Casey Gets the Call | BLOG

Seamus Casey didn't know what to really expect of his first training camp. But he's not sure it was this.

On Saturday morning, he received a call telling him that he would be heading to Prague with the main New Jersey Devils roster, which is expected to start the season against the Buffalo Sabres.

"It’s huge, super exciting," Casey said after practice. "Camp has gone good so far, you know you always want to see your name on the roster so it’s super exciting. Just got to keep working."

Camp, for Casey, has gone better than 'good'. At just 20-years-old, fresh out of college he's starting the season with the NHL club.

“If you had to wager on it, you would have said he’d be going to Utica to start the season and gaining valuable experience down there, but we have opportunity here with the injuries that we have, and he’s performed well," head coach Sheldon Keefe said. "Those things meeting, we think he’s earned the right to come on the trip with us."

The Devils are traveling with extra bodies, but at practice on Sunday, Casey was paired with Simon Nemec as the third pairing.

"In terms of what he’s shown, he’s shown confidence," Keefe assessed. "When I say that, it's that he’s stayed true to himself and his game. Despite the fact that he’s coming into his first camp and all of that, he’s really gotten better each day. Each day it seems like he’s got more and more confident and comfortable.

"In the games that he’s played for us, he’s made plays and advanced the puck for us nicely, which is something we need, and then he also defended well," Keefe added. "He’s got good angles, he’s cut people off, and he used his body in a very intelligent way, which is important if you’re going to be an undersized defenseman."

Casey was playing on his off-side, which Keefe feels comfortable with.

"Smart player, he’s done it before in college," he said. "Smart, skilled player, he’s able to get himself out of tricky situations because of his intelligence and his skill. So that’s part of it, you think that he can do it but the other piece is you’re just trying not to mess with the other guys so much."

The opportunity is now Casey's to make the best of what has already been an excellent training camp. The team now moves from training camp mode into in-season mode with the opening game of the year less than a week away.

And by all accounts, Casey has earned every bit of opportunity to be there.