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Cory Schneider has an outstanding season for New Jersey Devils

By Nick Ziegler

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The New Jersey Devils finished their 2014-15 season on a disappointing note with a 3-2 loss to the Florida Panthers. With the Devils’ season now over, it gives time to reflect on the positives and negatives for the season.

One of the biggest positives for the Devils this season, and last season, was the great job in the net by goalie Cory Schneider. Last season was the first in New Jersey for Schneider after five seasons with the Vancouver Canucks mainly as their backup.

Schneider was drafted with the 26th overall pick in the 2004 NHL Draft by the Canucks, but it would be two seasons before he became their normal backup. He played in a bout 30 games a year for the Canucks in the final three seasons there. Schneider had a winning record as their backup, and his stats were also very impressive. After three straight solid seasons as the backup for the Canucks, Schneider was traded to the Devils for first-round pick Bo Horvat.

In his first season with the Devils last season, Schneider started in a little more than half of the Devils’ games. In 43 starts last season, Schneider totaled a 16-15-12 record, 1.97 GAA, and a .921 save percentage. It became apparent quickly that Schneider was going to be the successor for future Hall-of-Famer Martin Brodeur.

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With Martin no longer on the team in the 14-15 season, Schneider was the starting goalie from day one. This season, Schneider played in a career-high 69 games with 68 starts, and his production was once again very good for the Devils.

In his first true season as the clear-cut number one goalie, Schneider would have a 26-31-9 record, 2.26 GAA, .925 save percentage, and five shutouts. The record could have been a lot better for Schneider, but with the Devils ranking 28th in the league in goals per game with just 2.1 goals a game, Schneider needed to be nearly perfect to win.

Individually, Schneider’s stats were among the best in the NHL, as he ranked fifth in save percentage ahead of goalies like Henrik Lundqvist and Tuukka Rask. In goals against average, Schneider was also in the Top 10 in the NHL, as he was tied for ninth with St. Louis Blues’ goalie Brian Elliot.

The Devils recognized what Schneider could be after last season, as they locked him up with a seven-year, $42 million contract. Schneider is just 29-years-old, and looks to be a staple in the goal for the Devils for a long time to come.

In the offseason, their will surely be change for the Devils, but they won’t have to worry about upgrading at goalie with Schneider in net.

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