Cory Schneider

Islanders Sign Jon Gillies To PTO

September 25, 2021 at 4:45 pm CDT | by Zach Leach Leave a Comment

The New York Islanders have announced their training camp roster and it features a few non-roster invites, but none more interesting than goaltender Jon Gillies. Gillies comes over from the St. Louis Blues as an unsigned unrestricted free agent and could actually have a shot at a contract. The other two invites are AHL Bridgeport players, veteran defensemen Seth Helgeson and Mike Cornell.

Whether it be his Providence College connection with GM Lou Lamoriello or simply his status as one of the few experienced goaltenders left available on the open market, Gillies has found his way to the Islanders this preseason and it could be a PTO worth watching. While New York has a stout NHL tandem in Semyon Varlamov and Ilya Sorokin, their depth is a concern. 35-year-old Cory Schneider was re-signed, but his 2020-21 season with the Isles resulted in zero NHL appearances and just two abysmal AHL starts. Ken Appleby was signed in April strictly for Expansion Draft purposes and he too was limited last season with just seven AHL appearances. Appleby, 26, played exclusively in the ECHL in 2019-20 as well. Jakub Skarek, 21, struggled with Bridgeport last season, while Tristan Lennox, 18, is not ready for the pros. With a strong camp performance, it is easy to see how Gillies might be able to fill a role for the Islanders this season.

A third-round pick of the Calgary Flames in 2012, Gillies was a top college goalie and NCAA National Champion with the Providence Friars before turning pro early in 2015. Gillies performed well at the pro level immediately and his early returns in the AHL and in a small sample of NHL appearances put him position to battle to be the Flames’ goaltender of the future. However, this was a competition that he would lose to David Rittich. Relegated to the AHL for the entire 2018-19 season, Gillies performed poorly and his NHL trajectory was knocked off course. With that said, he has improved in each of the past two seasons and spent much of last year on the St. Louis taxi squad as the next man up in net. At 27, Gillies still has plenty of tread left on the tires. The Islanders have experience in Schneider and upside in Skarek, but if they truly need a netminder to step in to an NHL role this season, Gillies could be their best bet – especially if he can make the most of his PTO with a strong camp performance.

Free Agent Profile: Devan Dubnyk

September 8, 2021 at 9:20 pm CDT | by Zach Leach 4 Comments

Here is a snapshot of the free agent market at the goalie position: Tuukka Rask, who is committed to the Boston Bruins, Devan Dubnyk, Curtis McElhinney, who is older, played less, and performed worse than Dubnyk last season, Cory Schneider, who is also older than Dubnyk and didn’t play an NHL game last season, and a scattering of young goalies that did not receive qualifying offers and have a handful of NHL appearance between them. In short, the UFA goalie market is essentially just Dubnyk.

Now this doesn’t erase his performance from last season, or the year before last for that matter. The 35-year-old has not been on his game for some time now, performing well below his career numbers in each of the past two years. His age compounded by a number of years as a workhorse starter for the Minnesota Wild has shown in Dubnyk’s play, which has lacked sharpness and consistency even playing behind good teams like the Wild and Colorado Avalanche.

With that said, it speaks volumes that Colorado, a Stanley Cup favorite, still went out and acquired Dubnyk from the San Jose Sharks at the NHL Trade Deadline last season. The team was facing down several injuries and net and were desperate for help, but still would not have given up assets for a player they didn’t trust could help their team. While Dubnyk was ultimately forgettable in his short stint with Colorado, he delivered five starts and three wins for the team as they battled for supremacy in the division standings.

At this point in his career, Dubnyk is what the Avalanche saw in him: an experienced veteran who was once one of the best in the game and can still be relied upon in a pinch. In the meantime, Dubnyk can mentor young goalies and contribute to a locker room. It’s not exactly the sales pitch of a league-winner, but Dubnyk can still contribute even if he is no longer capable of serving in a starting or even 1B role. Ideally, the veteran could find a spot where he can act as a No. 3 and, if need be or if he shows he is capable, can take over a backup role. Again, it isn’t the most valuable label, but it could benefit a number of teams.

