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Buffalo Sabres Sign Goaltender Devon Levi To Two-Year Contract Extension
Buffalo Sabres Sign Goaltender Devon Levi To Two-Year Contract Extension

Yahoo

time31-07-2025

  • Sport
  • Yahoo

Buffalo Sabres Sign Goaltender Devon Levi To Two-Year Contract Extension

The Buffalo Sabres announced they have signed goaltender Devon Levi to a two-year contract extension through the 2026-27 season. Levi had a 25-13-6 record with a .919 SP and 2.20 GAA in 42 appearances with the Rochester Americans and a 2-7 record with an .872 SP in nine appearances with the Buffalo Sabres last season. The 23-year-old had a stellar showing in the Calder Cup Playoffs with a 5-3 record, .910 SP, and two shutouts, leading the Americans to the North Division Finals. He was an AHL All-Star and Goaltender of the Month for February last season. The Montreal, Que., native has a 17-17-2 record with an .894 SP in 39 career appearances with the Sabres. He has been a dominant goalie in the AHL and boasts a 41-19-10 record with a .922 SP, 2.28 GAA, and seven shutouts in 68 career appearances. Originally a seventh round selection of the Florida Panthers in 2020, Levi was traded to the Sabres in July 2021 in the Sam Reinhart trade. Per PuckPedia, Levi is waiver exempt for the 2025-26 season or until he plays 21 games. Levi is a two-time Mike Richter Award Winner as the NCAA's Top Collegiate Goalie. He won a gold medal with Team Canada at the 2021 World Championship. Check out our AHL Free Agency signing tracker here. Photo Credit: © Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

What we saw and heard from Sabres prospects at development camp
What we saw and heard from Sabres prospects at development camp

