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College Catch-Up: Casey Fitzgerald

By Laney Byler, 01/15/18, 6:45PM EST

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Junior captain Casey Fitzgerald looks to lead the Eagles back to a Frozen Four tournament

Casey Fitzgerald with Boston College (photo courtesy of John Quackenbos/Boston College)

Casey Fitzgerald with Boston College (photo courtesy of John Quackenbos/Boston College)

Growing up in Massachusetts, Casey Fitzgerald made it a habit of going to watch the Beanpot Hockey Tournament in Boston. As a young player whose cousins played for Boston College, he felt ties to the school from the start.  

Fast-forward to 2016, when Fitzgerald found himself on the other side of the glass. As a freshman at Boston College, he was finally playing in a tournament he had spent years watching as he grew up. And he clearly wanted to make his mark on the opportunity, as he scored the fastest goal in the Beanpot in 10 years, just one minute and 35 seconds into the Eagles’ game against Harvard.

“I went to a lot of Beanpots, which is a tournament in Boston,” Fitzgerald said. “It’s been around forever. All the Boston kids, hockey kids growing up would watch the Beanpot, it’s a big event.

“My freshman year we played Boston University in the finals and Boston College-Boston University is such a big rivalry, so it was a packed house. The whole place was sold out and it was surreal, I’ve never played for a crowd like that. So to play in front of that crowd and bring the Beanpot back to Boston College was an unforgettable moment I’ll have.”

Before playing with Boston College, Fitzgerald was a two-season defenseman for USA Hockey's National Team Development Program. He made his debut with the red, white and blue in 2013, where he recorded 11 points through three goals and eight assists while with the U17s. During that season, he won three international tournaments with the NTDP — one at the Four Nations Tournament in 2013, the World Hockey Under-17 Challenge in 2014 and the 2014 Five Nations Under-17 Tournament in Sweden.

While with the U18s, Fitzgerald increased his point output to 25 after scoring nine goals and 16 assists during the 2014-15 season. He also tacked on another gold medal with a win at the 2015 IIHF Under-18 World Championship in Zug and Lucerne, Switzerland.

“It was a big jump,” Fitzgerald said. “There was an adjustment period where I had to get used to the stronger and faster type of play in the USHL, but once I kind of got the hang of it, it elevated my game individually. It was the best thing for me personally to jump in at a young age at such a high level of hockey.”

Now, a junior and captain for Boston College, Fitzgerald has had plenty of opportunities to showcase that development. He was a part of the U.S. National Junior Team that won gold at the IIHF World Junior Championship in 2016 and has made key plays for the Eagles through his first three seasons.

 

Casey Fitzgerald with Team USA in 2014-15 (Photo by USA Hockey)

NTDP Career

  • Years: 2013-15
  • Games: 109
  • Goals: 12
  • Assists: 24
  • Points: 36
  • Notes: Participated in the 2014 CCM/USA Hockey All-American Prospects Game in Buffalo, New York. Was selected by the Buffalo Sabres in the third round (86th) in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft.

His freshman year, he assisted his older brother, Ryan, on a game-winning goal against Minnesota-Duluth and found his place as a top-scoring defenseman for Boston College to help the team make the Frozen Four in 2016.

This year, Fitzgerald is hoping to help his team get back to that tournament.

“As a team we want to win,” Fitzgerald said. “Whether that’s national championships or Beanpots, whatever it is, we want to win it all and do the best we can. As a captain, I want to lead by example and set the tone, especially for the younger guys. Last year we didn’t make the tournament, we were the last ones out, so that was alarming and definitely not okay with us because we don’t want to be the guys who let Boston College not make the tournament. For me personally, just have to ride that and not forget how that felt last year and not settling for anything less than winning.”

As the second half of the season kicks off, it’ll be up to Fitzgerald and the rest of the Eagles to make sure that happens — especially as the Beanpot and national tournament are only a a few months away.

 

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