RD Artyom Levshunov - Michigan State Univ., NCAA (2024 Draft)

[Postulates]

Not so sure about that but then again you don't think very highly of Bedard either so......

I get that Levshunov could go higher than people think because of his physical skills and floor/ceiling projecatbiblity ect...but Celebrini has elite offensive skills.

if you see a prospect thread he creates the projection is usually far off

 

[wetcoast]

if you see a prospect thread he creates the projection is usually far off

To be fair I like his work but when we disagree we really disagree and he watches way more than I do as well.

And I know this is a hot take and everyone else is different but I'm one of those guys who thinks that he is right all of the time......

 

[Nabrules]

Not so sure about that but then again you don't think very highly of Bedard either so......

I get that Levshunov could go higher than people think because of his physical skills and floor/ceiling projecatbiblity ect...but Celebrini has elite offensive skills.

Isn’t everyone already expecting him to go in the 3-5 range at minimum? Guy looks like a more physical version of Werenski

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

If you don't think Celebrini's shot or skating are elite, I don't know what to tell you.

Yeah, sorry, don't see that. I think he's good with the shot and very good with the skating, but elite? I think that's too far. He looks like a player with a good floor. If he becomes an elite NHL'er, it's because he does things like Bergeron or Crosby where he's great with the details. He doesn't have truly elite offensive tools to have easy offense the way some recent 1OA's like Bedard and Hughes are able to.

Not so sure about that but then again you don't think very highly of Bedard either so......

I get that Levshunov could go higher than people think because of his physical skills and floor/ceiling projecatbiblity ect...but Celebrini has elite offensive skills.

No, don't get this twisted. I merely said I don't think Bedard is generational. I argued against someone who said it's undisputed (with no offered proof) that he's the best prospect since McDavid.

But as to Levshunov, it's simply not true that players need to be "elite" in an area to be a top 3 pick. What area is Leo Carlsson "elite" in?

We also should be clear what we mean by elite. I think Levshunov projects as a clear top pairing defenseman. He's missing nothing with the toolset. He's not like a Makar with his skating or Fox with his hockey sense or Hedman with his size, but is that what's now required to be elite? Because sure, I'll grant that. He's probably never going to be best in the NHL in any one part of the game for a defenseman, but I could definitely see how he's very good in a lot of areas and he becomes a 1D. And by that standard, there would be very few that are elite at anything.

if you see a prospect thread he creates the projection is usually far off

Examples? And remember you said usually, so you got a lot to prove there.

 

[wetcoast]

Isn’t everyone already expecting him to go in the 3-5 range at minimum? Guy looks like a more physical version of Werenski

Sure he could, although I currently have 3 forwards ahead of him and lots can happen in terms of growth next season, it was more the comparison with Celebrini (who along with Eiserman and Demidov make up my big 3 for now) that I was using to make my point.

Heck it could be that Levshunov explodes into a potential #1 guy since this was his transition year to the USHL we really don't know yet.

 

[montreal]

it's not shift by shift for Levshunov but close to it, the vid is mostly him but also some saves from Fowler and a Russian kid I thought played well.

@Caser do you know much of Kuzma Voronin? I put some footage of him in the vid, not sure if he will be ranked for the draft next summer as I never heard of him before but was impressed.

Kuzma Voronin - Stats, Contract, Salary & More

Eliteprospects.com hockey player profile of Kuzma Voronin, 2006-07-27 Yaroslavl, RUS Russia. Most recently in the undefined with Youngstown Phantoms. Complete player biography and stats.

www.eliteprospects.com

 

[Caser]

it's not shift by shift for Levshunov but close to it, the vid is mostly him but also some saves from Fowler and a Russian kid I thought played well.

@Caser do you know much of Kuzma Voronin? I put some footage of him in the vid, not sure if he will be ranked for the draft next summer as I never heard of him before but was impressed.

