East Notes: Schneider, Mittelstadt, Flyers

Three weeks ago, reports surfaced that the Islanders were set to sign veteran goaltender Cory Schneider in what looked to be a number three role but that hasn’t yet materialized.  However, GM Lou Lamoriello told NHL.com’s Brian Compton that he expects a deal to get done:

There’s a good sort of chance of that transpiring. As you know, I had Cory in New Jersey and I think that he’s trying to resurrect his career, and with our coaching staff, I’ve had several conversations with Cory, so I think that rumor will come to fruition.

The 34-year-old hit the open market when New Jersey opted to buy out the final two years and $12MM of his contract earlier this month following a pair of tough years that saw him post a .897 SV% and a 3.22 GAA in 39 games.  In the ideal scenario for the Islanders, Ilya Sorokin thrives as the backup to Semyon Varlamov and Schneider isn’t needed but if the rookie falters, it appears they’ll eventually have an experienced veteran in place that can be called upon if needed.

More from the Eastern Conference:

• Buffalo has been active with its restricted free agents lately with new deals for goalie Linus Ullmark plus forwards Sam Reinhart and Victor Olofsson, they still have some work to do. To that end, Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News reports (Twitter link) that talks for RFA forward Casey Mittelstadt were supposed to resume last week although clearly, nothing has been agreed upon yet.  The eighth-overall pick in 2017, Mittelstadt has struggled in his two full professional seasons when up with the Sabres but has fared much better with AHL Rochester.  He’s waiver-exempt to start next season so a two-way deal appears to be the likely outcome when a deal does get done.
• While there are quite a few teams interested in UFA winger Mike Hoffman, it doesn’t appear as if the Flyers are one of them. NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Jordan Hall relays that while the team could certainly use the help of the man advantage that Hoffman can provide after they went 4/52 on the power play in the playoffs, they have not reached out to Hoffman’s camp at this time.  While they have a little over $4.8MM in cap room at the moment, a sizable piece of that will be earmarked for RFA defenseman Philippe Myers.