The New Jersey Devils finally fixed their goaltending situation this season. After adding Jake Allen at last year's trade deadline, the Devils traded for Jacob Markstrom in the summer. The tandem was one of the best in the league, with Markstrom in the Vezina conversation before an injury derailed what he was working on.
In the playoffs, Markstrom was one of the best goalies in the NHL. Despite only playing five games in the playoffs, he was still sixth in goals saved above average in the playoffs with 2.47 according to Natural Stat Trick.
The Devils have Markstrom signed to another year. He will be the Devils' starting goalie in 2025-26. The Devils also have Nico Daws, who looked great in the NHL this season, signed to a one-way deal next season. That doesn't necessarily mean he has to be in the NHL next season, but he does get his NHL salary whether he plays in New Jersey or Utica. He also loses waiver exemption next season, so the Devils would have to risk losing him to another team for free if they try to send him to the AHL.
All of that isn't even the biggest boundary to re-signing Jake Allen, who becomes an unrestricted free agent this offseason. The problem is the rest of the league. Plenty of teams could use a quality backup goalie, and Allen proved on multiple occasions that he can be the guy when it's absolutely necessary. He replaced Markstrom after his January injury, and he was great.
Jake Allen is the best of a bad bunch of free agents
There is basically nobody available in free agency this season. Allen is considered the best option, which means he will be too expensive for the Devils. They only have around $12 million in cap space without any cost-cutting moves. They have to re-sign Luke Hughes, which will take up more than half of that space. This is with no upgrades to the bottom six. Adding even $3 million to the cap sheet makes this offseason impossible.
The Devils would love to keep their tandem together. Tom Fitzgerald said as much in his end-of-season press conference. He was direct with the media, saying he will be speaking with Allen's agent about his future.
Not only are there no better backups on the market, but Allen might get himself a starting position. There is no goalie worth a darn on the market. Ilya Samsonov is fine, but he's been awful in spurts. Alexander Georgiev was traded as a negative asset to the San Jose Sharks.
At one point, this was supposed to be a superstar goalie market, with names like Igor Shesterkin, Adin Hill, Mackenzie Blackwood, and Logan Thompson who were expected to be unrestricted free agents. They all signed long-term extensions. Now, the available options are undesirable. Allen is the best of the bunch, and he might get a contract that shocks everyone. No matter what, Allen is a luxury the Devils cannot afford.