Devils Moving Forward With a Goalie Trio. Will It Work?
Sunny Mehta is taking a different approach to New Jersey Devils goaltending. Will it pay off?
Subscribe now and save 50% for 1 year for full access to DOTR. This deal will expire at 11:59 PM EST on July 8:
Former general manager Tom Fitzgerald did what he could to address the New Jersey Devils’ goaltending situation, but most of it did not work out.
Vitek Vanecek had success during the 2022-23 season, totaling a .911 save percentage and helping lead the Devils to a 52-win season. Akira Schmid was a quality backup that season as well, but otherwise, goaltending has been a problem.
That’s why general manager Sunny Mehta is taking a different approach to the Devils’ goaltending situation this summer.
Out is Jacob Markström, and in are Nico Daws and David Rittich, with Jake Allen seemingly taking over as the 1A.
It’s a risky move, but it’s a similar setup to what the Carolina Hurricanes had in net with Pyotr Kochetkov, Brandon Bussi, and Frederik Andersen. Will it work?
Examining the Devils’ Goalie Trio
There’s no question that Allen has been the Devils’ better goaltender over the last two seasons. He finished the 2024-25 season with a .908 save percentage while saving 18.4 goals above expected.
Allen was not as good this past season, but he still finished with a .904 save percentage while stopping 6.3 goals above expected.
Meanwhile, Markström struggled over the last two seasons, especially after he suffered an MCL sprain in January 2025. He finished this past season with an .883 save percentage while allowing 11.9 goals above expected.
That’s why Mehta thought it was best to trade Markström before his two-year extension kicked in on July 1. But at least to this point, Mehta hasn’t swung big for a goaltending upgrade.
For now, Rittich is the only goaltending addition the Devils have made. He may not excite anyone, but he was solid for the New York Islanders last season.
Rittich finished with a .894 save percentage, and wherever you look, he saved above expected:
MoneyPuck: +4.2 GSAx
Natural Stat Trick: +9.31 GSAx
Evolving Hockey: +14.34 GSAx
Hockey Stats: +6.82 GSAx
Those are solid numbers across the board for Rittich, and it’s not like the Islanders had a particularly great defensive environment. They allowed 2.93 expected goals per 60 minutes at five-on-five, the third-worst rate in the NHL.
Rittich and Ilya Sorokin faced dangerous looks almost nightly. But they handled it well and are a significant reason the Islanders hung around the playoff race until the end of the season.
Rittich has a solid resumé as well. He’s totaled an .899 save percentage since the start of the 2023-24 season (88 games played), just above the league average over that stretch, and he was particularly great in 2023-24.
During the 2023-24 season with the Los Angeles Kings, Rittich totaled a .921 save percentage and saved 13.8 goals above expected. He was the Kings’ best goaltender that year.
Would I expect Rittich to post a .921 save percentage again? Probably not, but he should be able to give the Devils average-to-slightly-above-average netminding.
Because Allen is not the type of goalie who can really make more than three consecutive starts, Rittich will get his fair share of looks. He made 28 starts for the Islanders last season and has made 20+ starts in each of the last three seasons. He will play.
Then there’s the Nico Daws of it all. Daws has not played much in the NHL over the last two seasons, but the very small sample size is encouraging.
Daws appeared in six games during the 2024-25 season and saved 4.9 goals above expected while compiling a save percentage of .939.
This past season, Daws made three starts for the Devils, saving 0.4 goals above expected and totaling a save percentage of .908. Is there something there? It’s hard to say, given the sample size, but Mehta must see something.
I expect the Devils to start with an Allen-Rittich tandem, but Daws will play. They re-signed Daws to a two-year deal at an AAV of $1.1 million, and I can’t envision Allen and Rittich each making 42 starts. Daws will probably get his looks, too, even if it’s only 10 to 15-ish starts.
Goalie Trio Can Work, but Devils Roster Still Needs Work
What’s most notable about the Devils’ goaltending trio is that all three have cap hits below $2 million. Allen is the most expensive at $1.8 million, and combined, they do not equal Markström’s $6 million cap hit.
What that tells me is that Mehta has more plans for the Devils’ skater group, even if the Utah Mammoth decline to match the offer sheet the Devils tendered to Barrett Hayton.
Mehta will have to clear some cap space, but it wouldn’t surprise me if he’s seeking to acquire a top-six winger and/or a puck-moving defenseman. That would have been difficult to do with Markström on the books at a $6 million cap hit.
Having that financial flexibility in net will allow Mehta to put more money into the group in front of the Devils’ netminders, and he will need to.
Even though the Devils are more or less moneyballing their goaltending situation, it comes with its risks. That’s not to say it won’t work, but goalies are voodoo, and the skater group will need to be better as a result.
The Hurricanes’ three-goalie system worked because the team in front of their netminders was almost immaculate. The Devils are not in that position yet, so Mehta still has work to do.
Regardless, I like that Mehta is taking a different approach to goaltending than Fitzgerald. It’s thinking outside the box, but he has to make some more improvements to the roster, even if they sign Hayton.
Otherwise, what’s a sound strategy on paper could backfire on the Devils. That’s why adding Hayton can’t be the final move of the offseason if the Devils plan on going into next season with Allen, Rittich, and Daws as their netminders.
Advanced stats from MoneyPuck and Natural Stat Trick, except where noted