DENVER — The No. 2 general choose is about to make his NHL debut.
The Blackhawks referred to as up prime prospect Artyom Levshunov on Sunday after he performed his fiftieth AHL sport Saturday. The transfer burned their third of 4 allotted post-trade deadline call-ups, however on this case, no person is pondering a lot about that.
Levshunov is predicted to play in his first NHL sport this week, probably as quickly as Monday in opposition to the Avalanche. After that, the Hawks proceed their highway journey Thursday in opposition to the Sharks (and No. 1 choose Macklin Celebrini) and Saturday in opposition to the Canucks.
The Hawks will in all probability need the 19-year-old Belarusian defenseman to expertise Rockford’s high-stakes video games on the very finish of the common season and within the AHL playoffs, so his NHL stint may solely final a pair weeks, giving him only a style.
He arrives because the Hawks, driving a five-game level streak, search to proceed enjoying their greatest hockey of the season. Spencer Knight and Arvid Soderblom have offered glorious goaltending, which ought to assist stop Levshunov’s inevitable rookie errors from resulting in too many discouraging targets in opposition to.
Levshunov has improved immensely from the beginning of Rockford’s season till now, however exterior the Hawks group, opinions are divided on whether or not he’s fairly NHL-ready but or not. Even Hawks brass doesn’t know for sure, they usually’re OK with that.
“A whole lot of occasions, you don’t know [if someone is ready] till you attempt, till you see it,” Rockford interim coach Mark Eaton stated Sunday.
Levshunov’s ups and downs within the fall weren’t too stunning, contemplating how little high-level North American expertise he possessed getting into this season. It took him a while to be taught what works and what doesn’t in opposition to professionals.
He has surged since January, nonetheless, racking up 11 factors in his final 14 video games to get to 22 factors on the season. His 137 photographs on objective rank third amongst AHL defensemen.
“He’s beginning to ingrain among the professional habits into his sport: the constant compete degree and urgency degree,” Eaton stated.
“A whole lot of occasions, much less is extra, proper? [It’s about] not going out of your method to attempt to create offense however [rather] being environment friendly together with your puck motion on retrievals and popping out of ‘D’-zone. [He’s] holding it easy within the offensive zone, becoming a member of [rushes] on the proper occasions, getting photographs by way of and creating rebounds. It sounds easy, however doing it constantly is one thing that he has gotten higher with.”
Levshunov has arguably improved most within the defensive zone, sustaining tighter gaps and stricter positioning whereas utilizing his imposing 6-2, 210-pound body to interrupt up performs.
“[He’s] taking extra delight within the defensive zone and…being sturdy in entrance of the web,” Eaton stated. “[He’s] closing shortly when it’s his job to shut on the puck-carrier.
“He has elite quickness and elite energy. When he’s utilizing it constantly, he could be a power within the defensive zone. After which I believe he’s beginning to understand that enjoying good protection, being sound there, goes to permit you to possess extra pucks.”
This technically isn’t Levshunov’s first NHL call-up this season. He beforehand got here as much as take part in a number of Hawks practices throughout the AHL All-Star break in early February. However this call-up is rather more important.
The Hawks now have eight defensemen on the roster. That isn’t inherently an issue as a result of there’s no restrict after the deadline, however it’ll create some powerful choices for Hawks interim coach Anders Sorensen.
Younger defensemen Ethan Del Mastro, Louis Crevier and Wyatt Kaiser have all stepped up since Seth Jones’ departure, so it will likely be attention-grabbing to see which one Sorensen removes to slot in Levshunov. Embattled veteran T.J. Brodie, in the meantime, has been a wholesome scratch for the final 4 video games and is now buried even additional down the depth chart.
