Israeli picked 1st in OHL draft by Sudbury Wolves

David Levin

David Levin has lived in the Greater Toronto Area for three years now, and in that time he’s been immersed pretty deeply in Canadian hockey culture. Not only is he a skilled player on the ice, the Israeli-born Levin has adopted the code of a typical Canadian player: work hard, never give up and say nice things about the place where you play.

A star forward with the Don Mills Flyers AAA Minor Midget team, he was recently picked first overall by the Sudbury Wolves in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) draft.

Levin joins a list of hockey’s who’s who as first overall picks, including Connor McDavid (touted to go first in the NHL Entry Draft this year), Aaron Ekblad (Florida Panthers) and Alexander Galchenyuk (Montreal Canadiens).

Not bad for a kid from Netanya who cut his teeth playing the inline (rollerblade) version of the sport. A perennial MVP in international tournaments, he moved to Canada to develop his skills and reach his ultimate goal – playing in the NHL.

Naturally, Levin is pleased with his first-overall selection. “It’s amazing,” he said, not long after a visit to Sudbury. “It’s really exciting for me. I came from Israel where there’s no ice and I’m drafted first… I hope I make the fans there happy.”

Levin, who stand 5-10 and weighs 160 pounds, is likely to play the next three or four years in Sudbury. His NHL draft year is not until 2018.

His team is naturally ecstatic at landing such a slick and creative forward.

“David is an outstanding hockey player and is the dynamic forward that the Sudbury Wolves need to build a winning team around,” said team president and general manager Blaine Smith. “David’s skills and offensive talent will be appreciated by his coaches, his teammates and hockey fans here in Sudbury.”

Head scout Andrew Shaw said Levin has improved “by leaps and bounds in each of his three short years playing hockey” in Canada. “If David’s development continues to improve at the same rate, his potential as an OHL player is off the charts. David was obviously born with a special gift and he has simply developed into an incredible hockey player.”

Wolves’ coach Dave Matsos said Levin combines great character, raw natural talent and a high “compete level.”

Levin is a humble guy who probably doesn’t fully appreciate the significance of being chosen first overall, Matsos said.

He is well respected by his contemporaries. In advance of the draft, Matsos contacted other highly ranked players and asked who, other than themselves, they’d like to be drafted with. Ninety per cent said Levin. “They said he’s skilled, he’s unpredictable. He’s so creative, you can’t anticipate [what he’s going to do next.]”

Heady praise indeed, and while Levin is something of a magician with the puck, not all his abilities are God-given. It takes long hours of practice to become a natural. He practised with the Flyers twice a week. And he’s in the gym working out pretty much every day.

He attends the Hill Academy, a school for gifted athletes, and three times a week at 6 a.m., he’s on the ice at the school, practising his moves. His pro heroes are Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Pavel Datsyuk, and he tries to copy what they do on the ice, he said.

“I work on my moves and I try new passes so no one knows where they come from,” he said. “Now, when I go on the ice, I try to make my own moves.”

All that hard work paid off with a remarkable season. He led the Flyers in scoring with 80 points in 55 games, including 39 goals.

Levin was born and raised in Israel. His father is from Latvia and was the man behind Israel’s inline hockey league. Levin took to the sport readily and excelled at all levels. He barely played any ice hockey, given the country’s only full-sized rink is in Metulla, a four- or five- hour drive from Netanya.

At 12, Levin moved to Canada to pursue his hockey dreams. He lives with his aunt and uncle. He still calls home three times a day and he’ll be heading back to Israel this summer for a five-week visit.

After a little time off, he’ll be back in the gym to get ready for the upcoming season. He figures he can also do some on-ice training in the mini rink in Holon.

Then it’s back to Sudbury for a new chapter in his hockey life.

Though Israeli, he hopes to make Team Canada’s Under-17 team and play for his adopted homeland. Who’s to say he won’t make it. His credo remains: “Always work hard, never give up. Always go for it.”