Devils Start Development Camp with On-Ice Session | NOTEBOOK

The Devils development camp is underway as New Jersey hosts 33 players for five days of practices, team-bonding events, and a community outreach activity.

"Just knowing everyone, it's a lot of fun to be back," Seamus Casey shared about his second Devils development camp. "It's such a welcoming environment. Seeing a lot of the same guys, seeing some new faces which was fun to meet new people. Seeing everyone again is a lot of fun and they do a great job on the ice and off the ice. I'm excited to get going the rest of the week."

This year's roster includes players signed to AHL and NHL contracts, unsigned draft choices, and several players on a tryout/invite basis. The roster includes four goalies, 11 defensemen, and 18 forwards.

Several Devils selections from the 2023 Draft will take part in development camp including 58th-Overall pick Lenni Hameenaho, 122nd-Overall pick Cam Squires, 154th-Overall pick Chase Cheslock, and 164th-Overall pick Cole Brown.

Three players attending this year's camp have strong Devils connections through family members. Cam Recchi, son of former Devils Assistant Marc Recchi, Brendan Fitzgerald, son of Devils General Manager Tom Fitzgerald, and Will Dineen, son of Utica Comets head coach Kevin Dineen, were all invited to participate.

Today's Videos:

Player Interviews: Casey | Hameenaho | Stillman

Devils Now: Camp Rookie and Vets

First Practice in the Books

Both on-ice sessions were full of high paced drills, helping the players shake off the summer rust and get them ready for a busy week of practices, scrimmages, and a 3-on-3 tournament.

"It's been fun. It's always exciting when you get the chance to play competitive hockey in the summer," Erik Middendorf shared following Team White's practice. "The summer is so long so especially in pro hockey. In college, you go back to camp this early, but now that I graduated I'm excited to be competing in the summer. I was looking forward to this week for awhile."

"It was nice to shake off the car legs and the summer legs and just get on the ice with everyone, it was a good first day," Tim Rego said following his first day of development camp.

Development camp is also an opportunity for these players to learn from an NHL organization and use its resources to further their own development.

"I can't even describe how helpful it is," Ondrej Psenicka said about being at development camp and learning from the Devils. "We've been here a day but it already has done so much. I already gained a lot of experience and a lot of advice and recommendations from the coaching staff. It doesn't matter if it's on the ice or off the ice I'm trying to use the next couple of days to my advantage."

The Teams

The Devils held their first on-ice practices this week with Team White going first before Team Red finished out the day. Below are how the teams split up for Monday's practice.

Team White:

Goaltenders - Tyler Brennan and Cole Brady

Defensemen - Chase Cheslock, Tim Reno, Seamus Casey, Brendan Fitzgerald, and Santeria Hatakka

Forwards - Lenni Hameenaho, Ondrej Psenicka, Cole Brown, Xavier Parent, Erik Middendorf, Artem Shlaine, Jaromir Pytlik, and Timur Ibragimov

Team Red:

Goaltenders - Isaac Poulter and Jakub Malek

Defensemen - Topias Vilen, Spencer Cox, Luke Rowe, Charlie Leddy, and Viktor Hurtig

Forwards - Petr Hauser, Cam Squires, Luke Rowe, Samu Salminen, Filip Engaras, Cam Recchi, Josh Filmon, Will Dineen, Luke Grainger, and Owen Fowler

Chase Stillman and Ethan Edwards did not skate on Monday

Leadership Role

It's his third go-around with Devils development camp so Chase Stillman is well versed in what to expect this week. As a result, he's one of the leaders in the locker room and a resource for those players who are getting their first taste of an NHL camp.

"It's a little different now, thinking (about it being) my third one now," Stillman explained on Monday. "It's a nice responsibility to be the guy to help out now and tell them what to expect and things to learn from."

Stillman isn't participating in the on-ice sessions during development camp but he is still in attendance to serve as a leader and be a part of the experience regardless.

"I'm not skating this week down here," Stillman shared. "I think (being a leader) is one of the reasons they brought me down still. Just to be a leadership example, being one of the returning guys now. Help some of the younger guys, help some of the guys that are even my name or a little bit older but new to Jersey. It's nice to be that guy."

Hameenaho's Home

58th-Overall pick Lenni Hameenaho is attending his first Devils development camp after New Jersey selected him a few weeks ago at the 2023 NHL Draft. It's been a whirlwind for him since his NHL journey started.

"It's been crazy, the last two weeks. I'm happy that I'm here now," Hameenaho shared after Monday's practice. "It's great to see the organization stuff here, other players who are drafted for the Devils. It's great to be here."

Luckily for Hameenaho there's some familiar faces at camp with several of his countrymen also participating this week.

"I know the Finnish guys who are here also but otherwise all guys are new to me," Hameenaho said. "It's helping a lot that there's Finnish guys and one Finnish coach that I know."

Hameenaho shared he's expecting to be back in Finland next season for his second season with Assat in the top professional league, Liiga. He shared where he improved last year and what he's looking to achieve moving forward on Monday.

"I think smartest move for me is to play in Finland next year. (Become) a bigger player for the team there and get more ice time than last year," Hameenaho explained. "I was able to play in men's league the whole year (last year). I was able to get ice time more and more. I was able to score goals and make good plays also so it was a good season for me."