The New Jersey Devils did a lot this offseason that caught some eyes and got analysts talking. Signing Anthony Mantha raised some eyebrows and lifted the team’s ceiling. Trading Jacob Markstrom to the Florida Panthers for Evan Rodrigues and Jesper Boqvist got new GM Sunny Mehta some praise. Moving Simon Nemec for a package of futures was a slight disappointment, but given his recent comments, it seems like it was necessary.
However, besides the continued talk about Quinn Hughes, the offseason decision that caused the most conversation was how Mehta is attacking the goaltending position.
The Devils decided that throwing three average goalies at it was the best route forward. This isn’t trying to insult Nico Daws and Jake Allen. There are a lot of people who think both of them can be really good. Martin Brodeur has put his faith in Daws, and Allen is a veteran with a lot of great starts under his belt.
In fact, prior to the Olympic break, he had a 6.74 goals-saved above average, which ranked 20th in the league. Sheldon Keefe’s usage of Jake Allen after the Olympic break was insane. He would go weeks without playing a game, so we’re not taking those numbers into account. We’re not sure why the Devils took that route, but it makes his poor showings pretty irrelevant to what he could do this season.
David Rittich could still play a huge role in the Devils season
While Allen and Daws are the best bet to get a majority of the starts, there’s a reason to be excited about the potential of Rittich. We’re looking at a world where the Stanley Cup Champions had a goalie who wasn’t even in the league to start the season. Brandon Bussi was the breakout star in net for the Carolina Hurricanes, and now his name (along with an insane amount of Dundons) is on the Stanley Cup.
In the first half of the season, through December 31st, Rittich was 10th in the NHL with an 8.63 GSAA (Allen was 12th at the time). This was a massive surprise because Rittich was supposed to be in the AHL while Semyon Varlamov was the backup to Ilya Sorokin, but Rittich stepped up.
Then, something changed, and his numbers fell off.
In 2026, Rittich was terrible. He was the eighth-worst goalie in the league by GSAA, allowing almost 10 more goals than he should have at all strengths. He erased all the good from the first half of the season, and it was part of the reason why the Islanders eventually missed the playoffs. He wasn’t the sole reason, but a few more wins would have brought playoff hockey to Long Island.
What is the difference between 2025 Rittich and 2026 Rittich? The Islanders were suppressing shots very well in front of Rittich, but he was allowing too many bad goals. Twenty-two of the 39 goals he allowed since January 1st were not considered high-danger shots.
This seems like a confidence issue, and that’s why analysts say goaltending is voodoo. When Rittich was confident and keeping low-danger shots in his glove, he looked like a top goalie in the league. When he was missing those shots, he became a team’s third goalie.
Rittich could become something, but at worst, giving him 15-20 starts really limits his negative impact, if there is one. He might actually play very well.
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