DENVER -- The nerves, Chicago defenseman Artyom Levshunov insisted, were nonexistent ahead of his NHL debut Monday night against Colorado.
Excitement, sure, but no pregame jitters hours before the opening faceoff.
"Why?" the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 draft casually said of nerves. "It's a hockey game. I've got to go and do my job, play hard."
The 19-year-old from Belarus held up quite well, too. He skated for almost 21 minutes in a 3-0 loss to Nathan MacKinnon and the high-flying Avalanche. The game was scoreless before the last-place Blackhawks faltered in the third period.