Canucks' Top Pick: Centre Bo Horvat can't wait to get here 'and show them they picked a good one'

By Ben Kuzma, The Province

NEWARK, N.J. — The farming community of Rodney, Ont. has 1,000 residents and 80 of them were present Sunday to see one of their own play a role in a stunning 2013 NHL draft development.

When the Vancouver Canucks traded Cory Schneider to the New Jersey Devils in return for the 9th overall selection, it turned into London Knights centre Bo Horvat and it turned the spotlight on what general manager Mike Gillis was able to get — or not get — in moving his anointed starter and retaining the immovable Roberto Luongo. The buzz even caught Horvat off guard.

"It was shocking sitting there and it's really humbling they traded a guy that high for me," said Horvat. "It's overwhelming and I had no idea about it — it was all a shock to me."

It wasn't shocking that Horvat was on the Canucks' radar all season. The two-way centre was named most valuable player of the OHL playoffs with 16 goals and 23 points in 21 games and his ability to rise to the occasion for the back-to-back league champions wasn't lost on the Canucks. They need to map out their future down the middle and landing a centre who can handle the heat of playing for a top junior program and eventually the heat of a hockey-mad Vancouver market resonated with them.

"It's been a crazy and long past two years," said the 6-foot, 206 pound Horvat, who had 33 goals and 61 points in 67 games this season. "I've been really fortunate to be on great teams and the pressure of going up against top players, you know what it takes to get to next level and I have a leg up.

"I watched the Canucks quite a bit on television and I could be a huge help to them and hopefully be what they need. I'm more excited than anything else. I can't wait to get there and show them they picked a good one at No.9. Pressure situations don't bother me one bit."

That's good because nothing has polarized the Vancouver hockey populace than Schneider and Luongo. As much as they got along, the conversation about the two goalies often centred on who should play when and for how long. When the Schneider trade was completed late Saturday night, the Sunday announcement hopefully made Horvat more than the answer to a trivia question.

"We got some centres which has been a source of need for us and we've watched him play numerous times," said Canucks assistant general manager Laurence Gilman. "He's the type of player we envision the Canucks being about — captain material and a big-

game player. We didn't think there would be a player of that calibre at No. 24. And the board was looking different than we planned, so we're happy we got him."

If Horvat lives up to the hype, the rage over whether the Canucks got enough for Schneider will diminish. There was more than passing interest from Edmonton and the Oilers had the No. 7 pick. But whether they were willing to surrender a top prospect or roster player — or the Canucks pushed for such — was like a tennis-match rumour. It went back and forth. Could they have got more?

"I wouldn't necessarily say that's true," said Gilman. "You ask for assets and we had a lot of interest in Cory and spoke to multiple teams and asked different teams for different pieces. At the end of the day, we felt this one was the best for us. We ran this gauntlet with both goaltenders and knew it was a situation that couldn't continue and it's fair to say, the trade partners knew we had to make a deal. Whether we could have gotten something else had we dealt with it at another time, we didn't."

Once Horvat was done dealing with Schneider trade questions, he could reveal how this all came to be. His grandparents had farm land in the Rodney area and he skated outdoors and then made a mess of the basement in his parents home.

"A couple of ponds would freeze over and we always skated there and it was a lot of fun," recalled Horvat. "I would play mini-sticks with my brother (Cal) growing up and my dad (Tim) built a shooting gallery downstairs with arena boards."

A fan of Mike Richards growing up, Horvat said he would stay in the game in some capacity if playing professionally doesn't work out. That's hard to imagine.

twitter.com/benkuzma

9. Bo Horvat, C, London (OHL), 24. Hunter Shinkaruk, (LW), Medicine Hat (WHL), 85. Cole Cassels, C, Oshawa (OHL), 115. Jordan Subban, D, Belleville (OHL), 145. Anton Sederholm, (D), Sweden juniors, 175. Mike Williamson, (D), Spruce Grove, (AJHL), 205. Miles Liberati, D, London (OHL).

Canucks trying to repair burned bridges

By Jason Botchford, The Province

Not even Cory Schneider is sure Roberto Luongo’s Canucks career can be resurrected.

But how can anybody be convinced of anything when it comes to the Canucks goalie soap opera?

The most melodramatic chapter hasn’t even happened yet. It wasn’t at Sunday’s NHL Entry Draft, when the Canucks dropped a bombshell, trading Schneider who was the team’s 27-year-old reigning MVP.

It’s actually what happens next.

The Canucks may be back down to one No. 1 goalie, but their problems in net are far from over.

Luongo’s feelings suddently matter again. Vancouver needs him motivated and re-invested. They not only need him back on the team bus, they need him driving it again.

“You have to keep in mind how he felt about this, where he’s at and whether he’s comfortable assuming the role that he’s had,” Schneider said. “That’s something you have to ask him.”

Schneider, who talked to Luongo after the trade, was then asked by The Province if he believes there’s a chance Luongo won’t be in Vancouver this fall:

“After (Sunday), anything can happen. You come to expect that.”

Yes, you do.

The Canucks have launched an unprecedented offensive in an attempt at damage control, trying to win back Luongo, the goalie they tried, and failed, for a year to divorce.

Owner Francesco Aquilini was in Florida at Luongo’s home on Sunday and GM Mike Gillis will be next, travelling to the Sunshine State in two weeks in an attempt to repair the burned bridge.

This should give you some indication of just how far off the rails the relationship between player and team had spun.

After the Schneider trade Sunday, Luongo’s silence spoke volumes. He turned down an interview request with The Province Monday. He’s unsure what he’s going to do next and has met with his agent to figure out his next move.

This year, Luongo didn’t ask for a trade out of Vancouver, pack up us things and leave, believing he’d never play for the Canucks again.

He did that last year. He didn’t want to come back then. But he did, believing it was for one more year.

He can now ask for a trade, but that’s not going to help. His contract can’t be traded. He can sit out like Tim Thomas, and if that’s the case his cap hit will not count. It may seem outlandish for a player so competitive and one who has aspirations to be on Team Canada, but he was not planning to report for Canucks training camp in September if both he and Schneider were still on the team.

Yes, part of it is because he was labelled the backup. And maybe, in time, recapturing Vancouver’s net with a clear, defined role under a new coach will be enough to fix things.

But what happens if Eddie Lack starts seven straight games next year, or the year after? What happens if John Tortorella sits Luongo for a playoff game? Or two?

All those toxic feelings bubbling underneath could come rushing back in a heartbeat.

There is so much history here.

There is his relationship with the fans to consider. That took an overwhelmingly positive turn because of the humour and humility Luongo displayed with his twitter account, among the best in sports.

But he is also the player that cost this town Schneider, and there will be many who will never let him forget that.

There’s already been a history of playoff meltdowns. How do the fans respond at the first soft goal in Round 1? How do they respond the first time he’s left in net for eight goals? Actually, who are we kidding, Alain Vigneault is gone.

Luongo has been slighted by the organization over the years. He’s been passed over for playoff games he should have started. He’s seen his goalie coach fired. And he’s been supplanted by a backup .

By the end of last season, he was looking forward to fresh start, and a chance to play for a new management group.

“He’s been prepared to move on for about a year now, and to have that taken away, you have to re-adjust, and that’s not easy to do,” Schneider said.

“He’s been through all this before. I’m just hoping that he can get the best situation he can.”

The Canucks need Luongo all-in. They went all-in on him, cutting ties with Schneider, banking that both Luongo’s competitiveness and his professionalism will out-shine his desire for to play somewhere else.

Some will say it doesn’t matter if Luongo wants to be in Vancouver. He signed that 12-year deal, he has live with it.

Those who say it are not wrong. But it sure helps when your highest paid player and the one the organization is going to have to be centred around again is committed to the team concept.

Does his happiness matter?

Luongo is 34 and heading toward the most difficult part of his career. Hard work will be more important than ever in keeping him near the top of his game into his twilight years.

It’s sure a lot easier to work hard when you’re happy.

Schneider was never convinced the Canucks would be able to deal Luongo’s contract

The Province

Jason Botchford

Schneider was never convinced the Canucks would be able to deal Luongo’s contract

Even though Cory Schneider was told for a year he was the guy the Canucks were moving forward with in net, he never stopped thinking he could be the one traded.

It seems Schneider and his agent Mike Liut were not sure the Canucks were going to be able to pull off the Roberto Luongo trade.

Oh how right they were.

This despite the fact the team kept telling Schneider he was going to be the goalie of the future.

“That was the belief up until yesterday,” Schneider said. “They had been saying it for year to you guys, and to me when I’d seen them, the few times I had.

“They were pretty consistent in that

“But in the back of my and my agent’s minds, we sort of knew what the situation was and what it may end up coming to, in terms of backsliding assets and what was best for the team

“This (trading Schneider instead of Luongo) was always on the table.

“I think my agent, Mike Liut, and I, when we signed the extension last year, told them ‘Hey, we’re not sure you guys are going to be able to make this trade with Roberto, so we’re fully aware that Cory is still in play here.’

