It will be a tough week ahead for the New Jersey Devils. Devils will play the Philadelphia Flyers, Vegas Golden Knights, Detroit Red Wings, and Pittsburgh Penguins.
Yes, the Devils have beaten the Flyers twice this season but that is when they had been struggling. The Flyers have won two straight as of late and look to avenge their earlier losses. The Golden Knights bring their 16-11 winning record to the Rock on Thursday. Then the Devils travel to Michigan to take on the improved Detroit Red Wings on Saturday and the play their division rival Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday at the Rock.
These games will be tough as the Devils will try to gain ground in the standings. They need to beat the Flyers and Red Wings. Devils are currently five points out of a wild card spot.
Bernier’s Injury and Current Devils Goaltending Depth Chart
The Devils are going to lean on Mackenzie Blackwood to shoulder most of the load in net this week as Akira Schmid was recalled from Utica to fill in for goaltender Jonathan Bernier.
The signing of Jonathan Bernier was supposed to be a redo of Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald’s attempt last season to find a veteran goaltender to be a tandem with Mackenzie Blackwood. Corey Crawford, who surprisingly and suddenly, retired from hockey and the carousel of netminders of Scott Wedgewood, Eric Comrie, and Aaron Dell filled in while Blackwood was sidelined with Covid.
With Bernier out, the Devils at the moment will need to turn to rookie Akira Schmid to fill that role. Schmid’s AHL teammate, Nico Daws, was injured last week and the Comets had to turn to Mareks Mitens last Friday. Mitens, who played for Lake Superior State last season, was able to help the Comets beat the Cleveland Monsters 3-1 in his debut in Utica.
No question Lindy Ruff and the Devils are concerned about Bernier’s hip injury. Last season for the Detroit Red Wings, Bernier also went down with a lower body injury in mid-March after having a solid season in net for a rebuilding franchise. He was later dealt to the Carolina Hurricanes and did not play a game.
And the Devils gave Bernier an $8.25M contract for the next two years? Depending upon how serious the injury is, short-term, it might be an expensive problem and Fitzy may have to either turn to the Devils farm system or pursue another veteran goaltender elsewhere as a stop-gap solution. We may find out more details later this week.
Last Call For Virtual Toy Donations
LAST CHANCE to donate to our Virtual Toy Drive benefitting @BelieveinNewark to provide new toys this holiday season for Newark’s youth.
— New Jersey Devils (@NJDevils) December 12, 2021
$30 donation âž¡ï¸ 2 tix
$50 donation âž¡ï¸ 4 tix
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Sam Woo is co-host and executive producer of the Let's Go Devils Podcast which can be heard live every Sunday at 9pm ET and Wednesday at 8:30pm ET.
You can follow Sam on Twitter: @PrimetimeSamWoo