At the end of the day, for those clubs who decide they need another goalie this late in the off-season or in-season but don’t want to make a trade, Dubnyk is the best of a group of less than stellar options. Teams are not going to be looking for a young player with upside or a cold, broken down veteran if they are in urgent need of help. Outside of Rask, who may as well be signed, Dubnyk is the only goalie that can provide value as a free agent addition. Teams would be smart to keep tabs on him as training camps begin to open up.

Stats

2020-21: 22 GP, 6-11-2 (.368), .895 SV%, 3.20 GAA, .444 QS%, 1 SO
Career: 542 GP, 253-206-54 (.546), .914 SV%, 2.61 GAA, .539 QS%, 33 SO

Potential Suitors

At first glance, the Arizona Coyotes and Buffalo Sabres are the two teams with the greatest needs in net. Carter Hutton and Josef Korenar for the ’Yotes and Craig Anderson and Aaron Dell for the Sabres is a list of names that would be hard-pressed to even find backup jobs elsewhere in the league. With that being said, neither team has much incentive to bring in yet another veteran. Both Arizona and Buffalo are resigned to bottom-dweller status this season and don’t need to add depth in goal, especially when it blocks young keepers like Korenar in Arizona or Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. Only if the veteran starters for these clubs suffered long-term injuries would Dubnyk really make sense.

Instead, the veteran is a more realistic target for a contender that needs depth and experience in net. Even after adding Louis Domingue, the Pittsburgh Penguins’ goalie group that also includes the inconsistent Tristan Jarry and the injury-prone Casey DeSmith could use added stability and guidance. Another team that jumps out as an option is Calgary. The Flames acquired promising youngster Daniel Vladar this summer to back up Jacob Markstrom and he cannot be reassigned to the AHL without the risk of waivers. However, if Vladar struggles in his first full-time NHL role and Calgary is not any more secure with Tyler Parsons or Adam Werner, Dubnyk could be a nice free agent addition to stabilize the net.

Any other suitors would likely be a product of injury at this point, but that could mean more than it sounds. Injuries in hockey are obviously not uncommon and Dubnyk clearly stands out as the best unsigned option available.

Projected Contract

Barring an off-season training injury before camps open, a PTO seems like the most likely “contract” to be heading Dubnyk’s way. The experienced veteran would provide a good camp presence while proving that he does (or does not) have gas left in the tank. If anyone was urgent to add a goalie it likely would have happened by now, meaning some patient team is probably going to merely extend Dubnyk the opportunity to earn a deal.

With that being said, urgency can be created quickly, especially once camps begin. If Dubnyk isn’t already on a PTO elsewhere, he will be the first call from teams with thin goalie depth who suffer an injury in net and don’t want to waste time or capital on the trade market. Even in this situation though, the league minimum $750K is likely the extent of Dubnyk’s value. It would likely take several injuries across the league to force a bidding war that lands the veteran anything more.

International Notes: Schneider, Pettersen, Dichow

May 7, 2021 at 6:54 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

With Islanders goalie Cory Schneider not playing once this season while clearing waivers, it’s fair to wonder if he’ll look to stay in the NHL or look at options overseas. If he opts to consider the latter, Lugano of the Swiss NLA could be a landing spot as Watson’s Klaus Zaugg notes that Lugano is pondering making an offer to the 35-year-old for next season. It’s worth noting that Schneider holds dual citizenship between the United States and Switzerland which could certainly make him an intriguing option for teams in that league where he wouldn’t take an import position. If Schneider does decide he wants to keep playing and doesn’t anticipate getting an NHL offer, signing in Switzerland – with Lugano or elsewhere – would certainly make some sense.