“We understood that, and it’s part of the risk you take, signing a contract without a no movement clause

“Whether or not you think it’s going to happen, it’s always a possibility.”

Still, Schneider admitted he was shocked when he got the news he had been traded to the New Jersey Devils. With time, he began to get more excited about it, and relieved the situation in Vancouver was over, even if he has a new one to deal with in Jersey. He was asked if he’d like to go through his Canucks experience again.

“Probably not,” he answered. “I don’t think it was as bad as people made it out to be. It wasn’t like it was something that took over our team in any way. It was something that Roberto and I had to deal with.

“We’re both professionals. We get along. And we enjoy each other. So, it wasn’t as hard for us as it was for some other people.

“But I think ideally, you want clarification and a defined role on your team.”

Schneider said he wasn’t sure what Luongo will do next and admitted he doesn’t know if Luongo will play in Vancouver.

“He’s been prepared to move on for about a year now, and to have that taken away, you have to re-adjust, and that’s not easy to do,” Schneider said.

“He’s been through all this before. I’m just hoping that he can get the best situation he can.

“And he can keeping playing well, and be the goalie we all know he can be.”

Schneider trade impacts Canucks' credibility, Aquilini jets to Florida to make nice with Luongo

By Ed Willes, The Province

The Roberto Luongo and Cory Schneider soap opera has finally been written an ending by the Canucks, too bad it's not the one either goalie or Vancouver fans wanted.

It's hard to know what's more important to this country: Canada Day or the NHL draft but to have them fall on the same long weekend is truly memorable. Now here's something almost as glorious, the musings and meditations on the world of sports.

In the wake of Sunday's stunning turn of events, there are any number of talking points to engage the chattering classes.

Did the Canucks get enough for Cory Schneider? Did they trade away the most important asset in the organization? Could have they got more by trading him to Edmonton? What's this trade going to look like in five years?

All these these questions and more will be the subject of intense scrutiny in the days, weeks and months ahead. But, for the Canucks, the one over-riding issue has little to do with Schneider, Roberto Luongo and Sunday's trade and everything to do with something much larger.

Over the last 15 months, the Canucks have flip-flopped, backtracked and contradicted themselves so many times on this matter it's impacted the credibility of the organization. We're going to trade Schneider. No, we're going to trade Luongo. We're going to get a player, a prospect and a draft pick for him. OK, we're not but we're going to sit tight because someone will meet our price.

They're not? Damn. How about you give us a couple of draft picks and a backup goalie for him? No? Fine, we'll find someone else because there will be a market this summer. There isn't? Well, we can still buy him out. What's that Francesco?

Uh, Roberto. We better talk.

And it's not like this story is getting any less complicated. There's still something bizarre about the news that owner Francesco Aquilini flew to Florida over the weekend to make nice with Luongo and the Canucks had better hope Luongo is in a forgiving mood because, by the end of this season, he'd checked out on the team.

Now, once again, he is the star of the show. You'd understand if the goalie's head is spinning like a top at this moment.

This, moreover, isn't the only item of business that's made you wonder about the Aquilini-Gillis partnership. We're not going to get into everything but somewhere between Cody Hodgson, Aaron Volpatti, Manny Malhotra and the two goalies, a pattern of dysfunction has emerged. That pattern has also been complicated by ownership's role in the team's two biggest offseason hockey decisions: the hiring of John Tortorella and Luongo.

Maybe the old-new goalie will do everyone a favor and show up to work like the last 15 months didn't happen. Gillis has suggested that would be the case, appealing to Luongo's sense of professionalism which was an interesting choice of words.

And maybe it's that easy.

But here's the ultimate commentary on this story. Sunday's trade didn't end Goalie Confidential. It just started a new chapter and this one is going to be every bit as interesting as everything which preceded it.

That said, the Canucks went into Sunday's NHL draft with one of the thinnest group of prospects in the game and emerged with two players the faithful can get excited about: Bo Horvat and Hunter Shinkaruk. It's hard to see where they make the current team better but they are two prime assets and it's been a long, long time since the Canucks could boast of that.

It's one thing to be beaten, as the B.C. Lions were on Friday night in Calgary. It's another thing to be beaten up and that was the far more disturbing aspect of the Lions' loss. Stamps running back Jon Cornish looked like he was running against air most of the night. The Stamps' pass rush completely disrupted the rhythm of the Lions' offence.

The Lions, meanwhile, had no semblance of a ground game and were clearly afraid to run the ball on second and short. This question isn't going to go away for this team. Who is going to grind out the tough yards? Who's going to keep opposing defences honest by running between the tackles?

The Lions at this stage of the season are almost a mirror image of the Canucks. They have enough talent at the skill positions. But are they tough enough?

And finally. Don Baizley, the super agent who passed away last week, acted on behalf of such luminaries as Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg and Teemu Selanne and that made him one of the game's true power brokers.

You'd just never know it when you were around the man.

Low-key and unassuming on the job, Baizley negotiated mega-contracts with the minimum amount of fuss and drama for all concerned. As such, he was universally respected within the game and his confederates believed he would have made an ideal leader for the Players Association.

But Baizley had no desire for the spotlight. As the business of the game grew larger and more corporate, he remained true to his core values. His practice stayed in Winnipeg. It remained small and that allowed him to develop personal relationships with his clients. It's funny, the players he represented were of a type – affable and grounded, but driven and hard-working – and that made them an extension of Baizley's personality.

He'd never cough up details of negotiations to the media. But sit him down in a relaxed atmosphere and he turned into the most marvelous raconteur, spinning stories about the old WHA; about Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nilsson, his first two star clients; about dealing with the biggest names in the game.

He's gone now and there aren't many like him left. On and off the ice the industry has become bigger and faster; more impersonal, less intimate. It's lost something along the way and it lost something terribly important last week.

Canucks use waivers trying to avoid a Keith Ballard buyout

The Province Section: The White Towel

Jason Botchford

When the Canucks traded Cory Schneider they cleared $4 million in cap space.

That’s to sign six players, one of whom is Chris Tanev, and another is a badly needed third-line centre.

Those two assets won’t come cheap.

The quickest and easiest solution is to use a compliance buyout for Keith Ballard, who is set to make $4.2 million for the next two years.

The buyout would cost the team $5.6 million spread evenly over four years ($1.4 million a season) in real money, but nothing against the cap.

Compliance buyouts were designed as a way for big money teams to shred their problem contracts without cap penalties. In fact, they may as well been designed just for the Ballard situation.

But internally the Canucks have been trying to avoid buyouts. One of the underlying reasons Cory Schneider was traded was because ownership was unwilling to cough up the $27 million (spread over 18 years) needed to buy their way out of Roberto Luongo’s contract.

Ballard’s buyout payout is a pittance in comparison, but may be another non-starter.

It seems hard to believe a team as successful as the Canucks would recoil at the idea of getting out from under Ballard’s deal, but the Canucks were openly shopping Alex Edler on the weekend, trying to clear salary cap room.

On Monday morning Ballard was placed on conventional waivers, not the waivers required for a buyout.

For the Canucks to buy Ballard out, they need to first notify him and then place him on unconditional waivers.

The window for compliance buyouts opened 48 hours after the Stanley Cup was awarded and closes Thursday.

It seems unlikely Ballard will be claimed on conventional waivers before tomorrow. If he’s not, the Canucks can then try to trade him by retaining salary.

Now, that would be something.

In that scenario, the Canucks would be paying Ballard to pay somewhere else, a number that would also count against their cap.

So, if they retain 30% of his salary, it would cost them $1.26 million this season and next.

Schneider trade shocker has some fans concerned

Ian Austin The Province

But others remain optimistic; after all, Luongo is ‘part of the family’

In a surprise ending to a yearlong goalie soap opera, the Vancouver

Canucks have traded netminder Cory Schneider for a first-round draft pick.

The Canucks tried for an entire season to trade mentor goalie Roberto

Luongo and his massive contract, but ultimately it was his younger protege

Schneider who was moved to New Jersey.

The NHL club used Schneider to land the first of two cherished first-round

picks — No. 9 overall — and snatched two forwards in what is seen as a

talentrich draft year.

“You don’t know what to say or think,” a shell-shocked Schneider told

TSN. “I’m sort of speechless.

“It’s nice to have a resolution — to finally move on.”

Schneider’s trade brought Vancouver Bo Horvat from the Ontario Hockey

League’s London Knights. He’s a husky centre who scored 33 goals in 2012-

13.

He’s listed as six feet tall, 206 pounds, the type of stocky skill forward

that’s hard to find.

Schneider praised Luongo, his friend, after a year of rumours that it was

Luongo who was destined to be traded.

“He was so supportive and helpful,” said Schneider. “I hope he can come

here and be the goalie that we know he can be.”

Schneider was counting himself lucky to join Martin Brodeur, who along

with Luongo, is often considered the goaltender of his generation.

