Vancouver Canucks secure Cory Schneider for three years with $12 million -NHL offseason Update
One if not the other, Vancouver Canucks were able to secure one of their two goalies on Thursday, June 28, 2012, by signing on Cory Schneider for the next three seasons with a $12 million contract, announced general manager, Mike Gillis.
Schneider was set to become a restricted free agent by the July 1st deadline after his two-year, $1.8 million contract would end, but Vancouver Canucks did not take a risk in letting their goalie test a free agency thirsty for net minders.
“I wouldn’t say we feared that, but it would have added a layer of headache that I don’t think any of us needed,” Gillis told The Vancouver Sun. “This removes a level of uncertainty.”
“We’re very pleased to have Cory signed. He’s a young player who’s a very good player, a good person and a good teammate. Why wouldn’t you want to have someone like that to be part of your organization?” Gillis added.
For Schneider, the deal could not have been any better. The 26-year-old backup goalie was making $900,000 a year with his previous deal but now has been boosted to a cool $4 million in annual earnings, giving him a major boost of confidence for sure.
This came due to the possibility of having Roberto Luongo, the Canucks veteran goalie, traded sometime this offseason due to the tussle going on between him and the Vancouver team.
Schneider will be a player that Vancouver is looking towards to fill the gap, which can be seen by his immense salary boost, but not ever having played as much as Luongo, Schneider could be facing a tough time.
“Cory has been in this organization as long as I’ve been here. We’ve watched him develop ... into one of the top young players in the game. He’s a very important part of our hockey team,” Gillis added.
According to sources, Vancouver Canucks are looking for some defensive depth after they lost Christian Ehrhoff last season after letting him test the free agency. It is believed that Canucks want to use Luongo to get an elite defenseman but nothing has come
out in the media as of yet.
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