Kuzma Voronin - Stats, Contract, Salary & More

Eliteprospects.com hockey player profile of Kuzma Voronin, 2006-07-27 Yaroslavl, RUS Russia. Most recently in the undefined with Youngstown Phantoms. Complete player biography and stats.

www.eliteprospects.com

Don't know much except that his brother plays for Torpedo in the KHL and is a great skater, judging by the rare highlights of Kuzma it might be a family trait.

 

[montreal]

 

[MMC]

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

That’s big for MSU, and for Levshunov’s draft chances it puts him at a level above where Eiserman is playing and at the same level as Celebrini.

 

[hotcabbagesoup]

Smart kid, wants to be an NHL player and it shows in his decisions

 

[BKarchitect]

Spartans are killing it with recruiting.

 

[SpitfireG]

Good signature and choice for both side, MUV is wellknown with player development

Top 5 on the next draft is mostly reserved for him. On draft scouts shared Levshunov would selected as first defensmen if he was available this year

 

[Breakers]

First goal in the NCAA

Apparently decently packed with NHL scouts according to broadcast

 

[Nabrules]

Reminds me so much of Werenski.

 

[montreal]

he was pretty good in his NCAA debut,

('24 Draft) Artyom Levshunov Makes NCAA Debut 10-7-23 | Hockey Prospect Vids

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www.patreon.com

 

[dreadpirateroberts]

 

[BKarchitect]

LSSU doesn’t appear to be any good this year so we probably should wait a bit before going too nuts (as with a lot of these non-con early season games). But wow, that’s absolutely elite stuff at both ends.

Sparty has an end of the month double header against BC (at BC). Now that’s gonna be telling. We will get to see Levshunov straight up against Gauthier, Leonard, Smith, Perreault, etc. If he shows out there I think we could be in for a special draft year season from a defenseman in the NCAA - and not just from an offensive production standpoint but from a “this guy is just a complete defender” standpoint.

 

[montreal]

wow was he ever impressive in his 2nd game of the season, 1G, 1A, 7 shots, +2

 

[95snipes]

I thought he had a solid NCAA debut. Not as great as that tweet suggests. I watched both games against Air Force and was fairly underwhelmed. Thursday he was particularly bad. Friday better, but still meh.

There are some clear red flags with Lev.

-Most concerning is there is zero intensity to his game.
-There's no real deception to his game with the puck. He can execute plays that are given to him, but he isn't creating plays the way you would expect from a top pick. He can be fairly predictable.
-Can really struggle under pressure. There wasn't that escapability you'd like to see and had some bad d zone turnovers. Doesn't move his feet.

The tools are really good though.

-Good size
-Right shot
-Heavy shot
-Crisp breakout pass
-Can be physical
-Decent top speed

It's early, but I'm expecting a lot more from someone I thought could be the first defenseman off the board. I don't see Levshunov as a lock it in top 10 pick at this point.

 

[Marc the Habs Fan]

1 goal and 1 assist tonight. 6 points in 6 games now.

 

[95snipes]

I'm going to pile on here, but did anyone watch today's game and think Levshunov looked like a top 10 pick? I thought he was atrocious.

Lost puck battles all night. Completely careless with his puck management. Defensive positioning was bad.

I'm not impressed with his play so far.

 

[Juxtaposer]

I'm going to pile on here, but did anyone watch today's game and think Levshunov looked like a top 10 pick? I thought he was atrocious.

Lost puck battles all night. Completely careless with his puck management. Defensive positioning was bad.

I'm not impressed with his play so far.

Yeah, he was not good today. But in fairness, I’ve seen him play a lot better than this and BC is really, really good.

 

[cg98]

I'm going to pile on here, but did anyone watch today's game and think Levshunov looked like a top 10 pick? I thought he was atrocious.

Lost puck battles all night. Completely careless with his puck management. Defensive positioning was bad.

I'm not impressed with his play so far.

Not really good but yeah, that BC team is stacked af.

 

[William H Bonney]

He was not good tonight but BC was overwhelming MSU most of the night and he's the 3rd youngest player in college hockey. Far easier to play in the NCAA as a 17 year old forward than defenseman.