The Toronto Maple Leafs should look at Israeli national, David Levin of the Sudbury Wolves come draft day.
Levin is a left handed winger, who can play on either the left or the right side. He’s 5’10”/178 cm and was born in Tel Aviv, Israel and would be a great fit for the Toronto Maple Leafs.
His Days In Israel
The story of how Levin got to this point in his career is an interesting one. Levin, unlike many across the globe who watched hockey as a kid, didn’t have the luxuries of having a neighborhood ice rink. He grew up in Israel. Israel is known for having phenomenal athletes. Not many of those athletes are interested in playing ice hockey. In fact, there are only two ice rinks in the state of Israel. There is one in the north in the town of Metula and a rink near the Egyptian border in Eilat.
Levin, grew up in the out-skirts of Tel Aviv. For him to get from Tel-Aviv to Metula or Eilat, it would have been a decent drive. It probably would have taken him two to three hours minimum to just get to a rink.
Coming To Canada
At the age of 12, Levin and his family moved to Greater Toronto Area, so he could have the opportunity to improve his hockey skills in Canada. In 2015, he was drafted number one overall by the Wolves in the Ontario Hockey League entry draft. He was noticed by Wolves scouts after he had an explosive season with the Don Mills Flyers Minor Midget in 2015. In that season, he registered 39 goals and 41 assists in 55 games.
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In 2015-16, he began playing with the Wolves, but his first season wasn’t his best. He posted 9 goals and 21 assists, but he didn’t let his first season in the OHL shatter his confidence. In 2016-17, he was an outstanding asset for the Wolves and had 18 goals and 35 assists in 66 games. This past season he missed a number of games, however he still made in impact on the ice. He scored 14 goals and had 15 assists in 46 games.
What He Brings To The Table
In a June 2017, Allan Mitchell of Bleacher Report wrote a post on names to watch out for in the 2018 Draft. Mitchell mentioned Levin and explained that he’s got speed. In addition, he mentioned that Levin has strong stick-handling and passing skills.
Based on his skill-set, he’ll be a strong fit with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Additionally, Mike Babcock loves speedy forwards. It’ll likely be a few more years before Levin puts on a NHL uniform. With the right mentors in the OHL and/or AHL developing him, he could be a strong fit in an NHL lineup.
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While he projects to be a seventh round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Level Draft, the Toronto Maple Leafs shouldn’t ignore him. There are many elite players who were selected in the seventh round including Henrik Lundqvist, Pekka Rinne, Joe Pavelski and more. So, don’t judge a book by its cover. Levin could be a superstar down the road.
stats from eliteprospects.com, research from wikipedia.com