The Buffalo Sabres stay alive in the playoff race thanks to some stellar goaltending from, you guessed it, Devon Levi, who made 31 saves in his NHL debut.
Well, well, well, any reservation I had regarding the Buffalo Sabres playing Devon Levi behind a poor defensive rotation alleviated for the time being. Just two weeks ago, I said it’d be unwise to play the rookie goaltender, but for at least one night, Levi and the Sabres proved me wrong.
And for a period there, it looked as though Levi was going to have an easy night as the Sabres played well defensively, allowing two shots on net before they gave up just nine more in the second period, with Levi allowing just one to slip by. But of course, great teams like the New York Rangers find ways to win.
And find a way, they did, or, at least they found a way to sneak a second goal by Levi (with 20 shots on net, might I add), which forced an overtime. And lately, Buffalo struggled in the extra frame, especially when they’d go to a shootout. But with just 1:49 into the five-minute period, Jeff Skinner made sure that wouldn’t happen tonight, as he sunk the game-winner.
Legendary performance from Buffalo Sabres goaltender in debut
What can you say about Devon Levi after he earned First Star honors against one of the NHL’s most complete hockey teams? Overall, Levi finished the game saving 31 for 33 at the time of this writing, boasting a 0.939 save percentage.
Several times, Levi made highlight-reel saves, especially when forced to go post-to-post. And it was something that happened quite often in this one. Oh, and in case you missed it, here’s one of a few samples below:
DEVON. LEVI. #LetsGoBuffalo pic.twitter.com/18t8Pmdde1
— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) April 1, 2023
Of course, it was just one game, but it was refreshing to see Levi stay calm, cool, and poised for 60 minutes, especially as the Rangers turned up the heat in the third period. Overall, it was a sound performance from a kid who only excelled, regardless of where or what level he was playing at.
And guess what? He’s 1-0-0 in his NHL career, and you couldn’t ask for a better performance from a young player at a position that has struggled throughout this 2022-23 season.
(Statistics provided by NHL.com)