“He’s probably the best goalie to play the game,” Schneider said of his

new mentor, Brodeur.

“They’ve (Devils) had a lot of success the last 20 years.”

The loss in goalie depth gained the team two first-round picks, so the

Canucks also selected high-scoring forward Hunter Shinkaruk, who’s potted

86 goals over the last two seasons with Medicine Hat of the Western Hockey

League.

Shinkaruk, 18, shoots left and will bulk up from his listed 5-foot-10 and

181 pounds.

Schneider had been slated to take over the crease in Vancouver, but the

Canucks’ inability to off-load Luongo — and his contract — appears to have

been the decisive factor in dealing away Schneider.

“Today’s decision was made after a thorough review of our options and in

the interest of improving this team longterm through the draft and

development of players,” said Canucks general manager Mike Gillis in a

statement Sunday.

“We appreciate the high level of professionalism and conduct both Cory

and Roberto have shown while continuing to help this team be competitive.

“I would like to personally thank Cory for his contributions to our team

and wish him the very best and a bright future.”

But some fans on the streets of Vancouver didn’t share Gillis’s

enthusiasm.

Ria Kartana, 23, said she couldn’t believe the news.

“I’m shocked because in the past it’s been all about Luongo being

traded,” Kartana said. “I don’t think it’s a very good move but ... maybe

they have a plan and we just don’t know what it is.”

Fans Jeff Brotherston, 22, and Brennan Wong, 23, however, continued to

be optimistic about the team’s performance despite Schneider’s departure.

Both are happy that Luongo gets to stay.

“(Luongo) wasn’t that great during the playoffs probably because there

was talk of booting him ... but he’s our goalie, he’s part of the family,” Wong

said.

“I believe Luongo will do well now that he knows we want to keep him,”

Brotherston agreed. “I think the Canucks will be on fire this season.”

Draft pick not afraid to step up

Ben Kuzma The Province

Hunter Shinkaruk is motivated to get involved both on and off the ice

“I love to compete and battle and win pucks all over the ice, and it’s probably my

favourite part of the game. ”

— Hunter Shinkaruk

Brett Fagerheim knows what kind of player and what kind of person the

Vancouver Canucks acquired Sunday, when they selected left-winger Hunter

Shinkaruk with the 24th selection in the NHL draft.

When recent racing flood waters ravaged and destroyed countless

Calgary homes and reduced neighbourhoods to disaster zones, Fagerheim

and Shinkaruk did whatever they could to help troubled neighbours and

complete strangers.

For four days they cleaned homes hit hard by the raging Bow and Elbow

rivers, moved furniture, hauled away rubble.

No taking it easy or daydreaming about draft day for Shinkaruk.

“He puts everybody else ahead of himself,” said Fagerheim, a close

friend of Shinkaruk and former minor-hockey teammate. “He doesn’t talk

about himself and he understands the game, but he also understands about

teamwork.

“The floods happened so quickly and were so devastating, and we felt so

fortunate that we weren’t affected, that Hunter wanted us to help out. And

our parents were helping by cooking for those people who were affected and

still had to work.”

Shinkaruk’s family lives on a hill above Elbow Park, and all it took for him

to lend a helping hand was one look at the mind-numbing mess below.

“It puts everything into perspective,” said Shinkaruk. “A natural disaster

... can really take a lot from you, and I wanted to volunteer. People were

devastated and if my family had been affected, I know other people would

have helped us. I’m just happy the people of Calgary really came together.”

Motivation at any level has never been a problem for Shinkaruk. While

the Calgary native was surprisingly passed over by the Flames with the 23rd

pick, the fact the Medicine Hat Tigers captain scored 86 goals over the last

two WHL seasons, but slid 10 spots in most rankings, has only cranked up

his drive. It was the same when he slipped and went 14th overall in the WHL

draft.

“I love to compete and battle and win pucks all over the ice, and it’s

probably my favourite part of the game,” said the 5-foot-10, 181-pound

winger.

“I can’t wait for camp (to) show them they made the right choice. I was

a little nervous and was ranked higher, but if you told me 10 years ago I’d

get drafted in the first round, I would have probably laughed. It’s a huge

honour and worth the wait.

“I think I’m a player who has the ability to step in and play right away.”

With a lack of franchise depth at left wing, new Canucks coach John

Tortorella is preaching more bite and vowing to play the kids, so opportunity

is more than knocking at the door for Shinkaruk. It’s a necessity with the

salary cap ceiling falling to $64.3 million US, and the need to quickly

integrate players on entrylevel contracts.

Shinkaruk knows first-round pick Bo Horvat, because they’re represented

by the same agency, and he also has ties to the Lower Mainland. When Billy

Copeland put together an elite spring league team called the West Coast

Selects in peewee and bantam, Shinkaruk got a call and stayed in Langley

with his uncle.

And being the captain in Medicine Hat meant meeting former Tigers star

Trevor Linden, and understanding what it meant to follow in his footsteps in

that city.

“Pretty surreal right now, the same junior team and now same NHL

team,” said Shinkaruk. “He was a great player, but the main thing a great

person. He helps out the community and realized he had to help out the

younger guys and handled himself with pride and respect. I think it’s

something I can take on.”

The Canucks didn’t have a secondround pick, surrendering it to Dallas in

the Derek Roy trade, and drafted Oshawa Generals centre Cole Cassels in

the third round. The son of former Canucks centre Andrew Cassels, the 6-

foot, 178-pounder had 15 goals and 28 assists in 64 OHL games.

With his dad logging 1,015 NHL games with Montreal, Hartford, Calgary,

Vancouver, Columbus and Washington, he packed a lot and saw a lot and

was a dressing-room regular around the Canucks.

“I was six when he left Vancouver, and our house was on a hill,” recalled

Cassels. “With Markus Naslund, Ed Jovanovski, Todd Bertuzzi, those are

some fond memories and (it was) pretty cool to meet guys like that.”

The elder Cassels lives in Columbus and coached in the ECHL. The

younger Cassels did have two interviews with the Canucks, so the selection

is not a shocker. A two-way centre who’s defensively responsible and a good

penalty killer, Cassels can put up some numbers and adds to the Canucks’

growing prospect depth down the middle.

“I guess I’m a third-line projection and it’s a process, but this is a step,”

he said. “I have a bit of my dad’s hands, and I take some of his hockey

sense into my game. If I’m doing something wrong, he’s not afraid to give

me a call from Columbus.

“It’s all surreal right now, and I’m just glad to be a Canuck.

Gillis had no choice but to trade Cory

Ben Kuzma The Province

Vancouver GM welcomes Luongo back as No. 1 when Schneider

proves to be more tradable

“You don’t know how to react or what to say, but I’m excited about the

opportunity.” — Cory Schneider

Mike Gillis had some explaining to do even before trading Cory Schneider

to the New Jersey Devils on Sunday for the ninth overall pick in the NHL

draft, which he turned into centre Bo Horvat.

The Vancouver Canucks general manager had to convince ownership that

taking more than a year trying to move Roberto Luongo — and the

mammoth nine years and $40.5 million US remaining on his contract —

meant he had exhausted every option. A buyout was not an option for

Francesco Aquilini, who has spent to the cap ceiling, only to be bitterly

disappointed with backto-back first-round playoff exits.

Gillis had to reduce the two-headed goalie monster that was eating up

$9.3 million in cap space. He had to move the stopper with more affordable

market value, and retain the veteran, who has ridden an emotional roller-

coaster and even offered to move on. He has to reach out to Luongo to

make it all good because the re-appointed starter did state over and over

again: “This is Cory’s team.”

Schneider had no idea he was being traded Sunday until Gillis called him

from the draft floor to tell him Luongo was staying and he wasn’t.

“The contract affected this and we had to deal with this in a businesslike

manner,” said Gillis, who has yet to talk to Luongo, but has talked to his

agent, Gilles Lupien.

“I think Roberto is a professional and an outstanding person and an elite

goaltender. I expect him being one of the front-runners for the Sochi

Olympics. Based on all of those features, I don’t expect there to be a

problem.”

Moving into the top 10 Sunday to get a highly touted centre and then

landing left-winger Hunter Shinkaruk at No. 24 with the cupboard bare in

that position are prudent moves. And with John Tortorella’s track record of

playing the kids, Horvat could be on the fast track after the London Knights

centre was the OHL playoffs’ most valuable player. Same for Shinkaruk, who

had 89 goals the last two WHL seasons.

The Canucks were rumoured to be asking more from Edmonton than the

No. 7 pick in a Schneider swap, which the Oilers turned into defenceman

Darnell Nurse. In retrospect, Gillis said he didn’t know what he really could

have done differently to move Luongo.

“We felt we could get into the top 10 today and we had an established

player with a no-trade, and we had a changing landscape with a lockout and

a new collective bargaining agreement,” added Gillis. “If I had a crystal ball,

would we have done things differently or earlier? I don’t know. Maybe. I

don’t have one. If you have one, let me know.”

