Mackenzie Blackwood not Expected to Receive Qualifying Offer
Finally, and I mean finally, the Devils have decided to let Mackenzie Blackwood walk. Before his injuries and underperforming play, they considered Blackwood to be a future star goaltender for the Devils. Well, that couldn’t be more wrong. New Jersey will not be giving Mackenzie Blackwood his $3.36 million qualifying offer, per Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff.
“Blackwood is far and away the most likely player to not be issued a qualifying offer this spring,” he wrote. “Seen as recently as two years ago as one of the promising, up-and-coming young goaltenders, Blackwood’s stock has dropped steadily by a combination of injury and inconsistent play.
“Over the last three years, he’s appeared in 82 games with a .897 save percentage. It’s possible the Devils could try to find a suitor ready to rehab Blackwood for a late-round pick, but every team knows he’s set to become a UFA otherwise.“
A combination of factors led to the Devils not extending Blackwood. In fact, this decision is a layup for New Jersey, and they should have done it earlier.
New Jersey has finally found their goaltender duo of the future in Vitek Vanecek and Akira Schmid. The two goalies found their stride this season, but turned it up a notch in the playoffs. In the first round of the playoffs, Schmid took over in Game 3 against the Rangers. Schmid would go onto carry the Devils in their next four out of five games to advance to the second round.
The Devils will look to move forward with Vanecek and Schmid next season as their goalie duo in hopes of returning to the playoffs for the second year in a row.
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