With the Sabres carrying three goalies all season long, there hasn’t been a place for youngster Devon Levi. Once viewed as their netminder of the future, now, it appears that he’s a trade chip. David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports (Twitter link) that the Sabres are now shopping the 24-year-old.
Levi was a seventh-round pick by Florida back in 2020 and has certainly outperformed that draft slot. He never suited up for the Panthers as he was instead part of the trade that saw Sam Reinhart go to Florida. Levi immediately became Buffalo’s top goalie prospect and after a strong college career, he turned pro in 2023, nearly helping lead the Sabres to an improbable late playoff spot that ultimately came up just short.
That had expectations sky-high heading into the 2023-24 campaign. However, he wasn’t able to live up to them and wound up splitting the year between Buffalo and AHL Rochester. Levi was then expected to be a factor last season but only saw nine NHL games with the bulk of his playing time coming in the minors. This year, he has played exclusively with the Amerks, posting a 2.71 GAA and a .909 SV% in 38 contests.
Levi has a total of 39 career outings with Buffalo under his belt but his under-the-hood numbers aren’t the greatest, with a 3.29 GAA and a .894 SV%, though last year’s short disastrous stint does skew those a bit.
Levi is still waiver-exempt this season and is signed through next year at a cap hit of just $812.5K, putting him below next year’s league minimum. That could make him an especially appealing target for a team that’s looking for some potential upside in a backup goalie while trying to keep their costs down, so Buffalo should be able to get some interest in him.
With Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen signed long-term and starting to live up to the potential he was thought to have early in his career and Colten Ellis showing some promise, it looks like the Sabres have at least their short-term goalie tandem intact. Luukkonen is signed through 2028-29 while Ellis is under club control through 2027-28, meaning there isn’t necessarily a spot for Levi anymore. While his value isn’t as high as it was a couple of years ago, Levi’s value could drop next season once he’s waiver-blocked so the time might be right for GM Jarmo Kekalainen to move him.