Gillis said Schneider thanked the organization for all the assistance it

gave him in Vancouver. But it was still a shocker. “It was pretty stunning,”

Schneider told TSN. “I was speechless. You don’t know how to react or what

to say, but I’m excited about the opportunity. You’re always in the (trade)

mix and fair game, but I always thought I was going to spend the rest of my

career there when I signed my extension. But circumstances changed and

the cap changed the dynamics.”

Keeping Luongo means the Canucks can be more confident in Eddie Lack

and Joacim Eriksson competing for the backup position, because Luongo

logged 68 games in 2009-10 and is 34, not 44. Schneider, 27, played a

career-high 33 games in 2011-12, which could have forced the Canucks to

find a veteran presence next season with Lack coming off hip surgery and

Eriksson untested against NHL competition. Joe Cannata is the other

goaltender under contract.

Schneider went 17-9-4 in the lockout-shortened season before suffering

a groin strain April 22 in a 3-1 win over the Chicago Blackhawks.

However, when Luongo lost the first two games of the Western

Conference quarterfinal series against the San Jose Sharks, it was somewhat

surprising that Schneider got the call, because his injury was kept quiet. He

was yanked in Game 3 after allowing five goals on 28 shots, but did respond

with a 43-save performance in Game 4 as the Canucks lost in overtime to be

swept aside.

“It was a strange year in general, with the lockout and shortened season,

and nothing really felt normal, but through all this Lou was great,” added

Schneider. “It’s nice to have a resolution and I hope he can come back to

Vancouver and be the goalie we all know he can be. We talked a little bit

today and he’s been a true professional through this whole thing.”

Strange season is an understatement. Even stranger trying to move

Luongo. With the New York Islanders expected to let Evgeni Nabokov flee to

unrestricted free agency, Luongo could have returned to a team that drafted

him and been the big draw in Brooklyn.

The trade had been broached in theory and could have been done under

the right circumstances. The Islanders would have got a bona fide starter in

exchange for the Canucks acquiring Rick DiPietro’s massive contract and

then buying it out — if the Islanders also sent at least a roster player their

way. Buying out DiPietro at $1.5 million over 16 years and Keith Ballard at

$2.6 million over two years would be too tough for Aquilini to swallow. And

buying out Luongo wasn’t going to work, either.

“I don’t think you want to buy out players for $25 million, and it’s not

something we want to do,” added Gillis. “We looked at all of our alternatives

and what move was viable. I think it’s worked out. The goalie market is

different and really challenging and much more difficult than other

positions.”

Back to the Future

Iain MacIntyre Vancouver Sun

Canucks make best of a bad situation by trading Schneider, keeping

Luongo as No. 1 goalie

Defiant until the end, ( GM Mike) Gillis even said at one point Sunday that the plan

three years ago was to develop ( Cory) Schneider into a top- flight goalie, then trade

him.

Bo knows. Mike Gillis didn’t.

The Vancouver Canucks brought their year- long goaltending serial

drama, equal parts comedy and horror, to a stunning end Sunday when

general manager Gillis made the best deal he could to end a problem he

largely created.

After being wrong on goalie Roberto Luongo’s $ 64- million US contract,

the trade market for him and projections about where a new collective

bargaining agreement would take the National Hockey League, Gillis ended

his series of miscalculations by trading the top goalie he had and returning

to the Canucks’ crease the second- best one, who proved to be untradeable.

And even then, we must wait to see if Gillis erred again by surrendering

27- year- old rising star Cory Schneider to the New Jersey Devils for only a

lone first- round draft pick in a trade that stunned everyone when it was

announced on the draft floor here Sunday afternoon.

With that ninth pick, the Canucks drafted impressive London Knights’

centre Bo Horvat, who better be as good as Bo Jackson or at least Mike

Richards, who is the 18- year- old’s favourite player.

Other than the rules, there is often little fair about how professional

sports treats people.

It wasn’t fair that Schneider rightfully earned Luongo’s starting spot and

was told repeatedly he was No. 1, now and for the future, only to be traded

because his contract was portable.

It wasn’t fair that Luongo, understanding that his days as the starter in

Vancouver were over, displayed remarkable grace and patience asked of him

while awaiting a trade, only to find out he’s stuck as the secondchoice

starter on a Canuck team from which he’d already begun to disconnect

emotionally. In Gillis’ defence, it wasn’t fair that NHL commissioner Gary

Bettman exacted his revenge upon the Canucks and other teams that had

signed perfectly legal — if, in some cases, perfectly stupid — long- term

contracts under the previous CBA by conjuring a “cap recapture” penalty so

punitive that even an excellent goalie like Luongo became untouchable.

And, largely overlooked, it’s not fair that Bo Horvat must now become a

star or else.

The two- way centre from little Rodney, Ont., was fully aware of the

Canucks’ goaltending saga — who in hockey was not? — and knows the

focus on him will be intense and unyielding. In a year or so, Schneider will

succeed Devils’ starter Marty Brodeur, one of the best goalies in NHL history.

“I think it’s more exciting than anything,” Horvat said. “I’m just really

happy to be part of the organization. I can’t wait to get there to show them

that I can be that guy that they picked at ( No. 9). It was all a shock to me.

But anything can happen on draft day.”

Horvat appears to be equipped to survive the inferno he faces. He had 61

points in 67 games for the champion Knights, and was named the Ontario

Hockey League’s playoff MVP for scoring 16 times in 23 games. He is

supposed to be a big- game player.

Teammate Max Domi, drafted 12th by the Phoenix Coyotes, said the

Knights call Horvat Mr. Perfect because he rarely makes a mistake.

“He does everything he’s asked to do,” Domi said. “He’s a guy who goes

out and competes every shift; he’s a poster boy for that. He’s going to be a

great hockey player. He’s a very intense guy. He’s very similar to Jonathan

Toews. He does whatever it takes to win. He’s going to be a captain in the

NHL one day; that’s just who he is.”

Another Captain Serious like Toews? Domi nodded. The Canucks were

elated to get Horvat ninth. The Hockey News had him ranked 16th, although

ESPN reported the Carolina Hurricanes came close to choosing Horvat with

the fifth pick.

“Ever since I was little, even my parents say, I wanted to be a hockey

player,” Horvat, 6- 0 and 206 pounds, said. “I’m pretty much living the

dream right now. I don’t feel any pressure, actually. To hear my name called

is every kid’s dream and my dream came true today.”

Not so much for either Schneider or Luongo, who politely declined The

Vancouver Sun’s interview request on Monday. Luongo may have been busy

with Canuck owner Francesco Aquilini, who flew to South Florida to do

damage control and convince the goalie he can again be a trusted starter in

Vancouver.

It was clear that Luongo was blindsided and upset at the Canucks’ violent

change of course, but the 34- year- old probably isn’t skating away from the

$ 40 million he is owed over the next nine years. He knows he’s untradeable

because his contract, as Luongo himself noted in April, “sucks.” It still sucks

and the Canucks are stuck with it.

“He’s been a resilient guy,” Schneider said of his friend and mentor

during a Sunday night conference call. “He’s been through a lot. He’s been

counted out and he’s always gotten back up. I don’t know what his

intentions are right now, but ... I just know he’s a great goalie. Whether

that’s in Vancouver or anywhere else, I think he’s going to play his hardest

and be his best.”

Schneider’s name surfaced in trade buzz Saturday after the Canucks

staged a hockey- operations summit in New York and decided the only way

to solve their goaltending/ salarycap crisis was to take offers on their

starter.

Schneider displayed no animosity after the trade, although he said it

would have been nice had the team warned him what was coming.

“It was a unique and difficult circumstance,” he understated. “The

landscape of the game changed with the new CBA. Could it have been

handled differently? I don’t know. I think that’s a question you have to ask

them.”

It was asked of Gillis, who said he tried to get a roster player with the

draft pick but couldn’t.

“I can’t look into a crystal ball,” he said. “Obviously, we had an

established player with a no- trade ( clause) who had to participate in a

trade. We had a changing landscape with a lockout and new CBA. If I had a

crystal ball, would we have done things quicker or earlier? I don’t know.

Maybe. But I don’t have one. If you have one, let me know.”

Defiant until the end, Gillis even said at one point Sunday that the plan

three years ago was to develop Schneider into a top- flight goalie, then trade

him.

“And that’s what we ultimately did,” he said.

But making him the starter wasn’t part of the plan. Nor was

embarrassing Luongo or creating a sideshow or, when a trade finally

happened, dealing from a weak position because the Devils and everyone

else knew the Canucks were in a bind.

“For the last year, we’ve explored every option that we could possibly

have,” Gillis explained. “Things were heating up this week and we just felt

we couldn’t wait any longer. We had to do something to get this situation

resolved and this was the best opportunity we had.”

Or the least bad one.

