL, getting meaningful playing time as a rookie was always going to be an uphill battle.
Levi Profile
- • Participated in the 2011 U.S. Junior Team Evaluation Camp in August 2011
- • Had 86 points (16g, 70a) and 302 penalty minutes in 268 career games with Plymouth
- • Led all Whalers blueliners in playoff scoring with 10 points (2g, 8a) in 13 games as Plymouth fell to Kitchener in the second round in 2012
- • Named Plymouth's Most Improved Player after earning 12 points (3g, 9a) and a plus-10 rating in 68 games during his second OHL season in 2009-10
- • Was born in Columbus, OH, but grew up in Denver, CO before moving to Michigan at age 14 to be a part of the Compuware youth hockey program
“We had already sent Tommi Kivisto and Beau Schmitz to Florida, so it was just an option we had for him to go back to Plymouth and we felt like that was the best thing for him,” said Checkers coach Jeff Daniels.
Though he had been hoping to turn pro at that time, Levi, one of Carolina’s third-round draft choices in 2010 (18 picks after potential Checkers teammate Danny Biega), has no regrets today.
“I think it was the right decision because I got to play more than I would have in Charlotte,” said Levi. “I got a chance to keep learning.”
While he didn’t start in Charlotte, he did at least continue that education later in the season once the Whalers were eliminated from playoff contention, joining the Checkers’ “black ace” group for the playoffs. From his experiences there and at training camp, Daniels has some idea of what to expect going into what should be Levi’s professional debut next season.
While Levi said that he hopes to continue to develop the offensive side of his game (he scored a career high 30 points in 64 games with Plymouth two seasons ago), the key will lie in his ability to take care of his own end.
“He has good size and a really good stick,” said Daniels of Levi, who stands at 6-foot-4 and weighs 210 pounds. “He’s going to have to be that big, physical guy that’s going to be hard to play against. Whether he makes the big team or our team, he’s going to have to be a good, solid defensive defenseman.”
If he can do that, he could be able to separate himself from a pack of other first-year blueliners such as Danny Biega, Keegan Lowe and Ryan Murphy that are looking to make a similar leap next season. If that’s not in the cards from day one, Levi would only need to look as far as Beau Schmitz, his former teammate with the Whalers, as someone who started in the ECHL with the Florida Everblades but earned a regular spot in Charlotte over the course of a single season.
Yet another former Whaler in Brett Bellemore, who has an excellent chance to spend the upcoming season in the NHL with Carolina, played one more junior season than he had anticipated after suffering an injury early in his rookie year with the AHL’s Albany River Rats.
“We’ll have some tough decisions to make come camp time and we’ll do what’s best for their development,” said Daniels. “Players have to play, especially young players to get on the ice in game situations. Come September, who knows who’s going to be healthy and who’s going to make the big team, so we’ll have to see how that plays out in our camp.”
