Devils 2024 WJC Preview: Casey & Hämeenaho

The 2024 World Junior Championships kicks off on Dec. 26. Here's what New Jersey Devils fans should expect from Seamus Casey and Lenni Hämeenaho.

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The New Jersey Devils have had their fair share of prospects make appearances at the World Junior Championships in recent years. That won't necessarily be the case for 2024, when the tournament kicks off tomorrow in Gothenburg, Sweden, at least not to the extent of when they were rebuilding.

But two of their prospects — Seamus Casey and Lenni Hämeenaho — will be worth watching at the nine-day tournament. Let's look at what to expect from them with Team USA and Team Finland. 

Casey to Play Big Role for Team USA

The Devils got a bit lucky when they drafted Casey in the 2022 draft. Used with the second-round pick they acquired in the Vitek Vaněček trade on Day 2 of the 2022 draft, Casey fell into their laps with the 46th overall pick. 

Casey has done nothing but justify that selection since then. He had a very solid freshman season with the Michigan Wolverines in 2022-23, finishing with eight goals and 29 points in 37 games. He's been even better this season, with 23 points in 18 games for the Wolverines before joining the Team USA for the WJC. 

Casey hasn't just been one of the Wolverines' best players this season, either. He's been one of the best defensemen in the NCAA. Based on microstats tracked by Elite Prospects' Lassi Alanen, Casey has done just about everything right this season:

As Alanen states in his tweet, Casey's playmaking has been off the charts. He's setting up his teammates (shot assists and slot passes per 60), but he's also creating a ton for himself (shots/60, ixG/60). 

Casey excels in transition, though that's not a surprise. He's an excellent skater with incredible edgework, so expect Team USA to use him to create offense. 

The one area for the Devils fans to pay extra attention to is how Casey handles puck retrievals on opponents' forechecks. That's the one area where he didn't track well in Alanen's data, but that's also not a surprise since he's 5-foot-10, 160 pounds. That's always a concern with smaller defensemen, but Casey is so good at the other parts of his game (skating, playmaking, transition) that he could thrive in the NHL. 

Team USA will have Casey paired with Zeev Buium, one of the top defense prospects for the 2024 draft. Buium is a consensus first-round prospect and could go somewhere in the top 20 in June. He has 25 points in 18 games for the University of Denver this season and will bring many of the same offensive instincts as Casey. 

Here's what Team USA GM John Vanbiesbrouck had to say about the pairing (via Connor Earegood of The Hockey News):

“That’s where we have an advantage, I think,” Vanbiesbrouck said. “I mean, the other teams are gonna have great shifty young (defensemen), the Finns got a super guy back there — we all know that. I look at Zeev as a guy who can really execute at a high level, and both him and Seamus can really push our team.”

It'll be interesting to see how Casey fares with Buium, but Team USA appears to be playing him to his offensive strengths. On a team easily capable of winning gold, Casey should end up being one of their top players. 

Hämeenaho Should Be One of Finland’s Top Players

The other Devils prospect heading to Gothenburg, Sweden, is Lenni Hämeenaho, who the Devils selected in the second round of the 2023 draft. He's had a breakout season with Porin Ässät in the Finnish Liiga, with 11 goals and 17 points in 26 games, putting him on pace to finish with 23 goals and 35 points. 

There are obvious issues with Hämeenaho's skating. His stride is a bit wonky, and he needs to become more explosive. That will come in time as he continues to develop, but I wouldn't ever expect him to evolve into a great skater. 

Hämeenaho likely doesn't need to be a great skater, though. One of the reasons the Devils drafted him was because of his high-end hockey sense. We've seen some of the goals he's scored for Ässät this season via social media, but he always seems to know when to be in the right spot in the offensive zone. 

Here's what Alanen had to say about Hämeenaho in his Team Finland preview for the 2024 WJC (via Elite Prospects): 

"Despite the obvious skating flaws, Lenni Hämeenaho has developed into a legitimate top-line forward for Ässät in his second Liiga season, even if he's cooled off a bit since his red-hot start. His scoring touch, nose for the net and intelligence away from the puck could make him an ideal partner for Helenius, and it wouldn't surprise me if the two ended up racking up the most points on the team."

Lines aren't set in stone and could easily change throughout the tournament. But it appears Hämeenaho will skate on Finland's top line with Konsta Helenius (top 2024 prospect) and Jani Nyman (Seattle Kraken). There's certainly the potential for him to be one of Finland's best players and perhaps one of the better forwards of this year's WJC. 

The Devils may only have two prospects at the 2024 WJC, but both figure to play big minutes and important roles for their teams. The action kicks off tomorrow, with Finland taking on Canada (8:30 AM EST) and Team USA taking on Norway (11:00 AM EST).