Michigan State hockey adds top 2024 NHL Draft prospect

Elite NHL prospect Artyom Levshunov will join the Michigan State hockey team for the upcoming 2023-24 season, sources confirm to SpartanMag.com. Levshunov has arrived and campus and is participating in offseason activities.

Levshunov selected Michigan State over in-state rival Michigan from a group of finalists that also included Vermont. Vermont fell out of the running for Levshunov after head coach Todd Woodcraft was fired last week.

The addition of Levshunov, a 6-2, 198-pound defenseman from Belarus, is a massive recruiting win for second-year Michigan State head coach Adam Nightingale and his staff. Levshunov is widely considered a top 10 NHL Draft prospect for 2024.

Daily Faceoff ranks Levshunov as the No. 3 overall prospects, and the top defensemen in his class. In April, The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler also ranked Levshunov as the No. 3 prospect in the draft. Corey Pronman, also from The Athletic, recently projected Levshunov as the No. 7 overall draft pick in his 2024 NHL Mock Draft released on July 5.

Levshunov starred for the USHL’s Green Bay Gamblers during his rookie season in 2022-23. He tallied 13 goals and 29 assists in 62 games. Levshunov was selected to the USHL’s All-Rookie First-Team. He also earned USHL Third-Team honors. Levshunov was named USHL Defenseman of the Week twice last season.

Prior to his lone season in the USHL, Levshunov played on the Belarus’ 18U national team. He led his team with 63 points, scoring 25 goals in 43 games for Belarus.

Levshunov will join a loaded Michigan State blueline, which returns four defensemen from the 2022-23 roster.

Levshunov is one of 15 newcomers and 10 true freshmen to join the Michigan State hockey program for 2023-2024. The Spartans have also added five transfers in this class.

Michigan State’s non-transfer recruiting class is ranked No. 3 by Neutral Zone.

“We’re very excited about our incoming players,” said Nightingale, in press release on Monday afternoon.  “They are all team-first guys and the type of players and people that our great fan base will enjoy watching.  We’re looking forward to the upcoming season to show our fans our growth and are hoping to see the same sold-out atmosphere we enjoyed at the end of last season.”

Michigan State went 18-18-2 during Nightingale’s first season as head coach at his alma mater. The Spartans won the program’s first Big Ten Tournament game 4-2 over Notre Dame after losing 13-straight games. Michigan State defeated Notre Dame 4-2 knocking the Irish out of the tournament the following night. The win marked the program’s first ever Big Ten Tournament series victory.

Senior Nash Nienhuis (5-10, 185, Sarnia, Ontario) and junior David Gucciardi (6-1, 190, Toronto, Canada) will provide veteran leadership. Nienhuis was selected as the Spartans’ assistant captain during the 2022-23 season. Gucciardi was selected in the seventh round of the 2022 NHL Draft by the Washington Capitals.

Sophomore Viktor Hurtig (6-6, 197, Avesta, Sweden) and sophomore Matt Basgall (5-9, 190, Lake Forest, Ill.) provided steady play alongside a Michigan State blueline with a heavy veteran presence last season. Hurtig was selected No. 164 overall in the sixth round of the 2021 NHL Draft by the New Jersey Devils.

The Spartans also added senior defenseman James Crossman (6-3, 200, Denver, Colo.) from Brown via the transfer portal.

Freshman Maxim Strbak (6-2, 205, Kosice, Slovakia) is another highly-touted NHL prospect who will join Michigan State this season. Strbak was selected by the Buffalo Sabres in the second round of the 2023 NHL Draft last month.

Freshman Austin Oravetz (5-9, 192, Canonsburg, Penn.) will also join the Spartans defense. Oravetz played alongside Levshunov with the Green Bay Gamblers last season.

Patrick Geary (6-1, 185, Hamburg, N.Y.) is the fourth freshman defenseman to join Michigan State for this upcoming season. Geary – who played for USHL’s Waterloo – committed to the Spartans in July 2022.

Artyom Levshunov collects the loose puck in the slot, pulls, and rips a shot past Marcus Brannman. His 12th of the year and now has points in six of his last seven games.@GamblersHockey #USHL pic.twitter.com/zwVupairdS

— Ryan Sikes (@ryan_sikes10) April 2, 2023