More from the international hockey world:

Calgary winger prospect Mathias Emilio Pettersen has joined Norway’s entry for the upcoming World Championships, notes Torie Petersen of the Flames’ team site. The 21-year-old was a sixth-rounder back in 2018 (167th overall) and recently wrapped his first season in North America, putting up a decent six goals and eight assists in 29 games with AHL Stockton.
Canadiens prospect Frederik Dichow has signed a one-year deal with Kristianstad in Sweden’s Allsvenskan, per a team announcement. The 21-year-old goaltender was a fifth-round pick of Montreal back in 2019 (139th overall) and was supposed to play with Sudbury of the OHL this season. Instead, with that league not playing this year, he was limited to six appearances with two teams in Denmark this season and will undoubtedly be looking for more playing time next season.

Trade Deadline Primer: New York Islanders

March 29, 2021 at 9:58 pm CDT | by Zach Leach 3 Comments

We are now just two weeks away from the NHL Trade Deadline and talks are heating up. Where does each team stand and what moves should they be looking to make? We continue our look around the league with the New York Islanders.

The New York Islanders, perpetual underdogs, are again delivering an excellent season. Picked by many before the season to miss the playoffs in a loaded East Division, the Islanders have outplayed their competitors for much of the season. A top-five team in goals against average and shots against per game, the Isles have again bought in to head coach Barry Trotz’ conservative, smothering style and are frustrating opponents left and right.

With that said, New York does not have a top-class offense, and that was even before the season-ending injury to captain Anders Lee. The Islanders are just a middle-of-the pack team in terms of scoring and are below average on the power play. As a side effect of the system, they do not put a lot of shots on net and have few odd-man rushes. Simply, they need to make their scoring chances count and without Lee that becomes more difficult. The Islanders have won just five of their past nine games since their leading goal-scorer went down and have slipped into a tie with the Pittsburgh Penguins in second in the division. In terms of points percentage, New York is closer to the Boston Bruins in fourth (who have many more game in hand) than they are to the Washington Capitals in first. The Islanders are unlikely to fall out of the playoff picture completely, but to stay near the top they desperately need to add offense.

Record

22-10-4, .667, T-2nd in East Division

Deadline Status

Buyer

Deadline Cap Space

$0MM in full-season space (LTIR, $6.53MM unused), 0/3 retention slots used, 48/50 contracts used per CapFriendly

Upcoming Draft Picks

2021: NYI 1st, COL 2nd, NYI 3rd, NYI 4th, NYI 5th, NYI 6th, NYI 7th
2022: NYI 1st, NYI 2nd, COL 2nd, NYI 3rd, NYI 4th, NYI 5th, NYI 6th, NYI 7th

Trade Chips

Like many contenders, the Islanders don’t have the strongest pipeline to lean on. However, likely looking to add just one rental forward in a buyer’s market, they shouldn’t have to offer up any of their few elite prospects to get the job done. So fear not Isles fans, Oliver Wahlstrom and Noah Dobson aren’t going anywhere.

Kieffer Bellows is likely the name that will be heard most often as being linked to outgoing Islanders’ packages. A polarizing, but promising prospect, Bellows hasn’t found the success in the NHL that was expected of a first-round pick and World Juniors standout, but he could benefit from playing in a different system. The 22-year-old may very well be selected by the Seattle Kraken in this summer’s Expansion Draft if he is still on the roster and not protected, so the Islanders might be looking to deal him rather than risk losing him for nothing.

The Islanders also have an organization depth chart chock full of young defenseman that they could offer up in a deadline deal. Bode Wilde will be the player most suitors ask about, but the team will try to steer them away from the talented righty. Sebastian Aho and Grant Hutton are NHL-ready assets who don’t necessarily have a full-time spot waiting for them in New York next season, making them expendable, while Robin Salo and Samuel Bolduc are younger options with intriguing upside.

