Vancouver sends goaltender Cory Schneider to New Jersy for the ninth overall selection in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.
At first glance this would appear to be a slight return for a top notch asset in Cory Schneider, but there are several key factors to take into consideration when evaluating this deal. First of all, Vancouver was dealing Schneider from an organizational position of strength at goal. The Canucks were able to deal a brilliant young goaltender without concern primarily because of a man named Roberto Luongo. Luongo is more than capable of handling a starting role for an NHL team, and as long as GM Mike Gillis is able to smooth over the questionable relationship between the player and management, the Canucks will be stable in net for the forseeable future. Throw in the likes of Eddie Lack and Joacim Eriksson developing in the minors and suddenly it makes sense for Vancouver to deal Schneider. The ninth overall pick was used to select Bo Horvat, a toolsy centreman with two-way smarts and blue-chip intangibles. Horvat is one of my favourite players from the entire 2013 draft class, and I truly believe he will develop into an incredible player for the Canucks. Drafting Horvat fills a need for Vancouver by bringing in centre depth and a player who simply put, knows how to win. Horvat was a huge contributor for the OHL's London Knights in their run for the Memorial Cup. A year or two down the road, he'll be bringing that experiece to a team badly starving for a winning pedigree to push them over the edge as a true contender. Okay, so now we can look at the trade as Schneider for Horvat straight up. Hard to judge this deal yet because Horvat is still an unknown at the NHL level and Schneider has yet to hit 100 games. For New Jersey, this move makes perfect sense. With an aging legend almost ready to hang up the pads in Martin Brodeur, it was time for the Devils to find an heir apparent. Schneider fits the bill, he's young, talented and a home town east coast boy. Schneider can split time with Brodeur over the next season or two and learn the ropes from arguably the best goalie in the history of the league, and by then he'll be more than ready to fully take over the reigns from Marty. Schneider is now the Devils future in net, and in my opinion a perfect fit. For Lou Lamoriello it makes perfect sense to deal the ninth pick for Schneider, and he may even feel that he's made off like a bandit with this deal. Only time will tell which team won this deal, but from what we can evaluate so far it was just a good old hockey trade. Both teams filling a hole in the organization and gaining young, highly talented players. Horvat and Schneider each have very bright futures and will serve their respective teams well, all though from a Canucks perspective you may have wanted a slightly larger return for the more proven asset in Cory. All in all it is way too soon to declare a winner and a loser here, as for now it was just a case of two clubs working together to become better hockey teams. Let me know what you think of these trade analysis blogs, and thank you so much for reading! -J