It’s been a decade since the New Jersey Devils traded the 9th overall pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft on draft night for Cory Schneider and this trade has had a lasting impact on the Devils since it was made.
The 2013 NHL Entry Draft took place in the Prudential Center, so the Devils already had the league spotlight on them. They traded the 9th overall pick to the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for goaltender Cory Schneider. Vancouver promptly selected Bo Horvat, whose recent performance netted him a long-term deal with the New York Islanders.
As for Schneider and the Devils, they got what they wanted. Schneider got a full-time starting job and the Devils got an elite goaltender to take over for the legendary Martin Brodeur. Schneider had a dominant prime that unfortunately lasted only three seasons in New Jersey. From 2013-16 he had a .924 save percentage and a 2.14 goals-against average. This was also on a paltry, slow and old Devils team.
However, injuries plagued the rest of his career. He suffered a hip injury in the middle of the 2017-18 season that kept him out for some time. Hip injuries continued to bother him and his performance was never the same.
What does the 2015 draft have to do with Cory Schneider? The answer is his performance in the 2014-15 season kept the Devils in a spot just above the real lottery contenders. The team finished 6th to last in the league. They were 10 points above the Toronto Maple Leafs who drafted Mitch Marner in that draft. It’s not that much of a stretch to say that the performance of Schneider kept them out of McDavid, Eichel and Marner territory. Furthermore, if the Devils got in a premium lottery position, maybe they get their golden ticket a couple of years earlier and draft the greatest player of the generation.
The Devils ended up selecting Pavel Zacha with the 6th overall pick in the draft.
While Schneider’s performance kept them out of the best of the best from the 2015 draft, it pushed their lottery chances back a couple of years. The Devils won the draft lottery in 2017 and selected captain Nico Hischier with the number 1 pick. Along with that, the Devils won the 2019 draft lottery and selected franchise superstar Jack Hughes.
Sure, there were other factors at play throughout this whole thing. Lou Lamoriello trying to compete and get older after the 2012 run contributed to it. Ray Shero jumping the gun in the mid-2010s had a hand in it as well. That being said, the Cory Schneider trade and his short-lived prime in New Jersey played a role in the team rising to contention a decade later.
Stay tuned for more New Jersey Devils and NHL content, including trades, signings, and various updates.
Featured image courtesy of NHL.com
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