David Levin of the Greater Toronto Hockey League’s Don Mills Flyers will be taken first overall in Saturday’s 2015 OHL Priority Selection, the Sudbury Wolves officially announced Friday.
In 55 games with the Flyers this season, the five-foot-11, 170-pound forward had 39 goals, 80 points and helped his team to an OHL Cup appearance.
Born and raised in Israel, the 15-year-old only began playing organized hockey in Canada at age 12 when he moved to the country to live with relatives.
“I am extremely proud and excited to be drafted by the Sudbury Wolves,” Levin said in a press release. “The Burgess family, team management and everyone involved with the organization have been so welcoming and supportive and I am truly grateful to become a member of the Sudbury Wolves. I know that the team is building for the future and I look forward to doing my very best to help the organization achieve their goal of winning a championship.”
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Levin, who will qualify for the 2018 NHL Draft, was deemed eligible for the OHL Priority Selection rather than its import draft.
The player to go first becomes the recipient of the Jack Ferguson Award. Levin joins a list of past winners that includes: Connor McDavid, Aaron Ekblad, Alex Galchenyuk, Ryan O’Reilly, Steven Stamkos, John Tavares, Jason Spezza and Eric Lindros.
“David is one of the most purely gifted offensive talents in this year’s draft,” OHL Central Scouting director Darrell Woodley stated. “He has the ability to make an opposing player look very silly and he does it with such ease. Things come very easy for him which is impressive considering he has only been playing hockey for three seasons. He is very hard to knock-off the puck as he has a strong core and low centre of gravity. David is a very compact skater and has very good agility and quickness, changes gears in mid-stride, and is not afraid to challenge anyone at anytime. He has a very good shot with a quick release, is a smart player, and never seems to put himself in a bad position. Overall David has the potential to be a great player at the OHL level and the sky’s the limit for him as he continues to learn and develop.”
