Presented by Nationwide Insurance Agent Jeff Vukovich
LAS VEGAS – The wait is over: With the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, the Chicago Blackhawks have selected two-way defenseman Artem Levshunov.
“Finally, I was selected,” Levshunov said. “I’ve been waiting for this for 18 years. Finally somewhere. Nowhere – in Chicago! Now it feels real. Now it feels like a dream come true. Now it feels real.”
The Blackhawks scouted Levshunov heavily this season and their love for him grew over time.
“I just think about the total package,” Blackhawks GM Kyle Davidson said of why he liked Levshunov. “Offensively, he can run the offense, he can skate, he’s super mobile, he has good size, he’s aggressive, he’s a physical defender and we think there’s more to come .
“With the package as well as the potential growth still to come, it was very interesting and something we really felt would make us a better organization.”
Mike Donaghy, the Blackhawks’ director of amateur scouting, said: “You look at his skating style and size, moving around the ice so well for a big guy, and he’s very adaptive and he’s extremely competitive. He just continued taking steps.
“Everyone thought he was going to go back to Green Bay, and then he went to Michigan State and he was able to raise his game against players 3, 4 and 5 years older than him and didn’t miss a match. USHL. And then once you meet him off the ice, he’s a personable personality, the way he treats people, that’s what it’s all about.”
Levshunov knew the organization liked him but he wasn’t sure what they were thinking when it came to the second overall pick.
So far.
“I was thinking about him because we had good conversations with him during the season and at the combine,” Levshunov said. “They came to Buffalo and our agency camp, they came to talk to me, we went to lunch. There were a lot of teams there, we talked to everybody. But I’m glad Chicago chose me and I’m happy to be a part of it.” Happy for the Blackhawks.”
Coincidentally, Connor Bedard was introduced on stage at The Sphere and announced Levshunov’s selection. Bedard is a cornerstone of the franchise, and now the Blackhawks have a potential No. 1 defenseman to go along with him.
“It’ll be good,” Levshunov said of Bédard. “An unreal player. He was selected for the first time last year. He’s a really good guy. It’ll be fun to play with him.”
Davidson said in his pre-draft media availability Thursday that there was a “really healthy and productive” internal debate on what direction to take. Although he did not say it publicly, the discussion was believed to have been between Levshunov and aggressive playmaking forward Ivan Demidov, and the former prevailed.
The 18-year-old Levshunov had a sensational freshman campaign at Michigan State, where he compiled 35 points (nine goals, 26 assists) in 38 games. Before the season, he was third among all USHL defensemen with 13 goals and fifth with 42 points in 62 games for the Green Bay Gamblers.
Levshunov stands at 6 feet 1.75 inches and 205 pounds and projects to be a top pairing defenseman in the NHL. He also has a right-handed shot, which makes his package even more attractive.
Off the ice, Levshunov is quickly becoming a favorite of Blackhawks fans. The Belarus native has a unique personality and will likely be a locker-room favorite.
It is unclear where Levshunov will play next season, whether he will return to Michigan State for his sophomore season or turn professional and play in the AHL. It looks like the Blackhawks have already given this some thought.
“I would probably talk to (his agent) Dan Milstein and give him my idea of what we think and what we believe is the best path forward,” Davidson said. “But we’ll let him hear it first.”
Levshunov immediately becomes the top prospect in Chicago’s system and headlines a potential new core on the back end that includes Kevin Korchinsky and Alex Vlasik.
“When I woke up all day I was thinking about the draft and where I would be,” Levshunov said. “It was actually a very simple day for me. I mean, not very simple. It was a special day for me, but yes, I came to the draft and got drafted. That’s just it. Life goes on, Okay? The world goes on, I’m so excited to be a part of it again.”
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