Others to Watch For: F Ross Johnston ($1MM, 2022 UFA), F Michael Dal Colle ($700K, RFA), F Otto Koivula ($787K, RFA), D Parker Wotherspoon ($725K, 2022 RFA), G Jakub Skarek ($764K, 2023 RFA)

Team Needs

1) Top-Six Winger – GM Lou Lamoriello will have his sights set on one thing and one thing only at the deadline: a Lee replacement. While the captain’s locker room leadership and even his two-way effort and IQ likely cannot be found on the market, the Islanders need to find someone who can take up his knack for scoring goals. The team relies on efficiency on offense and are now missing their most reliable scorer. They are solid down the middle and have plenty of other talented wingers, but no one who isn’t already playing in the top-six can reliably fill Lee’s shoes. With up to $7MM in cap space to use with Lee on Long-Term Injured Reserve, nearly any rental winger can fit under the cap. Buffalo’s Taylor Hall, the lone exception, could be had with some retention involved, but New Jersey’s Kyle Palmieri or Nashville’s Mikael Granlund would fit nicely under the cap. If the Islanders can’t manage to land one of those top options, dark horse candidates could include Chicago’s Mattias Janmark, who is scoring goals at a torrid clip this year, Vancouver’s Tanner Pearson, if healthy, or another New Jersey option, Nikita Gusev.

2) Goaltender – Being the shrewd veteran executive that he is, don’t be surprised to see Lamoriello look at solving an Expansion crisis ahead of the deadline as well. With young Ilya Sorokin exempt from the draft and Cory Schneider headed for free agency, the Islanders do not currently have the necessary goalie to expose to Seattle assuming they protect starter Semyon Varlamov, unless they extend the 35-year-old Schneider that is. Instead, look for the team to add a keeper with term on his contract or heading for restricted free agency. The team could kill two birds with one stone if they make can find a dependable addition; having a fourth-string for the playoffs and a third-string to replace Schneider next year would be a wise move.

East Notes: Sabres Injuries, Clutterbuck, Dal Colle, Schneider

February 26, 2021 at 6:55 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose 2 Comments

There’s some good news and some bad news on the injury front for the Sabres in advance of their pair of weekend matinees against Philadelphia. The good news is that there’s a chance that defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen could return with head coach Ralph Krueger telling reporters, including Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News, that there’s a “high possibility” that the blueliner could play on Saturday. Ristolainen was off to a good start to his season with six points in ten games while logging over 23 minutes per night before a particularly tough bout with COVID-19.

Meanwhile, the bad news is that center Jack Eichel and goaltender Linus Ullmark aren’t expected to be available for either game, relays Jourdan LaBarber on the Sabres’ team website. Eichel was a late scratch on Thursday after experiencing some discomfort during the pregame warmup and is listed as day-to-day. As for Ullmark, he left after the first period yesterday with Krueger indicating that they’re hopeful he will only be day-to-day after their weekend games. One of Dustin Tokarski or Jonas Johansson will need to be recalled from the taxi squad.

Elsewhere in the East Division:

Islanders winger Cal Clutterbuck missed practice today due to an unspecified injury with head coach Barry Trotz classifying him as day-to-day, notes Newsday’s Andrew Gross. He left Thursday’s contest against Boston in the first period and did not return. However, it appears that New York could get some good news on the injury front as Michael Dal Colle practiced today and could be available for one of their games this weekend. The 24-year-old is currently on IR with a lower-body injury and has missed the last four games.
From the same column, Gross notes that Islanders goaltender Cory Schneider has been designated as a non-roster player and is unavailable due to family reasons. That was what prompted Jakub Skarek to be recalled to the taxi squad yesterday to keep the team compliant in having three available goaltenders. New York now has an extra roster spot available although with an extra forward and defenseman up on most game days, they likely won’t need to use it.

Islanders Finalize Contract With Cory Schneider

January 14, 2021 at 6:48 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose 3 Comments

After nearly three months of speculation, Cory Schneider has finalized his contract with the Islanders. CapFriendly reports that the veteran has inked a one-year, one-way contract worth $700K. They also report (Twitter link) that he has been designated as waivers non-roster status which means that he will be placed on waivers on Friday for the purpose of assignment to either their taxi squad or their AHL affiliate in Bridgeport.