Canucks place Ballard on waivers, buyout looms

Iain MacIntyre Vancouver Sun

The Vancouver Canucks have placed Keith Ballard on waivers in a likely

last attempt at avoiding a buyout on the defenceman. Canuck general

manager Mike Gillis said after the National Hockey League draft on Sunday

that no decision had been made on Ballard, who is a depth player but

possesses a top- four blueline salary. If no other NHL team claims him, the

Canucks have until Friday to buy him out without it counting against their

salary cap. Ballard has two years remaining on his contract at $ 4.2 million

per season. Buying him out would cost the Canucks $ 1.4 million in each of

the next four years. But if Vancouver exercises its option on one of two

“compliance” buyouts each team is entitled to under terms of the NHL’s new

collective agreement, the payout will not count against the Canucks’ salary

cap. Gillis traded for Ballard three years ago, surrendering good prospect

Michael Grabner and a first- round draft pick to the Florida Panthers. But

Ballard never established himself as a consistent regular with the Canucks,

and although new coach John Tortorella could give the defenceman a fresh

start in Vancouver, the team probably cannot afford to pay the Minnesotan $

4.2 million next season to play on the third defence pairing. Ballard is on

“regular” waivers, which means the team could still choose to keep him if he

clears. His waivers expire Tuesday.

Like father, like son

Iain MacIntyre Vancouver Sun

Cole Cassels drafted by Vancouver Canucks, one of his father’s six

NHL teams

At 43, Andrew Cassels looks about the same as when he played for the

Vancouver Canucks more than a decade ago. But when Cassels’ son plays,

Cole doesn’t look much like his dad.

“He’s probably one of the smartest players I’ve ever seen as far as

seeing the ice,” Andrew Cassels, the Canucks’ silky first- line centre from

1999 to 2002, said Sunday after Vancouver selected Cole in the third round

of the National Hockey League draft. “He’s got great hands, but he has an

edge to him that I didn’t have.

“I think Cole knows how hard it is to make it because he grew up with

the NHL and moved from Hartford to Vancouver to Calgary to Columbus to

Washington. So he knows it’s tough.”

Cassels, who coaches minor hockey in Columbus, was a first- round draft

pick in 1987 and spent 15 NHL seasons with six teams before retiring in

Washington in 2006.

His son, named after Tom Cruise’s character in the car- racing film Days

of Thunder, was four when Andrew joined the Canucks from the Calgary

Flames in 1999. Cole said his lasting memory of Vancouver was living on a

hill in West Vancouver.

“I guess I’ve got six more teams to go,” he joked of following in dad’s

tracks. “I’d rather stick with one. But it’s pretty cool. I’m just glad to be a

Canuck.”

Cole, who was born in Hartford, had 43 points in 64 games this season

with Oshawa of the Ontario League. He is a two- way centre who projects to

be a third- liner in the NHL if he makes it.

“Vancouver’s close to my heart and a great city,” Andrew said. “For Cole

to go somewhere I played is great. He’s going to go to camp with Daniel and

Henrik ( Sedin) — guys I actually played with, guys he was in the dressing

room with when he was in kindergarten. It’s going to be awesome for him.”

CANUCKS GO WEST: After choosing London, Ont., junior Bo Horvat ninth

overall, the Canucks’ other first- round pick was Medicine Hat Tiger winger

Hunter Shinkaruk. He is the first Western Hockey League player drafted by

the Canucks since 2008, and the 24th pick is well aware of Trevor Linden’s

legacy as a Tiger who went to Vancouver.

“I met him once this year; he came to Medicine Hat and dropped the

puck for the opening faceoff,” Shinkaruk, the Tigers’ captain, said. “It’s

pretty surreal right now that we played with the same junior team and the

same NHL team.

“Trevor Linden was obviously a great player, but the main thing about

him is he was a great person. He helped out in the community and realized

he was a role model for younger kids. He handled himself with pride and

respect everywhere he went. That’s something I think I can take on.”

Shinkaruk has already begun. He spent the days leading up to the draft

helping families in his Calgary neighbourhood of Elbow Park clean up after

the Alberta floods.

“I wanted to get out and help people, so I volunteered,” he said. “Me and

my buddies went down, and we’ve been cleaning out basements for a while.

If my family went through that experience, I’m sure people would be helping

us. It puts everything into perspective.”

Shinkaruk, 5- 10 and 180 pounds, had 86 points in 64 games for

Medicine Hat.

“That’s just the kind of guy Hunter is,” his best friend, Brett Fagerheim,

said of the cleanup. “I’ve known him since we were four or five and he has

always been a star, but never acted like one. He has always been concerned

about everyone else in the group and puts others ahead of himself.”

Fagerheim, a defenceman with Salmon Arm in the B. C. Hockey League,

said he and Shinkaruk were lucky to live up the hill from the flooding.

“We just started walking down streets, asking people if they needed

help,” Fagerheim said. “Hunter easily could have said, ‘ No, I can’t, I’ve got

the NHL draft coming up and I need to be ready for it.’ But we knew how

important it was to help our community.”

DRAFT ROLL CALL: The Canucks chose Belleville defenceman Jordan

Subban, the little ( 5- foot- 9) brother of Montreal Canadiens’ Norris Trophy

winner PK Subban, in the fourth round, then took Swedish blueliner Anton

Cederholm in the fifth. Vancouver’s sixth- round pick was Leduc, Alta.,

defenceman Mike Williamson from the Alberta Junior Hockey League. In the

seventh, the Canucks drafted another blueliner, Pittsburgh native Miles

Liberati from the London Knights. The draft haul of four Ontario Hockey

League players and two from Western Canada appeared to reflect the

restructuring of Canuck amateur scouting priorities and methodology. The

team focused its scouting efforts on Ontario, the West and the United

States.

TRADE BAIT: A lot of the criticism in Vancouver over the Canucks’ shock

trade of goalie Cory Schneider is that the team didn’t collect more than the

New Jersey Devils’ first- round pick, which was turned into coveted London

junior centre Bo Horvat.

There were reports the Edmonton Oilers were willing to pay more, but

balked at ransom demands that stemmed from the Canucks’ reluctance to

trade Schneider within their division.

“You ask for different assets depending on the trade partner you’re

dealing with,” Canuck assistant general manager Laurence Gilman said. “We

had a lot of interest in Cory. We asked different teams for different pieces.

At the end of the day, this deal was the one that we felt was the best one for

us to make. I think it’s fair to say the trade partners we were dealing with

knew we had to make a deal.”

B. C. BOYS: The first British Columbian selected was Vernon’s Curtis

Lazar, a centre from the Edmonton Oil Kings who went 17th to the Ottawa

Senators. The only other B. C. firstrounder was Aldergrove defenceman Shea

Theodore, drafted 26th by the Anaheim Ducks. Port Moody centre Adam

Tambellini, the son of former Edmonton Oiler general manager Steve, was

chosen in the third round by the New York Rangers.

Vancouver Giant teammates, defenceman Mason Geertsen of Drayton

Valley, Alta., and North Vancouver winger Jackson Houck, were chosen by

the Colorado Avalanche and Edmonton Oilers on consecutive picks in the

fourth round.

CANUCKS PLACE BALLARD ON WAIVERS

TSN.ca

The Vancouver Canucks have placed defenceman Keith Ballard on waivers.

Ballard could be bought out by the club if he goes unclaimed.

The 30-year-old defenceman scored two assists in 36 games with the

Canucks in 2012-13.

Ballard is entering the fifth year of a six-year deal he signed with the Florida

Panthers prior to the 2009-10 season worth an average annual value of $4.2

million.

Originally selected 11th overall by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2002 NHL Entry

Draft, Ballard has scored 36 goals and 129 assists in 545 career NHL games

with the Canucks, Florida Panthers and Phoenix Coyotes.

LUONGO HAS TOUGH TASK OF RESUMING ROLE AS CANUCKS' STARTER

The Canadian Press

NEWARK, N.J. -- Roberto Luongo appeared to be the most available player in

hockey history. The veteran goaltender wanted to be traded, and the

Vancouver Canucks tried desperately to accommodate him.

Luongo knew the time and money left on his 12-year, US$64-million

contract made that more difficult, but until this past weekend it still looked

like it would happen. When Cory Schneider was shipped off to the New

Jersey Devils instead, it brought Vancouver's goaltending situation into sharp

focus: Luongo is the unquestioned No. 1.

But now Luongo has the challenging task of resuming a role he lost and

trying to reclaim the status of elite goaltender in the city he asked to be

dealt from.

"I think he's been prepared to move on for about a year now. To have that

taken away, you have to sort of reset and readjust," Schneider said. "It's not

easy to do, but he's a resilient guy and he's been through all this before, and

I'm just hoping that he makes the best situation he can and that he can

keep playing well and be the goalie that we all know he can be."

The goalie Luongo can be is more evident on his resume than in his

reputation. The 34-year-old won a gold medal with Canada at the 2010

Winter Olympics after replacing Martin Brodeur, and he came one victory

away from capturing the Stanley Cup for the Canucks in 2011.

