The Buffalo Sabres have signed goaltender Devon Levi to a two-year contract with an AAV of $812,500. The team announced the deal on Thursday morning, locking up their final restricted free agent.
The 23-year-old is expected to be the starting goaltender for the AHL’s Rochester Americans this season, giving him some needed time to build his confidence and continue to grow before hopefully stepping into a long-term NHL role in the future.
This past season, Levi appeared in 42 games with the Amerks, recording a 25-13-6 record with a 2.20 GAA and .919 save percentage. Among AHL goalies, he led the league with seven shutouts in the regular season. He also played the fourth-most minutes and was sixth in GAA and save percentage.
In the Calder Cup Playoffs, Levi went 5-3-0 with a 2.52 GAA and two shutouts.
While he excelled in the AHL, he struggled at the NHL level going 2-7-0 with a 4.12 GAA and .872 save percentage in nine games.
To date, Levi has appeared in 68 AHL games and 39 NHL games. He’s gone 41-19-10 in the AHL but 17-17-2 in the NHL. He was originally a 2020 draft pick of the Florida Panthers, selected with the 212th overall pick. The Sabres acquired Levi as part of a package in exchange for forward Sam Reinhart; the other piece was a 2022 first-round pick, which turned into Jiri Kulich,