The New Jersey Devils are loaded with defensive depth. With Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec being the main talking points, certain prospects have slipped under the radar. Seamus Casey, Luke’s former teammate from the Michigan Wolverines (NCAA), appears to be headed down an elite path himself.
Casey was drafted by New Jersey in the second round of the 2022 Draft, with the 46th overall selection. Despite being completely overshadowed by all of the star-studded talent in Michigan, he put together a terrific freshman season – notching 29 points in 37 games. He was also a plus-16. Both of those marks were second amongst defensemen on the team, trailing only Hughes.
Casey can be described as a smooth-skating offensive defenseman who has great discipline. His nine penalty minutes (PIMs) ranked second amongst his teammates (min. 10 games played). Similar to Hughes, he has great edges and can deceive the opposition with relative ease. The difference is that Casey does it from the right side.
With Hughes out of the fold, Casey is expected to take on a much larger role this season as Michigan’s top defenseman. The fact that he put up 0.78 points per game as a freshman while not even being on the top pairing, speaks volumes. He’s also a near-definite lock for Team USA at the 2024 World Junior Championships, where he’ll likely showcase his talents on a larger stage.
There’s a Logjam
Casey is yet another name on the laundry list of promising prospects drafted by the Devils. However, most college defensemen who achieve success turn pro after their sophomore seasons. That is where the issue arises, albeit it’s a good issue for the organization to have.
The Devils already have three right-handed defensemen who are focal points of their core and who will likely remain Devils for a good while. Dougie Hamilton won’t be a free agent until 2028, and after scoring 74 points this past season, he seems to have a good amount left in the tank. John Marino becomes a free agent in 2027, and he won’t be going anywhere either after establishing himself as one of the better defensive defensemen in the game. Simon Nemec has yet to make his NHL debut, but after being drafted at second overall, he should soon become a key contributor to the core for many years.
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That leaves Casey as the odd man out because the Devils’ depth has created a logjam akin to the Route-21 traffic in Newark.
Casey Should Switch to Forward
The characteristics that make Casey excel as an offensive defenseman could certainly be transitioned to forward so the Devils can utilize him as an important piece of the core. He’s displayed an ability to be a playmaker, as well as a goalscorer. He typically likes to jump into the rush, so converting him may even be better for his skill set. The best part is, he’s actually done it before:
Casey had to play center for a night when Michigan took on the USNTDP (US National Team Development Program) in January. Multiple forwards were out with illness, so Casey stepped up despite not having played forward since he was 13 or 14 years old. (from ‘After quick turnaround from World Juniors, Seamus Casey shines at center,’ Michigan Daily, January 10, 2023)
The result? He had three points (two goals and an assist) to go along with a 64% faceoff percentage.
Judging by his skating in development camp, that’s not a surprise in the slightest. Throughout the Devils’ rookie scrimmage, there were times when Casey had the puck on his stick for long periods of time, without anyone touching it. He found himself below the goal line on multiple occasions. And while he was responsible and always knew when to get back into position, it would be hard to believe he wouldn’t excel as a forward.
His patented toe-drag move (which was on full display in the Frozen Four) could be extremely deceptive in the future to NHL defensemen. As a forward, he would get to utilize it more so than if he remained a defenseman.
“I think the way (Seamus) plays is he’s incredibly intelligent and incredibly aware…if you put (Seamus) on the ice in any hockey game in any position, I think he’d do incredibly well just given the chance to just figure things out a little bit. He’s just that kind of player.”
– Michigan assistant coach Rob Rassey (from ‘After quick turnaround from World Juniors, Seamus Casey shines at center,’ Michigan Daily, January 10, 2023)
It obviously comes down to Casey’s willingness to move, as well as what the Devils feel is best. With the way the Devils have operated lately, they’ll probably make the right decision. But it’s no secret that he has a lot of potential, and if he doesn’t switch, he’ll likely be roadblocked for a good chunk of years.
Future Decisions
If anything, the Devils could use Casey as an A-grade trade chip at a future deadline. Some fans initially thought he could be part of the Timo Meier deal in early March, and were pleasantly surprised that he was omitted from that. But with the potential Casey has shown, he can definitely play a valuable role on a future Devils team and excluding him from that could hurt.
Casey could benefit from time with the Utica Comets of the American Hockey League (AHL) after college. But if he excels there, the Devils will have a tough decision to make.
The bottom line is, assuming Casey lives up to his high potential, the Devils are a better team if he finds a way to slot into the lineup. And it just may be that the only way he can slot in is if he transitions.