But Luongo's save percentage dropped to .907 during the lockout-shortened

season as he and Schneider dealt with the uncertainly and attention of

sharing the net. He became far more popular for his Twitter personality than

his play.

GM Mike Gillis is counting on Luongo returning to gold-medal form now that

the situation was finally resolved.

"I believe Roberto is a professional," he said. "I think he is an outstanding

person, an outstanding goaltender and I anticipate him being one of the

front runners for the Sochi Olympics playing goal for Canada. Based on all

those features I don't expect there to be a problem, but I haven't spoken to

him."

Owner Francesco Aquilini flew to Florida to speak with Luongo on Sunday.

According to Schneider, the Canucks organization didn't have much contact

with either goalie as Gillis tried to figure a way out.

But Luongo and Schneider stayed in touch, talking over the weekend as

rumours swirled. The 27-year-old wished his old partner nothing but the

best as he came to grips with getting a new start in New Jersey.

Luongo doesn't get to start fresh, but Gillis spoke to agent Gilles Lupien and

figures life can now go on as normal.

"I'm not anticipating there being issues, but if there are, we'll deal with

them," Gillis said. "He signed a long-term contract with our club for a lot of

money and (was) very happy to do it."

Money doesn't guarantee great goaltending. The Philadelphia Flyers figured

that out with Ilya Bryzgalov after buying him out of the final seven seasons

of a nine-year, $51-million deal.

But Luongo has a history that suggests he can rebound now that he doesn't

have to split duties with Schneider. Luongo's best seasons have come when

he has played the bulk of games, like when he had a .928 save percentage

when playing 60 in 2010-11.

Luongo is a bit older now, but Schneider doesn't have any doubts about the

veteran returning to form.

"He's been a resilient guy and he's been through a lot and he's been counted

out and knocked down and he's always gotten back up," Schneider said.

"Having worked with him for three years now, I just know he's a great

goalie, whether that's in Vancouver or anywhere else. I think he's going to

play his hardest to be his best."

Schneider's agent Mike Liut, meanwhile, said he was not surprised the

goaltender was traded.

"In the end it went as expected," Liut said in an e-mail. "The Canucks'

original plan was to trade Cory at some point because Roberto's contract

extended him into his 40s. That the Canucks altered that strategy to moving

Roberto was more surprising than their final decision to switch back to

seeking a trade involving Cory. All part of the game."

Liut said Schneider was disappointed in being traded, but understood that

few players spend their entire careers with one team.

"We knew that Roberto's contract would be difficult to trade because of its

term/dollars at best," said Liut.

The agent indicated the new collective bargaining agreement worked against

Schneider staying because the Canucks and another team could both take a

sizable salary cap if Luongo is traded and retires before his contract expires.

Luongo's contract is front-loaded, so he earns much more in the early years,

and the annual cap hit is manageable. But under the new CBA, the so-called

Luongo rule seeks to offset the early soft hits.

"The punitive cap benefit capture that. The NHL demanded in the new CBA

made Roberto's contract all the more difficult to trade," said Liut.

CANUCKS DEAL G SCHNEIDER TO DEVILS FOR FIRST-ROUND PICK

The Canadian Press

NEWARK, N.J. -- The Vancouver Canucks have solved their goaltender

drama, but not in the way most people expected.

The Canucks traded Cory Schneider to the New Jersey Devils for the ninth

pick in the NHL draft, leaving Roberto Luongo as the starting goalie.

"Today's decision was made after a thorough review of our options and in

the interest of improving this team long-term through the draft and

development of players," general manager Mike Gillis said in a statement.

"We appreciate the high level of professionalism and conduct both Cory and

Roberto have shown while continuing to help this team be competitive. I

would like to personally thank Cory for his contributions to our team and

wish him the very best and a bright future."

Gillis said he "had to listen" to offers on Schneider. The one he took got the

Canucks London Knights forward Bo Horvat at No. 9.

Horvat, an 18-year-old centre, played the past two seasons for the Knights

of the Ontario Hockey League. He had 33 goals and 28 assists in 2012-13.

When the trade was announced, Horvat was surprised, like everyone else in

Prudential Center. He had no idea the Canucks were going to take him.

"Anything can happen on draft day," Horvat said.

Horvat will undoubtedly be under the microscope after being part of the

trade that ended Schneider's Canucks tenure and re-inserted Luongo as the

starter.

"I don't feel any pressure, actually," Horvat said. "I think it's more exciting

than anything. I'm just really happy to be part of the organization. I can't

wait to get there and show them that I can be that guy that they picked me

at 9 (for)."

Schneider, 27, has two years left on a contract that counts US$4 million

against the salary cap. Veteran Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur turned 41

in May and has one year left.

The Canucks also had the 24th selection in the first round and picked

Western Hockey League forward Hunter Shinkaruk, who was ranked as fifth

among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting.

Shinkaruk had 49 goals and 37 assists to lead the Medicine Hat Tigers.

NUMBERS GAME: CANUCKS SHIP SCHNEIDER TO DEVILS

Scott Cullen TSN.ca

In a draft day surprise, the Vancouver Canucks relieved their goaltending

logjam in a surprising manner.

Numbers Game looks at the deal sending Cory Schneider to New Jersey.

The Devils Get: G Cory Schneider.

Schneider, 27, has a save percentage of .931 over the last three seasons,

best among goaltenders with at least 75 games and was expected to be the

Vancouver Canucks' goaltender of the future, but their inability to move out

Roberto Luongo and his sizeable contract, left a Schneider deal as the only

viable solution to Vancouver's financial and goaltending concerns.

However, for a variety of reasons, Schneider is a 27-year-old that has yet to

play even 35 games in an NHL season and if he's going to be a top-tier

starting goaltender, it's about time to take on a starter's workload and

maintain the high level of play he's established in his limited NHL playing

time.

In New Jersey, the Devils have Martin Brodeur, who has been the backbone

of the franchise for nearly two decades, but Brodeur has a .905 save

percentage over the last three seasons, which ranks 29th out of 31

goaltenders to have played at least 100 games, and he's 41-years-old, so

it's entirely understandable that the Devils are looking to upgrade.

The question is how will the Devils allocate playing time next season? It's

the final year of Brodeur's contract and, based on recent play, Schneider has

to be the starter. If Schneider gets 55-60 games next year, that would leave

Brodeur with his fewest games played since 1991-1992 (though 29 games in

a lockout-shortened 2013 season is his lowest since too).

Additionally, veteran Johan Hedberg has another year left on his contract, at

a $1.4-million cap hit, and he struggled in 2012-2013 (posting an .883 save

percentage), but Hedberg could be moved to a team seeking a veteran

backup goaltender though, at that price, the Devils may need to eat some of

the salary in order to make Hedberg a more palatable option.

Goaltending was such a problem last season for New Jersey, a team that had

some of the best possession numbers but also the 28th-ranked save

percentage in the league, so it's possible that Schneider could solve that

issue.

New Jersey currently has tons of cap room, but is a team with financial

concerns and some high-profile pending free agents, including Patrik Elias

and David Clarkson. If they depart, that could affect those strong possession

stats going forward.

Schneider is under contract for a couple more seasons, at a cap hit of $4.0-

million, leaving New Jersey with $9.9-million tied in to three goalies. That

may just be a short-term issue, since the Devils don't appear to be a cap

team for next season and both Brodeur and Hedberg are heading into the

final year of their respective contracts.

So long as Schneider makes it as a bona fide starting goaltender, the Devils

have to be very happy with this deal. The uncertainty of a ninth overall pick

(from 1994-2008, six of 15 ninth picks would be considered fringe NHLers or

worse) makes the cost quite reasonable for an established NHLer who still

has a chance to be a star.

The Canucks Get: The ninth overall pick (used to take C Bo Horvat).

Horvat is a highly-regarded two-way player, who scored 33 goals and 61

points in 67 regular season games for the London Knights of the Ontario

Hockey League, adding 16 goals and 23 points in 21 playoff games.

He's a two-way centre who had some offensive upside and gives the

Canucks some much-needed forward talent in the organization. At the same

time, Horvat isn't necessarily providing immediate help. He could use time to

improve his skating and a year of strong production in the OHL may give

him a better chance to make an impact when he does arrive in the NHL.

Provided he reconciles himself to the idea of returning to Vancouver,

Roberto Luongo should be back in line for 60-plus starts next season.

In 20 games last season, Luongo had a .907 save percentage, his lowest

since .904 in 1999-2000, his rookie season. With a .919 save percentage in

747 career games, however, Luongo should be expected to play well as a

starter for at least a few more seasons.

Canucks select Subban brother with 115th pick

Geoff Lowe Sportsnet.ca

After a wild day at the 2013 NHL Draft, the Vancouver Canucks made another intriguing move,

selecting Jordan Subban with the 115th pick on Sunday.

