Sheldon Keefe reveals the initial plan with Remi Poirier

Dallas Stars goaltender Remi Poirier (31) faces the Minnesota Wild attack during the first period at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Sheldon Keefe reveals the initial plan with Remi Poirier

Originally posted on Pucks and Pitchforks
By Nick Villano | Last updated Sep 30, 2026 7:05 PM ET

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The New Jersey Devils are preparing for the start of the 2026-27 season, with opening night taking place on Thursday with a home opener against the Philadelphia Flyers. It’s the official start of the Sunny Mehta era, who took over as GM after the Devils let go of long-time executive Tom Fitzgerald.

Mehta made a ton of moves this offseason to improve the Devils en route to a potential playoff run. He got rid of Jacob Markstrom and Simon Nemec in an effort to give himself flexibility under the salary cap. He used that extra money to add Luke Evangelista, Anthony Mantha, Evan Rodrigues, and Jesper Boqvist. He also re-signed Arseny Gristyuk, Nico Daws, and captain Nico Hischier to very good deals.

Meanwhile, everyone is excited about some of the Devils moves, but just about everyone is worried about the goaltending situation. The Devils added David Rittich this offseason, but after his rough second half, it didn’t build confidence behind Jake Allen and Daws.

And apparently, the Devils felt the same way. That’s why the Devils claimed former Dallas Stars goalie Remi Poirier off waivers on Sunday. The 24-year-old was great for the Stars’ AHL affiliate last season.

Now, the Devils are primed to give him a chance. But realistically, what kind of chance can they give him?

Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe revealed a little bit of the plan when it comes to Poirier. It sounds like he’s not a part of the plan, in fact.

#NJDevils goaltender Rémi Poirier was not on the ice, but was at the rink this afternoon.

When asked about him by @ACoronaNJD, #NJDevils HC Sheldon Keefe said, "My plan and my approach are to have Allen and Daws prepared to go. [Poirier] is really here as increased depth, but… https://t.co/HUCqMTu6YW
— Kristy Flannery (@InStilettos_NHL) September 30, 2026

It’s been three days since Poirier was claimed by the Devils and he hasn’t even really practiced with the full team yet. That tells us the Devils are still in evaluation mode. They are seeing if Poirier is a player they want to keep on the roster.

Remi Poirier needs an opportunity to shine

Poirier will get a chance with the Devils at some point. They do have a decision to make soon. With Johnny Kovacevic’s injury being a short-term one, he will eventually be coming off IR. Stefan Noesen and Jesper Boqvist will be options to put on waivers, but if the Devils are still at a point where they don’t see much value in Poirier to even consider playing him, they might put him right back on waivers.

Most believe the Devils will figure something out to give Poirier as much of an evaluation period as possible. If he is as good as many think he could be, the Devils will have to figure out who they want to cut from the team once they are healthy. It’s a good problem to have too many good players, but it’s a problem nonetheless.

First, Poirier has to get some real ice time and possibly even get a start for the Devils. Without that, it is probably going to be impossible to truly evaluate him.

Luckily, Rittich passed through waivers, so Poirier is not their only option in net if someone gets hurt. Still, without game action, putting Poirier back on waivers would be a mistake.

This article first appeared on Pucks and Pitchforks and was syndicated with permission.

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