Devils Stock Up & Stock Down Through 3 Preseason Games

Which New Jersey Devils have improved their stock through 3 preseason games? And who has more work to do?

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The New Jersey Devils still have four preseason games remaining on their schedule. But it's technically one, considering the NHL roster will be traveling to Prague this weekend for the Global Series after they take on the New York Islanders tonight.

With that, it seems like a good time to take stock of some players, line combos and trends through the Devils' first three preseason games. Whose stock is trending up? And who's trending down?

Stock Up: Seamus Casey

This was an easy one, right? Seamus Casey made his preseason debut Tuesday night against the Montreal Canadiens and showed well, grabbing the attention of head coach Sheldon Keefe. Even with a back-to-back, Keefe threw Casey back in against the Washington Capitals on Wednesday night, and he had an even better performance.

Injuries to Luke Hughes, Brett Pesce, and possibly Santeri Hatakka have opened up an opportunity for Casey to begin his pro career in the NHL. But it's not just injuries that are giving him a chance. So far, he's earning it.

Concerns about not being able to defend well enough in the NHL at 5-foot-10, 180 pounds, have been erased for now, as Casey's defending has been impressive through two games.

Not only has Casey defended well, but his patience with the puck has been impressive, considering he's making the jump from the NCAA. He's shown off his puck skills and elite skating, and Keefe clearly likes what he's seen so far. If he knocks it out of the park against the Islanders tonight, I'd bet on him heading to Prague.

Stock Down: the Dillon & Hamilton Pair

I never like to put too much stock into advanced stats during the preseason, but the Brenden Dillon and Dougie Hamilton pairing hasn't looked great in their two outings.

Though it's only been in a sample of 30 minutes, Dillon and Hamilton have an expected goals share (xG%) of 38.43 percent. They've been leaky defensively, allowing 3.15 expected goals per 60 minutes, and it's not like they've been playing against full NHL lineups yet.

It'll be interesting to see what Keefe does with these two. It might just take more reps for them to get going, but some options might make more sense (Jonas Siegenthaler) than Dillon and Hamilton.