The former Belleville Bulls defenceman was taken one pick ahead of the Canadiens’ fourth-

round selection, just missing the chance to join his brother, P.K., in Montreal.

Jordan is the third Subban brother to be drafted by an NHL team. P.K. was selected 43rd overall

by the Canadiens in 2007, and middle brother Malcolm, Central Scouting’s No. 1-rated goalie

last year, was selected 24th overall by the Boston Bruins in 2012.

Jordan finished sixth among Ontario Hockey League defencemen in points last season with 15

goals and 36 assists.

P.K., this season’s Norris Trophy winner, told NHL.com earlier this month that he believes his

younger brother may amount to more than he has with the Canadiens.

“Jordan plays more of a cerebral type of game and is more of a thinker, and I play off my

instincts and try to do a little bit of everything,” Subban said. “I think Jordan’s skill level is much

higher than mine. I’m on the ice with him every day during the summer doing skill stuff, and

he’s the one demonstrating the drill.”

Subban was ranked No. 55 in the NHL Central Scouting among North American skaters prior to

the draft.

Twitter erupts as Schneider traded to Devils

Chris Nichols Sportsnet.ca

Hockey Hearsay compiles stories from around the hockey world and runs weekdays, 12 months a

year.

SCHNEIDER TRADE STUNS TWITTER

That the Vancouver Canucks finally traded a goaltender at the NHL draft after a seemingly

never-ending saga didn’t come as much of a surprise to anyone.

The veritable bombshell was the organization finally deciding to move 27-year old Cory

Schneider, rather than 34-year-old Roberto Luongo. Schneider, thought to be the future of the

franchise between the pipes, became significantly easier to market to other NHL teams both

because of age and the fact that Luongo still has another nine seasons remaining on his 12-year,

$64 million pact.

So general manager Mike Gillis pulled the trigger in the first round of Sunday’s draft, sending

Schneider to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for the team’s ninth overall selection. The

Canucks then converted that pick into London Knights forward Bo Horvat.

New Jersey has long been seeking an heir apparent to future Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur and

now appears to have the answer in net. Brodeur, 41, has one year left on his current contract, as

does back-up goaltender Johan Hedberg.

As you can imagine, social media was immediately abuzz following news of the trade. Here’s a

taste of the reaction in the hockey world from players, media and fans alike.

Vancouver Canucks surprise everyone by trading Cory Schneider to New Jersey Devils By BRUCE GARRIOCH, QMI Agency

The Vancouver Canucks made their choice Sunday — and it was an odd one.

In a bizarre twist, they went back to Roberto Luongo.

As NHL commissioner Gary Bettman stepped to the microphone Sunday afternoon at the Prudential Center, he had a surprise in store for the New Jersey fans who were waiting for the club to make its No. 1 selection.

Knowing starting goaltender Martin Brodeur isn't getting any younger, the Devils acquired goaltender Cory Schneider from the Canucks in exchange for the No. 9 pick in the entry draft, which means the battle for ice time is over for Luongo.

A lot of mouths dropped at the announcement.

"For the last year we've explored every option that we could possibly have," said Vancouver general manager Mike Gillis. "Things were heating up this week and we just felt we couldn't wait any longer with the situation we were in.

"We felt for our organization ... we had to do something to get the situation resolved and this was the best opportunity we had. It was a very difficult decision. At the end of the day, we didn't feel there was dropoff in either one's play and felt they were both excellent, super players and it really came down to where we could get the most value."

Canucks owner Francesco Aquilini, who many believe is calling the shots, flew to Florida to try to meet with Luongo. He has been expecting a trade all summer and the organization needs to smooth the waters.

"I don't anticipate there being issues," said Gillis.

Word Schneider was available started to surface Saturday after Edmonton Oilers GM Craig MacTavish made a pitch. It's believed the Oilers felt they offered a better package to the Canucks and were stunned Schneider landed in New Jersey.

In the end, the Canucks couldn't stomach buying out Luongo and want to give him the shot to be a top goalie.

Schneider was caught off guard.

"I flipped over just as they were announcing a trade was being made. So I kind of saw it live," Schneider told the Newark Star-Ledger. "I've been a huge fan of Marty Brodeur. I started watching him when he first came into the league.

"For a guy like me to have played with, first, Roberto Luongo and now to get a chance to play with Marty Brodeur, a lot of goalies would kill for that opportunity to learn from those two guys."

No. 1 again

Luongo left to pick up the pieces with Canucks

Stephen Whyno The Associated Press

Roberto Luongo appeared to be the most available player in hockey history. The veteran

goaltender wanted to be traded, and the Vancouver Canucks tried desperately to accommodate

him. Luongo knew the time and money left on his 12-year, $64-million (U.S.) contract made that

more difficult, but until this past weekend it still looked like it would happen. When Cory

Schneider was shipped off to the New Jersey Devils instead, it brought Vancouver’s goaltending

situation into sharp focus: Luongo is the unquestioned No. 1.

But now Luongo has the challenging task of resuming a role he lost and trying to reclaim the

status of elite goaltender in the city he asked to be dealt from.

“I think he’s been prepared to move on for about a year now. To have that taken away, you have

to sort of reset and readjust,” Schneider said. “It’s not easy to do, but he’s a resilient guy and he’s

been through all this before, and I’m just hoping that he makes the best situation he can and that

he can keep playing well and be the goalie that we all know he can be.”

The goalie Luongo can be is more evident on his résumé than in his reputation. The 34-year-old

won a gold medal with Canada at the 2010 Winter Olympics after replacing Martin Brodeur, and

he came one victory away from capturing the Stanley Cup for the Canucks in 2011.

But Luongo’s save percentage dropped to .907 during the lockout-shortened season as he and

Schneider dealt with the uncertainly and attention of sharing the net. He became far more

popular for his Twitter personality than his play.

General manager Mike Gillis is counting on Luongo returning to gold-medal form now that the

situation was finally resolved.

“I believe Roberto is a professional,” he said. “I think he is an outstanding person, an outstanding

goaltender and I anticipate him being one of the front-runners for the Sochi Olympics playing

goal for Canada. Based on all those features, I don’t expect there to be a problem, but I haven’t

spoken to him.”

Owner Francesco Aquilini flew to Florida to speak with Luongo on Sunday. According to

Schneider, the Canucks organization didn’t have much contact with either goalie as Gillis tried to

figure a way out.

But Luongo and Schneider stayed in touch, talking over the weekend as rumours swirled. The

27-year-old wished his old partner nothing but the best as he came to grips with getting a new

start in New Jersey.

Luongo doesn’t get to start fresh, but Gillis spoke to agent Gilles Lupien and figures life can now

go on as normal.

“I’m not anticipating there being issues, but if there are, we’ll deal with them,” Gillis said. “He

signed a long-term contract with our club for a lot of money and [was] very happy to do it.”

Money doesn’t guarantee great goaltending. The Philadelphia Flyers figured that out with Ilya

Bryzgalov after buying him out of the final seven seasons of a nine-year, $51-million deal.

But Luongo has a history that suggests he can rebound now that he doesn’t have to split duties

with Schneider. Luongo’s best seasons have come when he has played the bulk of games, like

when he had a .928 save percentage when playing 60 in 2010-11.

Luongo is a bit older now, but Schneider doesn’t have any doubts about the veteran returning to

form.

“He’s been a resilient guy and he’s been through a lot and he’s been counted out and knocked

down and he’s always gotten back up,” Schneider said. “Having worked with him for three years

now, I just know he’s a great goalie, whether that’s in Vancouver or anywhere else. I think he’s

going to play his hardest to be his best.”

Schneider’s agent Mike Liut, meanwhile, said he was not surprised the goaltender was traded.

“In the end it went as expected,” Liut said in an e-mail. “The Canucks’ original plan was to trade

Cory at some point because Roberto’s contract extended him into his 40s. That the Canucks

altered that strategy to moving Roberto was more surprising than their final decision to switch

back to seeking a trade involving Cory. All part of the game.”

Liut said Schneider was disappointed in being traded, but understood that few players spend their

entire careers with one team.

“We knew that Roberto’s contract would be difficult to trade because of its term/dollars at best,”

said Liut.

Duhatschek: Will Luongo be able to reconnect with Canucks?

ERIC DUHATSCHEK

The Globe and Mail

Thomas Wolfe once said you can’t go home again.

But what if you never left?

In the merry world of the Vancouver Canucks, where their goaltending soap opera was a daily

distraction last season, a development worthy of As the World Turns occurred Sunday during the

NHL’s annual entry draft.

After more than a year of trying, Canucks general manager Mike Gillis finally found a home for

one of his excess goaltenders.

But instead of trading away Roberto Luongo, who’d been practically run out of town on a rail,

the plot took a fresh twist. Ultimately, it was Cory Schneider moving elsewhere and Luongo

back in the team’s good graces as the old/new No. 1.

No, you really can’t make this stuff up.

