GASabresIUFAN Posted March 27, 2022 Report Share Posted March 27, 2022 31 minutes ago, LGR4GM said: Power went back for development purposes. There's nothing left for Levi to develop at the ncaa level. Power went back as a 19yr old. Levi would be 21yr in December. It's not the same. No, but there are many reasons to stay and only one to leave. I see you ignored that Miller made the decision to stay in a nearly identical situation. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kas23 Posted March 27, 2022 Report Share Posted March 27, 2022 3 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said: No, but there are many reasons to stay and only one to leave. I see you ignored that Miller made the decision to stay in a nearly identical situation. What is the “only one reason to leave”? I can think of a few besides money: to continue to develop your craft but tailored for the NHL game, to begin to gel with your future teammates, to put a stake in the ground in terms of development timeline (ie get in line for the starting job). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dudacek Posted March 27, 2022 Report Share Posted March 27, 2022 Levi’s teammate, senior Jordan Harris, signs with Habs. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GASabresIUFAN Posted March 27, 2022 Report Share Posted March 27, 2022 (edited) FYI on Northeastern's team. They have 8 drafted players, and 15 Freshman and Sophomores. Jack Hughes is most likely to be drafted in the 1st rd. They also have a few 2nd rd picks. This is a young and talented team despite comments to the contrary. I can easily see Levi going back to see if he and the other kids can push this team even higher. Ryan Miller made the same decision after winning the Hobey Baker to try to win a National Championship. Edited March 27, 2022 by GASabresIUFAN 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LGR4GM Posted March 27, 2022 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2022 23 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said: No, but there are many reasons to stay and only one to leave. I see you ignored that Miller made the decision to stay in a nearly identical situation. I don't think Miller is a good comparable due to changes in development and leagues in the last 20 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GASabresIUFAN Posted March 27, 2022 Report Share Posted March 27, 2022 Just now, LGR4GM said: I don't think Miller is a good comparable due to changes in development and leagues in the last 20 years. That may or may not be true, but he is perfect comparable in situation. Late Round pick who dominates college hockey as a sophomore on a young talented team, who wins the Hobey Baker (or is nominated for it). Miller went back for one more season to try to win it all. Levi may make the same decision. Also Levi's development has been pretty fantastic with pro hockey. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norcal Posted March 27, 2022 Report Share Posted March 27, 2022 I guess it comes down to whether Levi thinks he's ready for the promotion. I can't see him looking forward to a year in the AHL. He's been skating with NHL players since he was 14. Unless he thinks he can make the leap straight to the NHL I think he'll stay in school. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doohickie Posted March 27, 2022 Report Share Posted March 27, 2022 2 hours ago, LGR4GM said: Power went back for development purposes. There's nothing left for Levi to develop at the ncaa level. Power went back as a 19yr old. Levi would be 21yr in December. It's not the same. The point is, there are valid reasons for going one more year to college. And a failure to sign now does not indicate he wants to bolt from the Sabres. We're only looking at it from the perspective of Sabres fans. Levi has another perspective that we only get hints at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LGR4GM Posted March 27, 2022 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woods-racer Posted March 28, 2022 Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 1 hour ago, LGR4GM said: They may want one more go at it. It's financially stupid, but looked at through the the lens of team brotherhood a very righteous decision. He can never go back to win it all at that level. tough decision. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt Posted March 28, 2022 Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 2 hours ago, LGR4GM said: Maybe he just doesn’t want to sign with the Canucks. Boston kid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeSchmoe Posted March 28, 2022 Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 Maybe once he wins the Hobey Baker he'll announce his decision. Would going pro before the selection hurt his chances? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GASabresIUFAN Posted March 28, 2022 Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 Actually Levi staying an extra year makes KA’s off-season easier. Portillo is a year older and probably ready to start his pro career. KA’s plan would become acquire a proven NHL starter to stabilize the net. Then re-sign UPL and let him try to win the NHL backup job. Sign a second veteran to be either the NHL backup or mentor in the AHL (like Tokarski). If UPL isn’t NHL ready, then he starts in the AHL with Portillo in the ECHL. If UPL is ready, Portillo begins in the AHL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LGR4GM Posted March 28, 2022 Author Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 5 hours ago, GASabresIUFAN said: Actually Levi staying an extra year makes KA’s off-season easier. Portillo is a year older and probably ready to start his pro career. KA’s plan would become acquire a proven NHL starter to stabilize the net. Then re-sign UPL and let him try to win the NHL backup job. Sign a second veteran to be either the NHL backup or mentor in the AHL (like Tokarski). If UPL isn’t NHL ready, then he starts in the AHL with Portillo in the ECHL. If UPL is ready, Portillo begins in the AHL. I see no reason to put Portillo in the ECHL and don't think there's any plan for him to go