It was only a few years ago that Schneider was entrenched as the starting goalie for New Jersey. He got off to a tremendous start after being acquired at the 2013 draft for the pick used to select Bo Horvat, notching a 2.14 GAA with a .924 SV% over his first three seasons. However, after his performance slipped in 2016-17, his play completely went off the rails after that while he also dealt with lingering hip issues. Last season, he actually had more appearances in the minors (14) than in the NHL (13) which led New Jersey to buy out the final two seasons of his contract, paying him $2MM per season over the next four years as a result.

With Semyon Varlamov and Ilya Sorokin set as the goaltending tandem for this season and the team not being in a position where they will be needing to shuffle players back and forth daily to bank cap space (since they’re using LTIR already), Schneider doesn’t have a path to playing time with the Isles in the near future. But if an injury arises, he will likely be the first one recalled. That’s quite the fall from grace after being one of the better goalies in the league only a few years ago but Schneider has at least now secured a contract at the very least.

New York Islanders Confirm Three Signings

December 31, 2020 at 3:08 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 4 Comments

New York Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello held media availability today, and though he had no update on the negotiations with restricted free agent Mathew Barzal, did confirm several previous reports. Andy Greene, Matt Martin, and Cory Schneider have all agreed to contracts and will be in Islanders training camp, Lamoriello explained to reporters including Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. All three veterans were unrestricted free agents.

News of these deals came months ago at the start of free agency, but none of them have officially been announced yet and likely won’t until the situation with Barzal is solved. The Islanders have just under $4MM in cap space, but since the young center is likely going to take much more than that, some salary cap gymnastics will have to be performed. Johnny Boychuk, who was forced to retire due to the eye injuries he sustained last season, is still technically on the books with a $6MM cap hit for this season. That number can be moved to long-term injured reserve at the appropriate time, allowing the Islanders to stay cap compliant.

Still, there is certainly no guarantee of playing time for any of the three veterans. Greene came to the Islanders from the New Jersey Devils at the deadline and ended up playing in 21 of the team’s postseason matches, but with Noah Dobson continuing to push for playing time and some other young defensemen creeping up the depth chart, the 38-year-old may find himself in and out of the lineup. That doesn’t mean he won’t still be a valuable addition to the team, but at this point in Greene’s career he can no longer be that top-4 presence.

Martin, who has played eight of his ten years in the NHL with the Islanders also suited up for every game in the playoffs, but he too could find himself scratched upon occasion this season. The 31-year-old is an effective enough option on the fourth line but normally doesn’t provide much offense at all (though Martin did score five goals in the postseason). The heart-and-soul winger has a place on the team to be sure, but at some point, the Islanders will want to take a look at some of their younger options like Oliver Wahlstrom and Kieffer Bellows.

If Greene and Martin have at least some sense of playing time, it is something of a mystery for Schneider. The 34-year-old goaltender has a long history with Lamoriello which stretches back to the 2013 trade from the Vancouver Canucks, but New York already has Semyon Varlamov and Ilya Sorokin locked into the two NHL spots. Schneider has struggled the last few seasons and likely is there only as the taxi squad goaltender, moving into the lineup only in an emergency.

Still, his position in the organization is an interesting one, if only because the Islanders have very little in net behind their top two. Jakub Skarek is currently the only other goaltender under contract, and the 21-year-old has barely any experience at the minor league level, let alone the NHL. Varlamov is also the only goalie eligible to be exposed in the expansion draft, meaning Schneider or some other veteran will have to be signed through 2021-22 if the Islanders want to protect their current starter.

Islanders Expected To Pursue Bridge Contract For Mathew Barzal

December 5, 2020 at 12:58 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose 1 Comment

One of the more interesting RFA cases is Islanders center Mathew Barzal. He has been their leading scorer in each of his first three NHL seasons and GM Lou Lamoriello has publicly stated any offer sheet would be matched in an effort to dissuade other teams from even attempting to go that route. However, cap space is still a big factor, even after trading blueliner Devon Toews to Colorado and the recent announcement that Johnny Boychuk’s playing career has come to an end (making him eligible for LTIR).

