The New Jersey Devils will have three goaltenders at practice Monday, as Mackenzie Blackwood has been recalled from his conditioning stint and will rejoin the group. Despite the return, he is still listed on injured reserve for the time being.
Blackwood, 26, recorded an .891 save percentage in two appearances for the Utica Comets, winning one and losing the other. The big netminder is working his way back from a knee injury that kept him out since the beginning of November, and his return will put the Devils in a bit of a pickle. While Akira Schmid is only up on an emergency loan and can be assigned back to the minor leagues without issue, he also has been excellent for the team this year. Through eight appearances, Schmid has a .932 save percentage and has only allowed more than two goals once.
For a team that has its eyes set on contending for the Stanley Cup after a brilliant start to the year, swapping out Schmid for Blackwood is a scary thought, even if the team says it has confidence in the former. Blackwood hasn’t been good (or healthy) for quite some time, posting an .897 save percentage since the start of the 2020-21 season. Hopefully, he can get back on the track that made him one of Canada’s top up-and-coming goaltenders a few years ago, but that is anything but guaranteed at this point.
The Devils can’t afford to have him playing at a poor level, especially when they have Schmid waiting in the wings. A trade rumor target for a while now, it remains to be seen whether Blackwood has a future in New Jersey past this season. He’ll be a restricted free agent at the end of the year and is owed a $3.36M qualifying offer.
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