David Levin (ice hockey)
| David Levin | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
September 16, 1999 Tel Aviv, Israel | ||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) | ||
| Weight | 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st 2 lb) | ||
| Position | Winger | ||
| Shoots | Left | ||
| OHL team | Sudbury Wolves | ||
| NHL Draft | Eligible 2018 | ||
| Playing career | 2015–present | ||
David Levin (Hebrew: דוד לוין; born September 16, 1999) is an Israeli ice hockey player, who is currently playing for Sudbury Wolves of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). Born in Israel, Levin initially only played inline hockey due to the lack of available ice rinks in Israel. At the age of 12 he moved to Canada in order to further his career, living with relatives in the Greater Toronto Area, and it was in Canada that Levin first played organized ice hockey. He was drafted first overall in the 2015 OHL Priority Selection and began playing for the Wolves in the 2015–16 season.
Personal life
Levin was born in Tel Aviv to Pavel and Lena Levin. Pavel is originally from Latvia and was a professional soccer player who played in Latvia before signing with Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C. in 1990 and moving to Israel. He retired soon after due to a leg injury, and married Lena, who was from Russia, and moved to Netanya. Levin was eight years old when he first discovered North American ice hockey, as his father was watching an NHL game on TV. "I asked him what he’s watching. He told me that’s the best league in the world, so I told him that’s my dream now," Levin told The Jerusalem Post.[1] At home Levin spoke Russian, while in school he used Hebrew; prior to moving to Canada he did not speak any English, and in order to develop this he decided to not attend a Hebrew-language school.[2]
Due to the sparsity of ice rinks in Israel, with the closest rink a four-hour drive, Levin grew up playing inline hockey.[3] He played in several tournaments for the Israeli national inline team, winning awards in the process, but desired to play ice hockey instead. While he tried skating at the Canada Center in Metula, his ice hockey dream faded until he saw a YouTube clip of Sidney Crosby.[1] When he was 12, Levin moved to Richmond Hill, a suburb of Toronto, in order to further his hockey career, and lived with his aunt and uncle, Alla and Yafim Tovberg. The Tovberg's subsequently moved into Toronto so that Levin would be able to play in a more competitive league.[4]
Playing career
Levin attended Hill Academy in Vaughan, a school known for developing elite sports talent.[3] He also joined the Don Mills Flyers, a junior club, for the 2014–15 season, which named him alternate captain During that season he scored 39 goals and 41 assists for 80 points in 55 games.[3] He also helped Don Mills make their league final, tying for tournament lead in scoring, though they lost in overtime. However because Levin was originally from Israel and did not live with his parents, the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), one of three major junior hockey leagues in Canada, was not going to allow him to enter the 2015 OHL Priority Selection; instead he would have had to wait another year and enter the league as an import (a foreign player). This however was appealed, with the argument that his aunt and uncle were both his legal guardians and Canadian citizens, and Levin was granted an exception.[2] Allowed to be drafted, the Sudbury Wolves selected Levin first overall, and he was awarded the Jack Ferguson Award as a result.[5] Levin finished the 2015–16 season with 30 points in 42 games, though he missed 19 games due to a broken hand.[6]
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2013–14 | Don Mills Flyers AAA | GTMMHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Don Mills Flyers AAA | GTMMHL | 55 | 39 | 41 | 80 | 32 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 2 | ||
| 2015–16 | Sudbury Wolves | OHL | 47 | 9 | 21 | 30 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| OHL totals | 47 | 9 | 21 | 30 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Canada Black | U17 | 7th | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 12 | |
| Junior totals | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 12 | ||||
Awards and achievements
| Awards | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Jack Ferguson Award | 2015 OHL Priority Selection | [7] |
References
- 1 2 Hudes, Sammy (2016-02-21). "Spotlight: Late-bloomer Levin on track to become Israel’s first NHL player". JPost.com. Retrieved 2016-02-21.
- 1 2 Joyce, Gare (2015-09-30). "David Levin's long skate from Israel to Sudbury". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved 2015-11-06.
- 1 2 3 Matisz, John (2015-04-07). "David Levin of Israel to go first overall in OHL draft". TorontoSun.com. Retrieved 2015-04-28.
- ↑ Mahiban, Dhiren (2016-01-16). "Atypical Pursuit of an N.H.L. Dream". The New York Times (New York City). Retrieved 2016-02-12.
- ↑ OHL (2015-04-11). "David Levin to be chosen 1st overall in OHL Priority Selection". OntarioHockeyLeague.com. Retrieved 2015-04-28.
- ↑ Leeson, Ben (2016-03-27). "Sudbury Wolves' Levin happy with rookie season". Sudbury Star (Sudbury, Ontario). Retrieved 2016-04-10.
- ↑ "Jack Ferguson Award". OHL. Retrieved January 28, 2015.