The beginning of the 2024-25 season has seen a lot of prospects shine in their respective leagues. From first goals in the NHL and NCAA to dominant performances from a couple of 2025 Draft eligibles, the first Prospects News and Rumors column has a lot of fun things to talk about. Let’s dive in!
Seamus Casey Scores First NHL Goal in Highlight-Reel Fashion
The NHL’s regular season kicked off in Prague, Czechia on Friday between the New Jersey Devils and Buffalo Sabres for the first game of the Global Series. With injuries to Brett Pesce and Luke Hughes, the Devils’ blue line had some spots open and Casey took advantage of the opportunity and won one of those spots for opening night. He played 13:14 in his debut with zeroes across his stat line, as the Devils beat the Sabres 4-1.
Related: Devils’ Seamus Casey Makes His Debut on Global Series Stage
Casey’s second game was much more eventful. He had less ice time, finishing with 12:09, but scored his first NHL goal on the power play when he toe-dragged past a defender and sniped it top corner behind Devon Levi.
The Sabres ended up taking the game 3-1 after goals by Paul Cotter and Timo Meier, with Casey walking away as the Player of the Game. Devils legend Patrik Elias presented him with the award, capping off a night he won’t soon forget.
McQueen & Misa Burst Out of the Starting Blocks
Roger McQueen and Michael Misa have already boosted their draft stock early in the season. Both prospects are eligible for the 2025 Draft and they are making an early case to be top-10 (or even top-five) picks. McQueen already has eight goals and 11 points in six games for the Brandon Wheat Kings and Misa has hit double-digits with 10 goals and 12 points in five games for the Saginaw Spirit. Misa currently leads the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) in goals by a wide margin; five ahead of Cooper Foster of the Ottawa 67’s. Meanwhile, McQueen is leading the Western Hockey League (WHL) in goals but is only one ahead of Shea Van Olm of the Spokane Chiefs.
McQueen started the season with a four-goal game against the Moose Jaw Warriors and is currently on a six-game point streak. He has failed to score in only one game – the Wheat Kings’ 5-1 win over the Regina Pats where he put up two assists – and just extended his goal streak to four games after another tally in a 4-3 shootout loss to the Swift Current Broncos on Saturday (Oct. 5).
Misa, on the other hand, has scored in every game he’s played so far. In fact, the Sarnia Sting are the only team to prevent him from scoring more than one goal. He has four multi-goal games, including a hat trick in the Spirit’s 6-4 win over the Soo Greyhounds on Sept. 27, and is coming off a three-point performance on Saturday where he put up two goals and an assist in his team’s 7-3 triumph over the Erie Otters. Thanks to Misa’s dominance, the 2024 Memorial Cup champs are 4-0-1 to start the season.
As of this writing, the latest draft rankings have McQueen going between fifth and 10th (THW’s own Peter Baracchini has him 10th in his preseason rankings), while Misa is ranked between third and seventh.
Eiserman, Hage & Hutson Start Their NCAA Careers Off With a Bang
The NCAA kicked off their season on Friday with six matchups. Montreal Canadiens top prospect Michael Hage made his debut with the Michigan Wolverines as the vaunted school took on the Minnesota State Mavericks. They fell 5-2, but Hage grabbed his first two points as a freshman with a couple of assists. The next day, the two met again, but this time it was the Wolverines walking with a 4-1 victory. Hage potted his first goal in the NCAA and now has four points in his first two games.
Cole Eiserman, the New York Islanders’ 20th overall pick in 2024, also made his debut on the weekend. He suited up for Boston University and blasted home his first at the college level on the power play against College of the Holy Cross. His shot was of course on full display as he one-timed a pass from Ryan Greene from the right faceoff circle. I have a feeling we will be seeing a lot of that same play this season from him.
But it wasn’t all fun and games for Eiserman in his freshman debut. Later in the second period, he was assessed a game misconduct for a hit to the head and was tossed from the game. He finished with a goal and 17 penalty minutes after a fighting major and a 10-minute game misconduct to go along with his two-minute roughing minor from the first period.
In addition to Eiserman, Cole Hutson also scored his first in the NCAA after being selected 43rd overall by the Washington Capitals in this year’s draft. It was a nice goal, too, as he burst past defenseman Mack Oliphant and wristed it five-hole on Thomas Gale. His older brother Quinn also had a night to remember, notching three assists.
That’s a wrap on the first edition of the Prospects News and Rumors. Stay tuned to The Hockey Writers all season long as we bring you more exciting performances from all the top prospects – drafted and draft-eligible – through this column and the other great writers on the site.
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