New York Times

time04-07-2025

  • Sport
  • New York Times

What we saw and heard from Sabres prospects at development camp

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Three years ago, the Sabres had Jack Quinn, JJ Peterka, Owen Power, Mattias Samuelsson and Peyton Krebs at development camp. A few months later, all five of those players were on the NHL roster playing meaningful roles. In 2025, development camp had a much different feel for the Sabres. The roster had eight forwards, 12 defensemen and five goalies. Nobody who played for the Rochester Americans last season, including 2024 first-round pick Konsta Helenius, was at camp. Typically, the Sabres have done a three-on-three tournament with three different teams. This time around, it was just two teams scrimmaging. This is the second straight year most of Buffalo's top prospects have been kept home for the development camp. For a team that is heavily invested in drafting and developing its own talent, this seems like a development opportunity worth taking advantage of. Advertisement 'I don't know if it's a philosophy change,' GM Kevyn Adams said. 'A lot of the guys who were in Rochester, it's a taxing year. The goal at this camp is less about being on the ice and more about getting familiar with the organization and who's who and what does everybody do and what does it mean to be a Sabre. So a lot of the guys that maybe in other years would have been here, (Konsta) Helenius is the perfect example. He's not new to the organization now because he's been here and he's been in Rochester. That's part of it. I think sometimes, especially with Rochester's length of the season, you want to make sure they get the rest and then get right into their training and don't be disruptive in terms of some of the thoughts if you're bringing guys over. It's a smaller group this year but the picks this year and then last year other than Konsta. So it's not so much philosophical. Just more so how it played out.' This year was the 10th anniversary of the Sabres drawing a near sellout crowd at KeyBank Center for Jack Eichel's development camp. The crowd at the Harborcenter on Thursday morning was sparse by comparison. This camp has always been more of an orientation for new prospects than it is an evaluation of players who have been in the system. But the excitement and competition that were present in years past weren't the same with the smaller roster. So many of the Sabres' top prospects are playing in Rochester, including first-rounders Isak Rosen, Noah Ostlund and Helenius. The Amerks' season didn't end until late May, so they played a lot of hockey this year. But new strength coach Brian Gallivan was in town this week, putting the prospects through intense off-ice training. Sabres first-round pick Radim Mrtka was laughing at the end of the week because he estimated 'half the guys were puking' on testing day. The Sabres have drafted a lot of players over the last few years who need to get stronger and could have benefited from some face time with Gallivan and his staff. This could have served as a mid-summer accountability check. Advertisement 'They can do Zoom calls,' Adams said. 'They're on programs, and (Gallivan) has already taken care of that. It's not as critical. But it is something we did talk about.' Ultimately, development comes down to a lot more than one week in July. The absence of the top prospects just left more room for others to stand out. Here's what we saw and heard from Buffalo's prospects this week. 1. 2022 sixth-round pick Jake Richard seems to be an annual standout at development camp. This summer was no different. During the three-on-three scrimmage, Richard scored a hat trick and then added a shootout goal to top it off. Goals in a summer scrimmage don't mean much, but it was notable that Richard, one of the older players at camp, decided to take charge of the scrimmage in front of the big club's decision makers. 'That's not really something I'm thinking about during the game, it was just the competitive spirit in me that wanted to win a hockey game,' Richard said. 'Everyone on the bench was like, 'We're not losing this game.'' Richard took a huge step at UConn this season. He scored 15 goals and had 28 assists in 34 games. His shot has always stood out, but he's added a strong netfront component to his game as well. Richard came up to Buffalo earlier this summer and has been getting in extra work with Sabres skating coach Mike Ansell. Richard has been staying with Sabres draft pick Gavin McCarthy, who was his junior teammate in the USHL. Skating has been Richard's biggest focus for the last few years. The Sabres had some talks with Richard about turning pro this spring, but he wanted to go back to school to try to win with the core group UConn is bringing back. He can become a free agent if not signed by next August. Amerks coach Michael Leone coached Richard a few times in international tournaments and said, 'The transformation he made this season was incredible.' Leone noted that the bigger the game, the better Richard seemed to play in a demanding Hockey East season. Advertisement 'His natural instincts, especially around the net, his ability to find space,' Leone said. 'He has a really good stick in tight areas. His ability to get pucks and tip pucks, too. You don't see that a lot with younger kids, the ability to play in traffic and tip pucks. All things you guys see at the next level are really important. How many goals are scored around the net area? He has a lot of good tools.' 2. Mrtka looked the part of a steady and smooth defenseman throughout the week. It's always tough to judge defensemen in a three-on-three setting, especially when most of the top forward prospects weren't in town. But what stood out is the way Mrtka carries himself on and off the ice. He's confident and mature, two qualities that Sabres assistant general manager Jerry Forton pointed out on draft weekend. 3. The Sabres had five goalies at camp, including Scott Ratzlaff and Topias Leinonen, who both signed their entry-level contracts this spring. The NHL signing of Alex Lyon means there's a chance Devon Levi spends part or most of the season in Rochester. That could result in one or both of Ratzlaff and Leinonen spending time in the ECHL this season as a development tool. Ratzlaff is probably the more refined of those two goalies at this stage in his career. The Sabres made a bet on the size and mobility of Leinonen. He just needs to become more consistent technically, and goalie development coach Seamus Kotyk said he saw him take steps in that direction this season. Sabres fourth-round pick Samuel Meloche has the same offseason goalie coach as Levi, and it's noticeable in the way both goalies move around the crease. Meloche's quickness is his best trait. Kotyk noted Meloche could end up playing college hockey at some point, but he's still 17, so it might be another year. 4. Third-round pick David Bedkowski was unable to take part in any of the team practices this week because of an illness. He came down with what he thinks was strep throat while flying back from the NHL Draft. Meanwhile, 2023 second-round pick Max Strbak was not at development camp because of a personal matter. 5. There are always sneaky standouts at these camps, and 2025 fifth-rounder Ashton Schultz was one this week. The Chicago Steel forward from Minnesota is only 5-foot-11, but his hockey sense and competitiveness make him a real pest around the net. On one shift early in the scrimmage, Schultz had four shot attempts from right around the crease. If he can build the strength to match his mentality, Schultz could have a future. He said he plans to play one more year in the USHL before going to North Dakota. Advertisement 6. The Sabres did not extend a qualifying offer to 2021 second-round pick Aleksandr Kisakov. That seems to signal the end of the road for Kisakov with the organization. He played 13 games for the Amerks last season after playing 32 and 48 games in the two years prior. The Sabres also no longer hold the rights to 2021 third-round pick Stiven Sardarian, who was a point-per-game player at Michigan Tech last season. According to PuckPedia, Sardarian is no longer a college student, so it's unclear what his playing future looks like. (Photo of Radim Mrtka: Matt Winkelmeyer / Getty Images)

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