Devils' 2023-24 Season Was the Worst-Case Scenario

From injuries to poor goaltending and more, everything that could have gone wrong for the New Jersey Devils went wrong in 2023-24.

---

Follow us on Twitter: @AlexC_NJD, @NJD_OnTheRush

---

The New Jersey Devils' 2023-24 season did not go according to plan. Not even close. Before the season, most projections had the team with about a 90 percent chance to make the playoffs; Dom at The Athletic had them at 95 percent. 

With those odds, it would've taken the nuclear option of worst-case scenarios to miss the playoffs. Unfortunately, the nuclear option happened. Poor goaltending, injuries, regression defensively and more plagued the Devils and caused them to finish with a 38-39-5 record and 81 points in the standings. Let's look back at what went wrong. 

Devils Goaltending Tanked Again

This is easily the issue that plagued the Devils most in 2023-24. Vitek Vaněček and Akira Schmid had strong 2022-23 campaigns, so general manager Tom Fitzgerald decided to run it back with that tandem. That plan backfired, as neither goalie finished the season with the team. 

The Devils traded Vaněček to the San Jose Sharks for Kaapo Kähkönen at the trade deadline, while Akira Schmid finished 2023-24 in the AHL with the Utica Comets after the Devils acquired Jake Allen at the deadline. 

Vaněček was one of the worst goalies in the NHL at the time of the trade, allowing 11.2 goals above expected while posting an .890 save percentage. Why the Devils continued to trot him out as long as they did remains a mystery, but his play cost the team some points in the standings. 

Schmid looked impressive a season ago, but it was still too much, too fast for him this season. He could have used a full year in the AHL — like the Devils wanted heading into 2023-24 — but that wasn't possible since Fitzgerald did not acquire a goalie last offseason. 

In hindsight, they should have made a play for someone like Anthony Stolarz in free agency last July, but the past is the past. Now, addressing goaltending this offseason will be crucial. The Devils will certainly be players for Jacob Markström, Linus Ullmark and Juuse Saros, and they could always re-sign Kähkönen if worse comes to worst. If they don't address goaltending, expect this to be a problem again. 

Devils Defense Regressed Significantly