Keefe Explains Decision to Sit Hellebuyck

Connor Hellebuyck wanted to face his former Winnipeg Jets teammates on Tuesday night, but the New Jersey Devils have decided to hold their star goaltender out of action for his highly anticipated return to Canada Life Centre.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday morning, Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe explained the reasoning behind the decision, pointing to Hellebuyck's recent workload, conditioning and the demanding schedule his team has faced.

"The competitor in me, of course, says hey, let's get Connor out there, let's go, let's get at it," Keefe laughed. "But as I said, Sunny made the decision that he didn't want him to be a part of this one."

Keefe said that under normal circumstances, Hellebuyck would not have been considered for the start, regardless of the emotional significance of facing his former team - citing the team press release from GM Sunny Mehta on Sunday night.

"If we were in any other city, there's no chance he'd be playing in this game," Keefe said.

"We just played four games in six nights, he played three of them. And the big context in all of this is that, despite the fact that Helle's a veteran, he's played a lot of hockey, and he's a high-volume starter, he's still only two weeks into this, we're still building him up."

Keefe also pointed to a recent appearance on short rest in which Hellebuyck struggled, reinforcing the organization's decision to manage his workload carefully.

The Devils have navigated an rather challenging stretch of their schedule, playing 10 games in 19 days across eight cities and three time zones.

For a goaltender who missed training camp and the preseason, Keefe believes the additional rest is necessary. He also acknowledged that Hellebuyck had expressed a strong desire to participate in Tuesday's game.

"He also feels, in his words, it's his duty to play this game," Keefe added.

Keefe made sure to defend his GM's decision though, despite some minor pushback.

"Every decision Sunny makes for our organization is done with logic and reason and without emotion attached, and that has served us extremely well to this point in the early going."

Instead, Jake Allen will get the start for New Jersey, while former Devils netminder and Allen's former co-crease inhibitor Nico Daws will be in goal for Winnipeg.

Keefe had high praise for Daws, who was part of the organization before the circumstances surrounding Hellebuyck's arrival changed the Devils' plans.

"Just two weeks ago, we were building Nico Daws up to be a guy that's going to start 40-plus games for us and be a huge part of our team," Keefe said.

"Any time he's played for me in New Jersey, he's done extremely well. Big guy, solid, love how he moves in the net."

As for this evening's environment awaiting the Devils, Keefe said his team is prepared for an emotional evening.

"It's not often you get to play in a hostile environment in November for a regular season game," he said.

Despite the attention surrounding Hellebuyck's return, Keefe expects a competitive matchup against a Winnipeg team that has played well against some of the NHL's top opponents.

"We're expecting a tight game here today, despite all the circumstances."