Like one of the players he has caught with a hard check in the corners, Levi Bews didn't see it coming.
After going undrafted in his first year of eligibility and unranked all of this year, the 19-year-old Swift Current Broncos forward was listed by NHL Central Scouting in the final rankings for the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.
"Been a really nice surprise," Bews said. "The hard work paid off. It's my dream to play in the NHL. This is another stepping stone in getting to that goal.”
Bews was a highly touted player out of bantam as he was drafted by Saskatoon in the 2nd round of the 2009 WHL Bantam Draft. He made the Blades as a 16-year-old, but found himself shipped to Vancouver early in his sophomore season.
Things didn't work out with the Giants and Bews was on the verge of heading to the Junior A AJHL to finish his 17-year-old season when the Broncos sent a 6th round draft pick to Vancouver to take a chance on the Longview, Alberta product. He showed promise in his first 30 games as a Bronco in 2011-12 before breaking out offensively with career highs of 21 goals, 15 assists and 36 points this season.
“When you have a dream you have to do anything and everything to possibly reach it,” Bews said. “With Swift Current the coaching staff have given me great opportunities there. It's helped my game, they've taught me a lot.”
The 6', 181lbs forward noted he has been driving the net more and playing with good linemates to help pad his goal scoring numbers. He also put up the third best plus/minus on the team at +16.
“The coaching staff worked with me quite a bit on my defensive side of the game,” Bews added. “A couple years in the league you have more experience and kind of read the game better.”
Bews also congratulated his three teammates who made the rankings. Defenceman Dillon Heatherington rose from 44th in the midterm rankings to 31rst now, forward Colby Cave went from 140th to 89th and Eetu Laurikainen is ranked 23rd among goalies who played in North America.
Heatherington and Team Canada start their playoff round at the World Under 18 Hockey Championship in Russia on Thursday morning.
They'll play the Czech Republic on TSN at 10am.
Heatherington collected a goal in four preliminary round games as Canada went 4-0.
Thu, Apr 25, 1:30 PM
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