The Buffalo Sabres will have a long to-do list whenever their memorable turnaround season reaches a conclusion, and one of the main tasks will be clearing out a logjam between the pipes.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Alex Lyon have formed a terrific goaltending tandem for the Sabres throughout the 2025-26 campaign. Their success during the Sabres' 34-7-4 run since early December has shifted the positional outlook considerably.
It's also led to an intriguing question: What's next for Devon Levi?
Scott Wheeler of The Athletic, who ranked Buffalo's prospect pool at No. 13 in the NHL on the strength of rising stars like Radim Mrtka, Konsta Helenius and Noah Ostlund, suggested it may be time for the Sabres to find the 24-year-old goalie a new home over the summer.
"There aren't a ton of 6-foot-0 goalies in today's NHL, at least not starting ones, but guys like Jet Greaves and Dustin Wolf have broken through and I'm still not ready to count Levi out — though I do wonder if a change of scenery could help at this point," Wheeler wrote.
Trade rumors have swirled around Levi dating back to October, and they popped up again ahead of the 2026 trade deadline earlier this month. More are probably on the horizon in the offseason.
That's mostly because the former Northeastern University standout is nearing a point where he deserves a full-time NHL role, even if it's as a backup.
The Sabres probably won't have the roster space to accommodate that. UPL and Lyon have been such an essential part of the club's success that moving either one would come with risks for general manager Jarmo Kekalainen, and Buffalo has also been hesitant to try sneaking No. 3 netminder Colten Ellis through waivers to get him on the AHL roster.
Two of those three goalies would likely need to get moved in the coming months for Levi to claim an NHL roster spot in Buffalo next season. Alternatively, the Blue and Gold could use him as a trade chip as they look to upgrade other parts of the lineup.
Levi has compiled a 3.29 goals against average and an .894 save percentage across 39 appearances for the Sabres, but he's spent this entire season with the AHL's Rochester Americans.
2026 NHL offseason may be the Buffalo Sabres' last chance to maximize Devon Levi's trade value
Holding prospects too long, even if they weren't part of the team's long-term plans, was one of the most consistent mistakes made by former Buffalo GM Kevyn Adams.
Isak Rosen is a perfect example. The Swedish winger built value while quickly emerging as a point-per-game player in the AHL, but the Sabres neither dealt him away at peak value or gave him a legitimate opportunity to earn a top-six role in the NHL.
In the end, Kekalainen used him as a piece of a much larger trade to acquire Logan Stanley and Luke Schenn from the Winnipeg Jets ahead of this year's deadline.
This summer feels like the final chance for the Sabres to get meaningful value for Levi.
He's still viewed as one of Buffalo's best prospects — Wheeler ranked him No. 4 in the system — and there are plenty of teams looking for an upgrade in the crease. Now is the time to strike.
Keeping Levi and sending him back to Rochester for another year won't accomplish anything. It'll simply send a message to the rest of the league that the front office doesn't trust him as a key piece of the roster, similar to how Rosen's stock began to fade.
The Amerks have also trended in the wrong direction this season for various reasons, including recently graduated prospects and players getting called up because of Buffalo's injury issues. They'll face another hurdle next year with Helenius likely to head for the Sabres.
In turn, Levi's numbers have dipped. Here's a look at his time with the Americans:
- 2023-24: .927 SV% in 26 games
- 2024-25: .919 SV% in 42 games
- 2025-26: .907 SV% in 44 games
A .907 save percentage is still decent in a defensively suspect league like the AHL, but those numbers are obviously going the wrong way.
Another year in Rochester where that trend continues could leave Levi with essentially no realistic trade value by the time the 2027 offseason arrives.
As a result, now is the time for Kekalainen to decide whether the 2020 seventh-round pick is still part of the Sabres' immediate plans. If not, it's probably best for all parties involved to find him an organization where the NHL is a realistic outcome in 2026-27.
Levi is ready for his shot at the next level, whether it's in Buffalo or elsewhere.