When he first stepped foot on the University of Maine campus, Michel Leveille knew just “basic English.

“I had to learn how to interact with people [in English],” said the Levis, Quebec, native Tuesday as the Black Bear hockey team continued preparation for its NCAA East Regional game against St. Cloud State in Rochester, N.Y. Friday night. “It was definitely a challenge for me my first year, doing class work and stuff. My professors have been really great. I’ve had a lot of help.”

Leveille couldn’t even practice with the team because he hadn’t qualified academically. He was redshirted.

“That was real tough on me. I was really disappointed in myself because the reason I had to sit out was I hadn’t done well academically [prior to Maine]. I told [assistant Grant Standbrook] my first week here that he didn’t have to worry about me academically because I didn’t want to go through that again,” said the Maine captain.

He actually mulled leaving school but he did some soul-searching during the long Christmas break “and I realized that when I came back to school after the break, I had only a couple of months left. It wasn’t worth it to leave.

“I’m really glad I made that decision,” said Leveille, who has been on the Dean’s list throughout his career and has been on the Hockey East All-Academic team consistently.

His exploits on the ice have also been exemplary and have included being selected Hockey East’s Rookie of the Year, a second team All-HE and second- team All-American selection last year and a first-team All-Hockey East pick this year.

He is 16th on the school’s all-time scoring list with 145 points (52 goals, 93 assists) in 150 games, one point behind Bear assistant Guy Perron in 15th.

This year has been a challenging one for Leveille.

The team has been inconsistent since its 8-0-1 start and was in danger of missing the NCAA Tournament for the first time in nine years. But the favorites won their conference tournaments so Maine, after losing four in a row to UMass including being swept in the Hockey East quarterfinals, received a berth.

“It has been a good year but, looking back, I wish I had done more as a leader. After Christmas, we were in the downs. I’ve tried to figure out what I could have done better to get us through it,” said Leveille.

He eventually reached the conclusion that “one person can’t control [everything]. Hopefully, I’ll be able to bring my leadership this weekend and take us to another level.”

Leveille (18 goals, 23 assists) shares the team scoring lead with Josh Soares but has had to work hard for his points.

He has had some spells of inconsistency. He has been shadowed a lot of the time.

“That has been something different this year. My freshman year, I had so many other good players around me that I had a lot more free ice so I could do my thing,” said Leveille. “But I’ve got to battle through this. It isn’t always an easy thing to deal with.”

He credits his linemates with helping him overcome the shadowing.

The classy Leveille has had to overcome a lot of adversity, including injuries, to carve out his impressive career.

The Bears will need him to be at his best if they are to earn a third Frozen Four appearance in four years.

“We’ve received a second life and that’s huge,” said Leveille. “I didn’t want to end my career [without another NCAA tourney appearance]. I’m going to make the most of it.”

Larry Mahoney can be reached at 990-8231, 1-800-310-8600 or by email at lmahoney@bangordailynews.net.