Accordingly, Newsday’s Andrew Gross notes that the industry expectation for Barzal is that he will sign a bridge deal, a two-year or three-year pact around $7MM per season. That would still represent a substantial raise from the $925K base pay he earned on his entry-level deal (which included his signing bonus) and give both sides a chance to re-assess the financial landscape before he reaches UFA eligibility. On top of that, it also gives New York a chance to determine if the 23-year-old is capable of getting back to his rookie-season output of 85 points or if he’s likely to check in below that as he did in the past two years where he had 62 and 60 points.

If that is indeed the route they go, there are two big questions to be answered. The first is the structure of the deal in terms of how much to backload it, particularly with the new qualifying offer rules in place. Now, the required tender is the lower of 120% of the AAV or whatever the salary on the final season winds up being. Even if the AAV of this deal winds up near that $7MM target, it’s quite likely that the qualifying offer will be in the $8MM range.

The other is how to fit this in on the cap. Yes, Boychuk is going to wind up on LTIR but there is a timing factor at stake. If the Islanders can wait to put him there until the start of the season, they’ll have some more in-season flexibility to work with.

As things stand, they have roughly $3.9MM in cap room, per CapFriendly and that’s with a minimum-sized roster. If they want to get this deal done and be in cap and roster compliance before placing Boychuk on LTIR, there is going to have to be some roster juggling. Some high-priced veterans (such as Andrew Ladd, Thomas Hickey, and Leo Komarov) could be waived in camp and sent down, freeing up $1.075MM each in cap space before having to offset that amount by a minimum-salaried recall. Expected goalie Ilya Sorokin (who is waiver exempt) could also go down and be temporarily replaced by a lower-salaried netminder on their season-opening roster before those transactions were reversed. Even more of those moves may be required to pull that particular strategy off.

Assuming they can do so, they could utilize almost all of Boychuk’s contract in LTIR room (the cap room freed up is the amount of the contract minus existing cap space at the time of placement, not automatically the full value of the contract) and it appears that they’ve already done some of that spending. Gross adds that deals are believed to be in place for goalie Cory Schneider (which had been reported back in October), defenseman Andy Greene, and winger Matt Martin. That money can’t be committed until they get Barzal signed and Boychuk transferred with the latter move happening right at the beginning of the season. As a result, it’s probable that those veterans will be in camp on PTO deals only.

Bridge contracts are often viewed as the simple solution but in Barzal’s case, there will be a lot of moving parts to this one with several veterans being affected by what he eventually signs for and when the deal is done.

East Notes: Schneider, Mittelstadt, Flyers

October 31, 2020 at 2:28 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose 3 Comments

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.

Cory Schneider Close To Deal With New York Islanders

October 12, 2020 at 11:39 am CDT | by Gavin Lee 4 Comments

The New York Islanders are close to adding some more goaltending depth, as Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic tweets a deal is being finalized with Cory Schneider. While LeBrun points out the connection between the free agent goaltender and Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello from their time together in New Jersey, it does somewhat complicate things in New York.

Schneider, 34, was recently bought out by the Devils after struggling with injury and inconsistency the last several seasons, and likely would have to accept the third goaltender role in the Islanders organization. The team already has veteran starter Semyon Varlamov and young phenom Ilya Sorokin in the mix, meaning unless there is another move coming—or the team is going back to the three-headed goaltending option—Schneider would likely have to spend time in the minor leagues once again.

In a condensed 2020-21 season there will be a need for goaltending depth as teams are forced to play games at a heightened pace, but it’s hard to believe that Schneider would be able to displace either of the Islanders two top goaltenders. Though he was once a legitimate starting option who even challenged for the Vezina Trophy, Schneider hasn’t posted a save percentage above .910 since the 2015-16 season.

Of course, the Islanders also employ goaltending guru Mitch Korn, who has resurrected careers before and should be able to help Schneider get things back on track, if not all the way back to his previous level. At the very least, he’ll be some veteran depth in case of injury.

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