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Cory Schneider: A Bounce Back Coming For New Jersey Devils

By Kalven Hammer

RALEIGH, NC - APRIL 4: Cory Schneider #35 of the New Jersey Devils hugs the pipe to protect the net during an NHL game against the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena on April 4, 2019, in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Gregg Forwerck/NHLI via Getty Imageseider)
RALEIGH, NC - APRIL 4: Cory Schneider #35 of the New Jersey Devils hugs the pipe to protect the net during an NHL game against the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena on April 4, 2019, in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Gregg Forwerck/NHLI via Getty Imageseider) /
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Cory Schneider has been a topic of heated discussion among New Jersey Devils fans. A hip injury impacted the Devils’ netminder for the past three years. While this topic has been discussed thoroughly, some (understandably so) are not sold on Schneider returning to the form he had during his first few years in New Jersey. However, his return late in the 2018-19 season and performance at the World Championships should have Devils fans anticipating a bounce back year from the 33-year-old goaltender.

Before diving into the numbers and comparisons, it would be amiss if Schneider’s injury history was not at least recapped. As many know, Schneider suffered a hip injury during the 2016-17 season that has been the main cause of his dip in numbers. In an interview recorded in 2018 on the New Jersey Devils podcast, Cory mentioned the hip problems “cropped maybe a year and a half ago, a season and a half ago,” which he did not make the decision to get surgery on until May of 2018.

Adding on to the bug, Schneider suffered two different stints on the injured reserve due to groin injuries. Schneider did not return full time to the crease until the 2018-19 season and struggled, officially going 6-13-4 with a .903 save percentage and 3.04 GAA.

Diving into the numbers, Schneider showed promise in the later month of the season despite the team being devastated by injuries. From February 1st to the end of the season, Schneider posted a .921 save% and 2.46 GAA. Those stats compared to the rest of the league (out of 39 goaltenders with at least 15 games played during that time span) have him at 14th and 15th respectively in those categories. While not stellar, league average goaltending would have done the Devils wonders if spread throughout the entire season. Schneider’s numbers at the 2019 World Championships add-on to the trend of his rehabilitation with a .920 save% and 2.49 GAA in six games played.

Consistency being the name of the game, Schneider with a full, healthy off-season looks to continue this trend of numbers into the next season on top of the continued addition of skill in the offense and defense. A number of Devils fans may remember the #Goals4Cory trend in Schneider’s early stint with the New Jersey Devils which Devils general manager Ray Shero has certainly addressed with the moves made this summer.

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If you see these numbers and continue to have doubts, let’s take a look at another similarly aged goaltender who had been through a similar injury stint a few years ago, 2018 Vezina Trophy Winner Pekka Rinne. Dating back to 2013, Rinne underwent hip surgery to clean out an infection that would eventually sideline him for 51 games in the 2013-14 season. The next season was stellar for Rinne (.923 save % and 2.18 GAA), but fell back down to earth and wouldn’t truly return to elite form until his Vezina winning season in 2017-18. Rinne’s path back to an elite goaltender was certainly a long and arduous one, but Rinne proved that older goalies can still maintain a high level of skill in the crease. Schneider’s road may not lead to a Vezina winning season, but in comparison to Rinne this shows that Schneider has a possibility to at least maintain league average goaltending statistics.

Hip injuries are notoriously deadly for a NHL goaltender’s career. The lateral movement needed to making quick time saves and stellar positioning could be put in jeopardy. Rehab may mitigate the problem, but surgery seems to be the only true way to fix the problem.

Adding on, it takes at least a year plus for goalies to see results similar to before their injury. Cory Schneider’s surgery in May of 2018 was an absolute necessity; certainly contributing to his struggles in the 2018-19 season on top of the two groin injuries. As stated before, a full and healthy off-season on top of a completely re-energized forward and defensive core gives Schneider every opportunity to bounce back. Steve Cangilosi said it best after Schneider won his first regular season game in over a year, relief is spelled “C-O-R-Y” and that’s exactly what the team is needing heading into an exciting 2019-2020 season.

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