Devils’ Goaltending Prospects Showing Promise

The New Jersey Devils’ goaltending situation has been a train wreck. They’ve given up the fourth-most goals per game in the league, with 3.55. The trio of Vitek Vanecek, Akira Schmid, and Nico Daws has combined for a dreadful minus-17.7 goals saved above expected (via MoneyPuck). That’s nearly one goal worse than last season, and it’s the primary reason the Devils were sixth in the Metropolitan Division heading into the All-Star Break.

In a recent press conference, when asked about the goaltending situation, general manager Tom Fitzgerald stated, “I’m not going to say I’m cool with it.”

Available goalies on the market are extremely scarce, and it remains unknown whether Fitzgerald will opt to salvage the season with an external acquisition. While it’s not what everybody wants to hear, the Devils have a talented young core whether or not they parlay this season into any success. With that, the two netminders in their system have turned heads lately – at last, some positive goaltending news.

Jakub Malek (2021 – Round 4, 100th Overall)

Jakub Malek is the only goalie in the Devils’ pipeline to have a >.900 save percentage (SV%) – The second is an undrafted free-agent signing. But hey, one is better than none, right?

The 6-foot-4 Czech-born goaltender has been stealing the show for Ilves in the Finnish Liiga – the highest level of professional hockey in Finland. In 22 games, he has an impressive 2.33 goals-against average (GAA) to go along with a .915 SV% and a dazzling 12-3-4 record. That’s right, at just 21 years old, he’s only taken a loss three times in regulation against some pretty tough competition. 

In six more games, Ilves’ other netminders have lost eight more times than Malek. He’s been stealing games left and right and is a big reason the team sits in first place amongst Liiga’s 15 teams. His save percentage ranks third in the league (min. 15 games played), and he has the fewest losses among goaltenders who fit that criteria, even though some have played up to seven fewer games.

Many netminders in recent years have seen their Liiga success translate to the NHL: Ville Husso, Lukas Dostal, and Alexander Georgiev, to name a few. At the Devils’ Development Camp this summer, Malek opened some eyes due to his large frame and steadiness in net – he’s a deceiving 6-foot-4, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it gets updated to 6-foot-5 or maybe even 6-foot-6.

Isaac Poulter (Undrafted Free Agent)

Isaac Poulter has been even more of a surprise. In his first three seasons in the Western Hockey League (WHL), he was unable to showcase his potential as the Swift Current Broncos were downright terrible. He went a dreadful 15-64-6, and his highest SV% in a season was .896% in 2019-20.

Related: Devils Mailbag: Playoffs, Goaltending, Coaching, & Grilled Cheese

But constant defensive breakdowns were commonplace, and Poulter, being on such a poor team, wasn’t given an opportunity on any of Canada’s biggest stages, including the Canadian Hockey League Playoffs and World Juniors. He went undrafted and returned to the WHL as an overager.

He played extremely well in that 2021-22 season, for a .911 SV% and 20-23-6 record. Swift Current was not a great team, but Poulter managed all but six of the team’s victories that year. Last season, that performance was enough to earn him 35 games between the ECHL and AHL (American Hockey League), where he had a .910 SV% and .883 SV% between the two leagues, respectively.

That earned him another one-year contract this season, where he’s played extremely well in the AHL. He’s started half of Utica’s 42 games, yet has 72.2% of their wins, going an impressive 13-5-1 coupled with a .909 SV%. In contrast, Akira Schmid has gone 3-4-4 with a .889 SV% since his demotion to Utica. Poulter, in a larger sample (so far), has been better and is worth considering for an NHL contract if his play continues.

The NHL has seen many undrafted goalies find long-term success: Sergei Bobrovsky, Cam Talbot, and Antti Raanta are just a few. While Malek certainly seems more promising, the sudden success of Poulter in a very tough league bears attention. Keep an eye on him.

Devils Can’t Bank on Rookies

Goaltenders are volatile, and very few around the league have strung together repeated dominant seasons. Therefore, the Devils can hope things pan out for these two, while not banking on them for their future success. Whether it’s before the trade deadline or in the offseason, the Devils would benefit from acquiring a netminder with a proven track record that can bring consistency in net.