New Jersey Devils General Manager Sunny Mehta did well to shed the contract (and playing ability) of Jacob Markstrom this offseason. He moved a contract that former GM Tom Fitzgerald never should have signed and gained positive assets in the form of players who should increase the team’s depth. At the same time, there was no goalie in the return, meaning the Devils needed to look internally or elsewhere find a partner for Jake Allen. As the next few days of free agency continued on, the team basically
did both.
Nico Daws was re-signed by the team for two more years at $1.1 million per season. What’s important to quickly note here is that the deal is one-way, meaning regardless of Daws playing in the NHL or AHL, he’s going to be paid the same amount. Typically a team doesn’t sign a player to a one-way deal if they don’t expect them to see NHL action. While that signing initially seemed to signal that the pairing would be Allen/Daws, the Devils would then go out and sign veteran David Rittich to a one year, $1 million, one-way contract.
It would be easy to write Rittich off as depth, especially because his numbers from the last couple of seasons are not great. He has, however played 34 and 30 games (starting 31 and 28 of them respectively) the last two seasons, and his 2025-26 stats were, for the most part, better than Markstrom’s. With all three goalies on one-way deals, and with the history of each player, could the Devils be looking at rotating all three, at least to start the season?
First, let’s quickly address Jake Allen: his spot is safe. If the Devils do go with a three goalie rotation, unless Jake is hurt or sick, he’s at least going to be serving as the back-up, if not starting the game. He played well last season and it will be worth watching to see if Allen can continue to put up strong numbers with a potential larger workload. Improved depth players in front of him should help as well, as having better players in front of him to move the puck in the opposite direction should hopefully have a positive impact on his numbers. Also, let’s not forget, he’s the only one of the three carrying a full no-trade clause this season.
As for Daws and Rittich, whether the idea was to have competition for training camp or to run three goalies, I don’t think either one of these guys signed to be strictly in the AHL. Rittich had a decent NHL season for an Islanders team that wasn’t much better than the Devils last season while Daws struggled in Utica behind a very uninspiring Comets squad. That alone might make one think that Rittich has an inside track over Daws, but then why sign Nico #2 to a one-way deal if he’s viewed as a third string guy who likely ends up in the AHL? If both of them start the season in New Jersey, I could see it being an audition of sorts to see if either guy can grab the reins and bring some stability to the position alongside Allen.
Now the good news is it’s still only July; the start of training camps is over two months away. Nothing is set in stone yet, including whatever plan the Devils may have for their goalies. I honestly believe this season could be a patchwork of sorts for goaltending due to Mehta not being impressed with the majority of free agents or not wanting to pay the price for anyone who is rumored to be available via trade. Goaltending is still an area needing addressing, but we’ve seen teams win with average net minding. Mehta may be playing the long game in seeing who becomes available beyond this season while not mortgaging the future.
If that is indeed the case, let’s hope this group is good enough to find success for the Devils in 2026-27.
What are your thoughts on the Devils potentially starting the season with three goalies; is it a good plan or a bad one to you? Do you foresee this being a training camp battle to determine the top two of the group? Do you think the team starts with three and eventually sends someone to Utica if the team remains healthy? Is there any concern you have that the team might lose a goalie if they waive them? Leave any and all comments down below and thanks as always for reading!
