“Vancouver was the high point": Ex-Canucks goalie Cory Schneider retires
Former Vancouver Canucks goaltender Cory Schneider has called it a career following 16 seasons of pro hockey.
Schneider played 410 career NHL games with the Canucks, New Jersey Devils, and New York Islanders but has spent most of the last three years in the AHL. While he posted excellent numbers the last two seasons in Bridgeport, Schneider knew the odds of getting another shot in the NHL at his age are low.
“There’s not a big market in the NHL for 37-year-old goalies who haven’t played regularly in three years,” Schneider told Phil Stacey of The Salem News. Schneider, an American with dual citizenship with Switzerland, said he had offers to play in the Swiss league but instead opted for retirement.
While Schneider became an All-Star in New Jersey and played the majority of his career (311 games) with the Devils, he clearly still has a soft spot for the Canucks.
“Vancouver was the high point for me,” Schneider told The Salem News. “They drafted me, and the organization had great people, I had great teammates, and we came within one game of bringing the city its first Stanley Cup.”
Schneider mentioned being grateful for making life-long friends in hockey, naming former Canucks teammates Alex Edler and Chris Higgins among them.
- You might also like:
- Where are they now? What every member of the 2011 Canucks is doing today
The Marblehead, Massachusetts native has an eight-year-old son and six-year-old daughter and hasn’t decided what his next career will be. The well-spoken former goalie would be a natural for television, and he has done some work for the NHL Network and NBC Sports already.
A first-round pick by the Canucks in 2004, Schneider was a rising star in the organization but had to surpass Roberto Luongo to become a No. 1 goalie. Remarkably, he did that, supplanting the future Hall of Fame goalie in the 2012 playoffs and being named No. 1 for the 2012-13 season.
After years of goalie drama in Vancouver, the Canucks traded Schneider to New Jersey in 2013, where he shared the net with Martin Brodeur. Schneider posted great numbers in his first three years with the Devils and played in the 2016 NHL All-Star Game. Injuries began to take their toll after that, with Schneider never playing more than 26 games in a season after age 32.
Despite some tough luck, in an interview with the Sekeres and Price Show last year, Schneider seemed appreciative of the career he had.
“If you had asked me when I got drafted, ‘Hey, you’re going to have a 15-year pro career, play 400 games in the NHL, you’re going to meet some of the most amazing teammates and staff and people, and have the most incredible experiences that you’ve ever had in your life, would you take that?’ You’d say, ‘Hell yeah I would!’ Like, absolutely… I try not to rehash what could have been,” he told hosts Matt Sekeres and Blake Price.
Schneider finishes his NHL career with a 171-159-58 record and a save percentage of .918. He went 55-26-8 with a sparkling .927 save percentage during his time in Vancouver. And according to CapFriendly, he earned more than $51 million during his career.
“I’ve made more money than I ever could have imagined playing hockey for a living. Don’t feel bad for me. I’m fine. I’m very content and happy with how my career went.
“At the end of the day, I’m just super grateful that I’ve been able to play this game for so long and have a modicum of success… experience the things that so many kids dream of experiencing that never get that opportunity.”