Image credit: Kamloops Blazers

By Earl Seitz

Connor Levis

“Riverboat Gambler” signs 2019 1st round bantam draft pick

Jun 2, 2020 | 6:30 PM

KAMLOOPS — The Blazers went out on a limb and took a gamble with their two first round picks in the 2019 bantam draft.

Both picks had made verbal committments to the NCAA University of Michigan.

A month-and-a-half after the draft defenceman Mats Lindgren, taken 7th overall, had a change of mind about Michigan and signed with Kamloops.

It took patience with that second first round pick, but the limb never broke and the gamble paid off.

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Today, 13 months to the day after the May 2, 2019 bantam draft, Connor Levis signed.

“I’m going to start by saying how excited I am to be a Blazer.”

There are a few things that stand out about Connor Levis.

He’s a kid in a man’s body —- 6’2″, 190 pounds and not yet 16 years old.

Obviously he has some hockey talent.

But one thing that belies his age —- he won’t be 16 until October — is his patience and the ability to articulate the well thought out 13 month process to making his decision.

“What it came down to in the end was what I felt was going to be best for my development as a hockey player over the next three years.” says Levis. “I was able to get a really good feel for this in Kamloops by attending their training camp and spending significant time with the coaches —- that Kamloops was the best place for me to develop as a hockey player and a person.”

You have to have a bit of Riverboat Gambler in drafting 14 and 15 year olds —– it can be a hit and miss.

It took time, but in the end the Blazers were dealt a Royal Flush in signing their two first round picks from the 2019 draft.

“I hear it a lot when people say you’re taking a chance on a player.” says GM Matt Bardsley. “I think you’re taking more of a chance if you don’t take those players.”

“I think I see a bit of the Portland attitude in Matt.” says Blazers owner Tom Gaglardi. “Spending 19 years in that organization where they were well known for being fantastic recruiters. They were not afraid to take the best players available and rely on the strengths of the league and the strengths of their program to do the talking to get players committed. If you look around the league the best teams have taken those chances, and their batting average has been pretty good.”

It may have helped that Levis is familiar with Kamloops.

He is friends with and has played with and against some of the other young Blazers.

Levis also has family here.

He has two aunts, an uncle, cousins and a grandmother in Kamloops.

“We always go up to Kamloops every summer and everytime we have the chance to.” says Levis. “So like I said earlier, it’s almost like a second home to me.”