Five shutouts in 16 starts. A .950 save percentage and 1.43 goals-against average. The most saves in the nation with 433. An 11-4-1 record.
Northeastern freshman Devon Levi just keeps piling up impressive numbers.
Lately, he has carried the Huskies on his back. With a number of regular players out of the lineup last weekend because of injury or illness, Levi was stellar in a pair of 2-1 wins over RPI.
The weekend before, he kicked out 38 Boston University shots in a 1-0 overtime victory on Friday, then stopped 33 Terrier shots in a 2-2 tie on Saturday.
“We’re banged up. We’ve needed him to be good,’’ said coach Jerry Keefe.  “We’re winning in different ways now, probably not in the way that we’re built to win. He’s given us a chance every single time we step on the ice, so that’s huge.’’
After his standout performance for Canada in the World Junior Championship last winter, Levi’s strong play as an NCAA rookie isn’t a major surprise. Before he even played a game at NU, he already had compiled an impressive collection of honors.
A former Vermont commit, he was named best goalie in the WJC a year ago for Canada’s silver medal team. In 2019 he was tournament MVP in the World Junior A Challenge. Playing for Carleton Place of the CCHL in 2019-20, he went 34-2-1 with a .941 save percentage and he was named top rookie, top goalie and player of the year in the Canadian Junior Hockey League.
“He’s big time. He really is. The kid’s focus is off the charts. Not only is he really talented and athletic, his focus – holy smokes!’’ said Keefe.
“You see the routine that he goes through, and the thing is, he does it with a smile on his face. It’s great. He really loves it. He loves being at the rink and going through his stretching and all these crazy goalie things -- to me, it’s crazy because I’m not a goalie. He loves it and our players love watching him. He’s such a good kid and teammate.
“He doesn’t separate himself. You give out a player of the game or something to him and he’s the first one to talk about how easy (his teammates made it for him). He says, ‘You guys did an unbelievable job.’ He’s one of those kids. He really, really enjoys the game of hockey. It’s not work for him. He loves it. It’s his passion.’’
As one of the breakout stars of Canada’s team at last winter’s World Juniors, Levi received a tremendous amount of media attention, particularly in Canada, and displayed great poise throughout.
“He doesn’t get affected by the big stage at all. I think he embraces it, which is something we kind of assumed even going back to the World Junior A Challenge. And then to see him at the World Juniors. No one really knew who he was and the next thing you know – you couldn’t turn the TV on in Canada without seeing Levi, Levi, Levi. He just stuck to who he was. We’re fortunate to have him,’’ said Keefe.
A fractured rib suffered at the WJC prevented him from playing for Northeastern last season.
Levi played Bantam and Midget in the Lac St. Louis organization in Quebec. Northeastern recruited All-American defenseman Jeremy Davies and some current players from Lac St. Louis and has a history with the staff there. It paid off when they landed Levi.
“We had seen him and knew about him because we’re close with the staff there. When (Cayden) Primeau decided he was going to leave his sophomore year (to sign with Montreal), we knew we were going to have to get the next goaltender,’’ said Keefe.
Levi was drafted in the seventh round (No. 212) by the Florida Panthers in 2020. In July, the Buffalo Sabres acquired his rights and a first-round pick in 2022 from the Panthers in exchange for Sam Reinhart.
While the chances of Levi being a four-year player at Northeastern are practically nonexistent, Keefe believes he will return to school for 2022-23.
“We’re fully expecting him back next year. He didn’t play last year. This is his freshman year in college. Goalies take longer. I don’t think he’s in a rush.
“He’s the type of kid who wants to just keep developing and working at his game. I think he loves being here. He really enjoys being at Northeastern with his teammates,’’ Keefe said.
(For more, check out the latest episode of the NEHJ TV show, spotlighting the Northeastern Huskies)
BATTLE OF TOP SPECIAL TEAMS
This weekend’s home and home between Northeastern and Providence College pits the Huskies’ second-in-the-country penalty kill (91.3 percent) against the Friars’ second-in-the-country power play (32.8 percent).
“(Devon Levi) has been a big part, but the preparation there has been great, the confidence to kill penalties at big times has been great,’’ said Keefe.
“(Assistant coach) Mike McLaughlin does a great job with the plan going into games and the guys have really bought in. We’ve got some good guys that are willing to eat pucks. (Freshman) Justin Hryckowian’s been huge because he’s really good on the dot. Our power play has struggled a bit this year and having a good PK has made up for that a little bit.’’
PC’s power play ranked 25th last season at 84.8 percent. Lately, it’s been red hot, scoring nine times on the last 17 opportunities. At Vermont on Nov. 19, the Friars erased a three-goal deficit with three power-play goals in 1:25.
Brett Berard and Patrick Moynihan lead the way with four power-play goals each. Nick Poisson and Max Crozier have three apiece.
“It took us a while to find the chemistry of the units. Now they’re playing fast and they’re shooting pucks,’’ said coach Nate Leaman, whose PP unit is run by associate head coach Ron Rolston.
“Earlier we were really geared on making plays and it slowed us down. We struggled for five or six games there. Now we’re much more about getting the puck to the net when we have a chance. When you do that, other things open up and then you play off that, but if you’re never really getting it to the net, you’re never forcing the penalty kill to bend at all.’’
FREE-AGENT WATCH
Owen Savory, Lowell
Savory has the best save percentage in the NCAA -- .954 -- as well as a 1.10 GAA and a 7-1-1 record. He is back to the form that he showed before he transferred from RPI. He should earn an AHL/ECHL contract.
Louis Boudon, Lake Superior
The former Northeast Generals center is a terrific skater and is off to a great start offensively with 8-13-21 in 13 games. He should be a lock for an ECHL deal.
Max Newton, Merrimack
A transfer from Alaska, Newton leads Merrimack in scoring with 7-8-15 in 14 games. He is winning 65.8 percent of his faceoffs this season. An AHL/ECHL contract could be within his reach.
