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| Mike Gillis borrows a line from Arrested Development |
Vancouver anointed the younger Corey Schneider as their number one goaltender going into the 2012-2013 season and informed Roberto Luongo that he would be on the move as soon as they could get a good deal for him.
Here we are, July 7th 2013. Corey Schneider is a member of the New Jersey Devils and Roberto Luongo is Vancouver's starter...once again.
So what happened? What does this mean for each of the goaltenders now?
Experts have pointed to many reasons as to why the situation unfolded the way it has.
Luongo's contract scared off many teams. He is already 34 and his contract binds him and his salary to a team until 2021-2022 (yikes!)
Mike Gillis, Vancouver's General Manager, also insisted on a premium price for the malcontent goalie who is still considered one of the best in the league. It is understandable that Gillis would look for the top price, but in this instance, there wasn't a market for Luongo.
The teams who were previously interested in Luongo made alternate (cheaper) transactions:
- Toronto traded for G Jonathan Bernier from LA
- Philadelphia acquires G Steve Mason and signs free agent G Ray Emery
- New York Islanders resigned G Evgeni Nabokov
With no teams interested in Luongo, Gillis flipped the script.
Schneider's name came out in the rumor mill and there was a great deal of interest in the 27 year old goaltender.
On draft day, it was reported that Edmonton and Philadelphia (pre-Emery signing) were pushing hard for Schneider. The asking price was high for Edmonton as it would take a substantial return to move the promising goalie to a divisional rival (reported asking price: 1st round pick (7th overall), a 2nd round pick and a good prospect).
Not surprisingly, Edmonton would not bite on that offer.
Enter Lou Lamoriello and the New Jersey Devils.
The Devils offered the 9th overall pick for Schneider which turned out to be enough for Gillis to send his current starter off to New Jersey. Vancouver selects Bo Horvat (who is expected to be a very good hockey player for the Vancouver Canucks) and here we are.
In New Jersey, Schneider will not be a starter...yet. Lamoriello has already publicly stated that Brodeur is still their number 1 guy, but for how much longer, no one ones. At 41 years of age, one has to imagine that this may or may not be Brodeur's last year.
This move allows New Jersey to transition smoothly from one starter to the next. Schneider will get his fare share of games this season in New Jersey to give Brodeur ample rest, but it is only a matter of time before Schneider takes over the starting job (once number 30 hangs them up).
In Vancouver, things aren't as peachy as many predicted it would be once one of the two goalies was moved.
How will Roberto Luongo react to being the starter in Vancouver again after (more or less) mentally checking out? After being told he would be moved and get a fresh start, he's stuck in Vancouver for a long, long time.
Better yet, how do new head coach John Tortorella (who is notorious for being hard on his players) and Luongo coexist?
How does this effect the Canucks organization? The way they handled this whole debacle was awful. They treated two players poorly and now are going to have to face the repercussions. Luongo reportedly told Vancouver to buy him out once he got word that he couldn't be moved. The guy wanted out, and wanted out badly. Now him and the Canucks will have to either kiss and make up or find some way to move Luongo (unlikely).
Roberto Luongo is still a very good goalie in this league. His talent and skill are not in question, but how he bounces back from the constant drama in Vancouver will be interesting to watch.
Either way, I have a feeling that we're not going to be done hearing about this trade or the Luongo for a long time.
Thanks for reading!
PS: We discussed the Vancouver goalie controversy here last June where I suggested the Canucks trade Schneider and keep Luongo. It's an interesting read in hindsight!
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