there. Upl will be in Buffalo with a veteran. Portillo will be in Rochester. If upl falls flat in the NHL, they'll either trade him or keep him as backup for another year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LGR4GM Posted March 28, 2022 Author Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 Of course this thread isn't really about that, it's about if Devon Levi signs a contract Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalonill Posted March 28, 2022 Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 Hopefully today is the day 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnC Posted March 28, 2022 Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 The Levi signing issue was talked about on WGR with Paul Hamilton. There are complications to signing him right away. If you sign him now do you then assign him to Rochester where UPL is playing? Do you assign him to Buffalo for a short stint and jump him ahead of UPL who should be next in line for the NHL? The simplest and maybe the best approach for the Sabres is to sign him to a contract a little later on (assuming he leaves college) and start him off in Rochester next season. If Levi decides to stay in school another year it wouldn't be the worst thing for the player or the organization. I still believe that he will leave college this year and go pro. Whatever he decides I'm fine with it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nfreeman Posted March 28, 2022 Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 Does anyone really think he's not going to turn pro this year? It seems impossible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
French Collection Posted March 28, 2022 Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 12 minutes ago, nfreeman said: Does anyone really think he's not going to turn pro this year? It seems impossible. I can’t see him going back. Perhaps he had not discussed the signing with his agent/advisor and family, so he is taking some time with it. There are not many options for entry level contracts so it should not be too complicated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabres Fan in NS Posted March 28, 2022 Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 23 minutes ago, nfreeman said: Does anyone really think he's not going to turn pro this year? It seems impossible. 6 minutes ago, French Collection said: I can’t see him going back. Perhaps he had not discussed the signing with his agent/advisor and family, so he is taking some time with it. There are not many options for entry level contracts so it should not be too complicated. It really seems like a no-brainer to sign his first pro contract. That said, it is a life altering decision and as such there should be considerable contemplation. These things are never as easy as they seem they should be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattPie Posted March 28, 2022 Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 44 minutes ago, JohnC said: The Levi signing issue was talked about on WGR with Paul Hamilton. There are complications to signing him right away. If you sign him now do you then assign him to Rochester where UPL is playing? Do you assign him to Buffalo for a short stint and jump him ahead of UPL who should be next in line for the NHL? The simplest and maybe the best approach for the Sabres is to sign him to a contract a little later on (assuming he leaves college) and start him off in Rochester next season. If Levi decides to stay in school another year it wouldn't be the worst thing for the player or the organization. I still believe that he will leave college this year and go pro. Whatever he decides I'm fine with it. I don't think Levi playing a few games in the NHL this year would put him in front of anyone, really. I can't put facts on this, but it seems like late in the year (especially in a lost year like this), it's common to bring up a young goalie for a game or three to give them a taste of the NHL and what they'll have to do to make it. I think the Sabres see the other side of it; there's a whole generation of goalies that had their first game/win/shutout against the Sabres this last decade. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeSchmoe Posted March 28, 2022 Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 I'm not worried about UPLs hurt feelings. Give Levi a shot ahead of him. UPL had had ample time to take the reins and be the team's franchise goalie, but progress has been slow. Under .900 in ROC is pretty underwhelming for a third pro season. Understandably, a goaltender's development path is longer than that of a position player, but it almost seems more likely that he'll never be an NHL calibre goalie than it is that he'll one day be the team's starter. Most importantly, given UPL has had no other prospects in the org to challenge him, maybe giving Levi a shot will motivate him to be better next season. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pi2000 Posted March 28, 2022 Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 I don't believe KA will gift Levi any NHL games.. both him and Portillo will need to earn their stripes in Rochester before being called up. It's part of the process now, and it needs to be that way moving forward for things to change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalonill Posted March 28, 2022 Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 2 hours ago, pi2000 said: I don't believe KA will gift Levi any NHL games.. both him and Portillo will need to earn their stripes in Rochester before being called up. It's part of the process now, and it needs to be that way moving forward for things to change. Good luck with that lol college players want the money Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt Posted March 28, 2022 Report Share Posted March 28, 2022 7 minutes ago, Buffalonill said: Good luck with that lol college players want the money What is the last goalie to come in from college and skip over the AHL, going straight to the NHL??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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