Luongo put his condo up for sale during the playoffs as the Canucks were swept out of the first

round by the San Jose Sharks. Recently, he was tweeting hilariously about new coach John

Tortorella after Tortorella was hired to replace Alain Vigneault.

Luckily for Luongo, the NHL’s collective agreement would not permit him to follow through on

a promise he made via social media – that he would be willing to stay in Vancouver and be the

backup and play for free if they would just let him sit in at every Tortorella press conference.

Well, Luongo will be closer to Tortorella’s postgame insights than he originally thought. Unless

he decides to breach the 12-year, $64-million (all currency U.S.) contract he signed with the

Canucks in 2010, a contract that made him virtually untradeable, he is back to where he was two

years ago, or before Schneider emerged as a younger, cheaper option as the team’s No. 1

goaltender.

Gillis had opportunities to trade Luongo a year ago, but wanted value in exchange for a player he

viewed as one of the organization’s top assets.

No other NHL team saw it the same way, or at least, none would meet Gillis’s asking price. Then

came the NHL lockout, a revamped collective agreement, a shrinking salary cap and suddenly

the market for Luongo went from lukewarm to ice cold.

If nothing else, Gillis is a pragmatist. When Luongo proved to be untradeable and the Canucks

determined they didn’t want to pay the $27.047-million that it would have cost to buy out the

nine remaining years of his contract, it meant Schneider had to go.

In the end, for Schneider, the New Jersey Devils surrendered a first-round pick, ninth overall, to

the Canucks. Vancouver selected London Knights centre Bo Horvat, putting a piece into a

development pipeline that had gone virtually bone dry.

Was it enough?

Who knows?

The Canucks received inquiries from both the Edmonton Oilers and the Calgary Flames for

Schneider, but elected to move him out of the conference, so that if he evolves into a Vézina

Trophy-winning goaltender, it will happen much further from view.

Instead of teaming up with the goalie who backstopped Canada to the 2010 Olympic gold medal,

Luongo, Schneider will now partner the goalie who backstopped Canada to the 2002 Olympic

gold medal, 41-year-old Martin Brodeur.

Brodeur is planning to play at least one more season, so Schneider may have to wait some more

to become the team’s pure, de facto No. 1. But he is moving closer to his Boston home and that

may make life less complicated for him – and at least get him into an organization that

minimizes the drama at every turn, thanks to their buttoned-down general manager, Lou

Lamoriello.

The more pressing question for Canucks Nation, is how long will it take Luongo to get his head

around the fact that he is back in Vancouver after having cut ties, emotionally and otherwise,

with the city and his teammates?

The Canucks had planned to dispatch owner Francesco Aquilini to patch things up with Luongo

in person. Probably a dozen roses and a rueful, foot-shuffling apology won’t get it done.

About the only saving grace for the Canucks is that Luongo possesses one of the steadiest and

most phlegmatic personalities in the game.

Throughout the lunacy of last season, when every question after every game focused on the

team’s goaltending, Luongo handled the daily circus with humour and professionalism. Luongo

rarely lost his cool. He didn’t do media one night in Edmonton after being hung out to dry in the

team’s season-ending game; and he didn’t say anything inflammatory after Vigneault switched to

Schneider two games into the San Jose series after Luongo gave them two excellent starts.

If anyone can emotionally reconnect with what he thought of as his ex-team, it is Luongo. The

Canucks are clinging to the idea that they can win with this core group, even as their Stanley Cup

window closes. Tortorella is a coaching hire designed to win in the here and now; Luongo is still

a viable goalie, but nearing his 35th birthday; and the Sedin twins are a year away from

unrestricted free agency. What fun. What a frolic. Too bad the NHL doesn’t hand out silverware

to the teams with the best story lines. The Canucks would be champions every year.

Canucks hope Horvat and Shinkaruk can make NHL impact soon Add to ...

Stephen Whyno The Associated Press

The Vancouver Canucks hope Bo Horvat and Hunter Shinkaruk can make the 2013 NHL draft

memorable for more than just the trade of goaltender Cory Schneider.

The Canucks’ first-round picks likely won’t be helping right away, but Horvat and Shinkaruk are

players general manager Mike Gillis believes are on the fast track to the NHL.

“I think they’re really highly skilled players and they bring a lot to the table,” Gillis said. “We’re

very enthused about both of them.”

Vancouver took Horvat, a centre for the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League, with the

No. 9 pick they got from the New Jersey Devils for Schneider. He didn’t expect his name to be

called not long after commissioner Gary Bettman announced the deal.

“I think I’m more excited than anything to hear that I’ve been part of that trade and to be part of

the organization now, it’s an unbelievable feeling,” Horvat said.

Horvat said he doesn’t feel any pressure being the player the Canucks acquired from trading

Schneider.

“I think it’s more exciting than anything,” he said. “I can’t wait to get there and show them that I

can be that guy that they picked me at nine (for).”

Shinkaruk, ranked fifth among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting, fell all the

way to pick No. 24 before the Canucks took him. Gillis said the Medicine Hat Tigers forward

has “huge upside.”

Shinkaruk said this experience was similar to when he slipped to 14th in his bantam draft and

wanted to show the teams that passed on him that they were wrong. He was somewhat surprised

to still be sitting in his seat more than halfway through the first round.

“I had an expectation to go in the first round, obviously, but I wasn’t too sure,” Shinkaruk said.

“I thought maybe I would go a little bit higher, but at the end of the day, to go in the first round

is unbelievable, and that’s what my family kept telling me.”

Horvat and Shinkaruk share the same agency and have been friends for the past couple of years.

How soon they might be teammates is “Vancouver’s call,” Shinkaruk said.

“I think I’m the player who has the ability to step in right away,” he said. “There’s things in my

game that I need to work on — get a little bit stronger — but I’m going to commit to doing that

this summer, and when I get to camp I want to have a good camp and see what happens.”

Gillis indicated Horvat and Shinkaruk could make impacts sooner rather than later.

“They’re both 200-foot players, play in every situation,” he said. “Hunter is a more offensive

player, a more dynamic player, a really fast skater. So we got two complementary players in the

first round.”

Canucks deal Cory Schneider to Devils for ninth pick in NHL draft

David Shoalts

NEWARK, N.J. — The Globe and Mail

A collective gasp and then a burst of applause marked the end of the Vancouver Canucks

goaltending controversy.

Just before the New Jersey Devils were to make their ninth overall selection at the NHL entry

draft, it was announced at the Prudential Center the hometown team just made a trade: The ninth

pick for Canucks goaltender Cory Schneider. The near capacity crowd quickly realized Devils

general manager Lou Lamoriello had just solved his succession problem with 41-year-old Martin

Brodeur and roared its approval.

For Canucks’ fans, it was a sorry end to a year-long drama that could not have been botched any

worse by general manager Mike Gillis, who now adds this to his portfolio along with two

consecutive first-round playoff exits by his team. Even though he took a solid prospect with the

ninth pick in centre Bo Horvat from the Ontario Hockey League’s London Knights, Gillis is now

left in a situation that can be described as awkward at best.

One year ago, Roberto Luongo was told he was no longer the Canucks’ No. 1 goaltender despite

the fact they invested $64-million (all currency U.S.) in him two years earlier with a 12-year

contract. Schneider, 27, who has two years left on his contract with a salary-cap hit of $4-

million, was going to be the new top gun and Luongo would be traded.

But as just about everyone around the league predicted, Gillis was not able to trade Luongo’s

contract. He could have made a deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs in the summer of 2012 but

was too stubborn about a reasonable price. The Leafs backed off again at the trading deadline in

February when Gillis finally agreed to most of elements of a trade but refused to cover part of

Luongo’s salary.

In the meantime, both goaltenders made the best of a terrible situation once the season started,

although you had to wonder if it did not have an effect on Schneider. He was not consistent

enough to keep the No. 1 job full-time and Luongo had to try and bail out the Canucks in their

first-round playoff loss to the San Jose Sharks.

By the time June rolled around, Gillis’s only choices were to give Luongo a compliance buyout,

which would have cost $27-million over 16 years, try for a last-ditch trade or, trade the guy you

publicly promised would be your No. 1 goalie for a long time. Obviously, Canucks owner

Francesco Aquilini was not interested in setting a new record for buyouts, so Schneider was gone

at a discount price.

So somehow Gillis, who stubbornly insisted he could get a great return on a Luongo trade, and

was said to be demanding picks in the first and second rounds plus a prospect for Schneider, has

to explain to the fans, not to mention his owner, how this is a good outcome. The Calgary Flames

and Edmonton Oilers were bidding hard along with the Devils (and the price for them was

higher) but there was no way Schneider was going to a team that will be in the Canucks’ division

next season.

One more thing Gillis has to do is try and repair the relationship with Luongo, who handled the

situation with good grace and lots of humour on Twitter. The only thing the GM has going for

him there is that Luongo is easy-going enough to forgive, although even he will not forget.