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Sports

By Josh Martin, Sports Editor

ith the NHL trade deadline looming right around the corner,

one can’t help but wonder what fate lies in the palms of backup goaltender, Cory Schneider’s hands. The 25-year-old net- minder is undoubtedly ready to be a starting goaltender in this league, but with Roberto Luongo holding that spot on the Vancouver Canucks—along with the 11 years remaining on his NHL contract—it’s hard to say that Schneider will be sticking around come next season... let alone this spring.

Last season Schneider proved that he was finally ready to make the step up into this league after all of these years of holding him back since drafting him in the first round, 26th overall, in the 2004 entry draft. This season he has proven that he’s not only ready to play in this league but he’s also compatible with all of the other bona fide elite goaltender starters around North America. His numbers alone tell the story: he’s

currently sporting a 10-5-0 record, a .927 Save Percentage—which is good for sixth in the league—and a 2.30 Goals Against Average, along with two shutouts.

Pretty impressive numbers for a goaltender who is halfway through his second year in the

— SAOMUICKS COMET The Schneider inquiry —

Or does it?

Schneider is on the last year of his two-year, $900,000 contract, and will be expecting quite a hefty raise given that he is playing like a solid number one goaltender in this league. Now, the Canucks can’t afford to give

“Schneider is on the last year of his two-year, $900,000 contract, and will be expecting quite a hefty raise given that he is playing like a solid number one goaltender in this league.”

NHL... which just makes it

that much more difficult when coming up with a decision on what to do with this goaltending predicament.

You see, the Canucks have a few options. If they want to make another run at the Stanley Cup, they’re going to have to have a strong goaltending tandem for the long haul. And why would you break up the goaltending duo of Luongo and Schneider that has already demonstrated that they can make it to the finals in one piece. It just doesn’t make sense.

him the money that he deserves, and the fact that Luongo has 11 years remaining on his contract pretty much tells the story of how this tale is going to play out.

So if the Canucks do decide to keep Schneider and not look back, then no matter how well they do in the post-season, Cory will be literally be walking away from this team in the off-season and right into free agency for nothing. However, on the other hand, if the Canucks do decide to trade Schneids at the trade deadline, they can possibly get in exchange

a top-six forward, along with top- four defensemen, which would be highly beneficial for the Canucks who were evidently worn down towards the end of the playoffs last spring.

No matter which way you look at it, the fact of the matter is that this talented, young, goaltender will not be wearing a Canucks uniform for that much longer. It’s pretty sad, especially since this is the best the Canucks have ever been in franchise history.

They couldn’t get the job done last year, and with how everything is looking this may be the last possible chance for years to come to go all the way. Last Thursday the Canucks defeated the St. Louis Blues 3-2 in overtime to take the number one position in the NHL standings. They hold a 28-14-3 record and 59 points in 45 games played. They have all of the ingredients, now they just need the finish.

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