New Jersey Devils acquire Vitek Vanecek from Washington Capitals
The New Jersey Devils have acquired goaltender Vitek Vanecek from the Washington Capitals, the club announced Friday morning.
The Capitals sent Vanecek and pick No. 46 in the 2022 NHL Draft to the Devils in exchange for picks No. 37 and 70.
#BREAKING (for real this time):
We got a goalie! 😤#DevilsDraft | @Verizon pic.twitter.com/647lozfQG9
Vanecek, 26, posted a 20–12–6 record and a .908 save percentage in 42 games with the Capitals last season. He went 1–1 with an .863 save percentage in two appearances during the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The Capitals originally selected Vanecek in the second round (No. 39 overall) of the 2014 NHL Draft. He debuted as the team’s backup goaltender in 2020–21 before being selected by the Seattle Kraken in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft; Seattle traded Vanecek back to Washington just a few days later.
Vanecek is a pending restricted free agent with arbitration rights. The Devils currently have three goaltenders under contract for the 2022–23 season: Mackenzie Blackwood, Nico Daws, and Akira Schmid, all of whom played NHL games in 2021–22.
The Devils selected Simon Nemec with the No. 2 pick in the first round of the draft and are set to make seven selections (46, 102, 110, 126, 141, 166, and 198) on day two.
The Capitals are now likely in the market for a goaltender to round out a tandem with Ilya Samsonov. Washington selected Ivan Miroshnichenko with the No. 20 pick and is in line to make six selections (37, 70, 85, 149, 181, 213) from rounds two to seven.