Casey was born in Miami on January 8, 2004, to Steve and Karen Casey. When he was around the age of five the family moved to Fort Myers, Florida, where he met future Columbus Blue Jackets draft pick Gavin Brindley, who became a close friend and with whom he would play youth, junior, and collegiate ice hockey.[1]
At twelve, Casey moved to Detroit to play for the Compuware Youth Hockey AAA program.[1]
Playing career
Youth and junior
Casey was scouted by the University of Michigan while playing for Compuware, at a game in which he was moved to forward due to injuries.[1] He committed to Michigan in October 2018.[2]
In the 2020–21 season with the NTDP, Casey's 36 points and 28 assists in 48 games ranked first among U17 team defensemen.[4]
Returning to the NTDP for the 2021–22 season, he scored 33 points in 48 games, second among defensemen on the U18 team behind Lane Hutson.[5] He was chosen as one of the top draft-eligible junior players in the United States to attend the 2023 USA Hockey All-American Game.[6] After the season, he was selected in the second round of the 2022 NHL entry draft, 46th overall by the New Jersey Devils, the team he supported as a child.[7]
Collegiate
Making good on his commitment to Michigan, Casey joined fellow Devils draftees Luke Hughes and Ethan Edwards on the Wolverines for the 2022–23 season.[8] He scored a respectable 29 points in 37 games, second to Hughes among Michigan defensemen, and played one game at center, an exhibition match against the NTDP in which he had two goals and an assist.[7] Michigan won the Big Ten Conference, but lost in the semifinals of the 2023 Frozen Four to the eventual champions, Quinnipiac University.[9]
Casey turned professional on May 6, 2024, after signing a three-year, entry-level contract with the Devils.[11] To start the 2024–25 season and in part because of injuries to Brett Pesce and Luke Hughes, he made the Devils' opening night roster out of training camp, traveling to Prague for a season-opening two-game series against the Buffalo Sabres as part of the 2024 NHL Global Series. He made his NHL debut on October 4, 2024, a 3–1 Devils win, and scored his first NHL goal the following day, tying the game on the power play in the second period of the 4–1 Devils victory.[12][13] Ten days later, in a 3–0 victory over the Utah Hockey Club, he would record three more career firsts: his first assist and game-winning goal for his first multi-point game.[14][15]
Casey traveled with Team USA to the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship, but did not dress for any games. Michigan teammate and fellow Devils draftee Luke Hughes also attended the tournament.[17] The following year, however, at the 2024 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, he would be rostered,[18] and would record six assists in six games en route to a gold medal. He missed one game due to illness.[19]
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