Devils re-sign Nico Daws to two-year, $812,500 AAV contract

One of the top netminding prospects out east is sticking around for a couple more years.

On Tuesday, New Jersey Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald announced the team has re-signed goaltender Nico Daws to a two-year, two-way contract. The deal carries an NHL AAV of $812,500 through the 2025-26 season.

There is a different wrinkle in Daws’ contract. For the 2024-25 campaign, the contract is a two-way deal, with a $775,000 salary in the NHL, and $350,000 in the minor leagues, with $465,000 guaranteed. The second year is a one-way contract, with Daws being paid $850,000.

The 23-year-old was originally taken by the Devils in the third round, 84th overall, in the 2020 NHL Draft. After spending the 2020-21 season in Germany with ERC Ingolstadt (DEL), Daws joined the organization, spending the last three seasons with both New Jersey and its American Hockey League affiliate, the Utica Comets.

The München, Germany native played the bulk of the 2021-22 season with the Devils, setting a decent 10-11-1 record, with a 3.11 goals-against average and .893 save percentage. Daws did not appear in any games with New Jersey in 2022-23, spending the entire campaign with the Comets. However, that changed this past season, as he played in 21 games with Devils, going 9-11-0 with a 3.15 GAA and .894 SV%.

Daws also started for New Jersey in the 2024 Stadium Series game against the Philadelphia Flyers, leading the team to its first outdoor game win. He set a new outdoor game record by making 45 saves in the 6-3 win.

In 46 career NHL appearances, Daws is 19-22-1, registering a 3.13 GAA and .894 SV%. In 64 AHL games, he has gone 32-24-7 with a 2.68 GAA, a .906 SV%, and three shutouts. In 10 Calder Cup Playoff appearances, the former Guelph Storm backstop is 5-5 with a 2.74 GAA, a .910 SV% and one shutout.

Daws has been fortunate to represent Canada on a couple of occasions. The dual citizen was on the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship team that won gold, as well as making his debut with the senior national team this past spring in Czechia, playing one game for Canada at the 2024 IIHF Men’s World Championship.