A few weeks back, it was announced that Simon Nemec returned to New Jersey for more tests after his shoulder injury in the Olympic qualifiers. While no one currently has an update about that, the Devils suffered another blow before training camp by having their other young defenseman, Luke Hughes, be out for 6-8 weeks while dealing with a shoulder injury during training.
So now that the 2024-25 Training Camp will be underway, the Devils will need to fill the spot of Luke Hughes, and thankfully, Tom Fitzgerald added a lot of depth to the defenseman position. Here are a few rookies and veterans who can fill that missing void of Luke Hughes
Santeri Hatakka
Hatakka got a little taste of the NHL experience when he came in to replace Brendan Smith, who was on IR last season. Hatakka looked comfortable in the position, finding ways to keep pucks in the zone. He was physical with 14 hits last season and 12 blocked shots. Also, Hattaka played a clean game with only 4 PIM in 12 games. All around, Hattaka looked solid, and he should’ve gotten more ice time, but he was sent back down once Brendan Smith returned. Now that the roster spot is open, Hatakka will do all he can to impress Keefe and try to make that year’s roster and fill the void of Luke Hughes.
Seamus Casey
One defensive prospect this year who might get all the buzz in camp is Seamus Casey. Casey is now eligible to play for the Devils this season, and last year at Michigan, he led all the defensemen on the roster with points with 45. One of Casey's valuable assets is his stick-handling skills and passing. A lot of his assists last year used his excellent puck vision. Casey has a chance to impress a lot of the coaches in training camp, and if he does make it, the defense could have a great player to assist the scoring before Luke Hughes returns.
Topias Vilen
Another defensive prospect who is returning to the rookie training camp to try and make a spot is Topas Vilen. Last year, Vilen scored 29 points, including 27 assists, in Utica. Before getting called to play in Utica, he went to the ECHL and played with the Adirondack Thunder, scoring 10 points in 6 games. One of the best aspects of Vilen’s game is his shot, which fits a lot of our defensemen in terms of offense. I do hope he earns that roster spot because I feel like he’s more than earned it.