you have to think about it terms of his total development curve. rookie year there were high expectations with housley as the new coach, but the roster was still awful and housley was soon revealed as not the right guy.
botteril then brings in kruger who fails spectacularly, especially in developing the young players…. casey gets sent down, people begin to say he’s a bust, etc etc.
the following year is covid. kind of a wash/sea change year for the entire organization. adams comes in, kruger is rightfully canned, granato is now the coach but no one thinks he’s actually the guy.
21-22 is donny’s first full year as coach. our young players begin to really take off. this is casey’s injury problem year.
and now this season, he’s actually getting a real chance. no disgruntled players on the roster, a coach that is actually good, and a whole bunch more talent around.
it’s not a mystery why he has been leaps and bounds better this year in comparison to his earlier years. his entire development was botched by the organization. i honestly think he is going to be a great player for us. it was a winding path, but after this season i think the ship has been righted