#Devils adding free agent Cory Schneider to goalie corps

Veteran goaltender Cory Schneider is closing in on a deal with the Islanders, GM Lou Lamoriello all but confirmed on Monday.

Schneider is expected to sign a one-year, $700,000 deal, according to The Athletic.

“There’s a good chance of that transpiring,” Lamoriello said. “As you know I had Cory in New Jersey and I think that he’s trying to resurrect his career and with our coaching staff, I’ve had several conversations with Cory so that rumor, I think will come to fruition.”

The 34-year-old Schneider was bought out by the Devils last week, ending a rollercoaster seven-year run in Newark that began when Lamoriello acquired him during the 2013 NHL Draft to succeed Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur.

Schneider at times was dominant for New Jersey, but never seemed to recover from a hip injury in 2018.

In 2019-20, Schneider went 3-6 with a 3.53 goals against average and a .887 save percentage in 13 NHL games, and also spent time in the minor leagues.

Schneider will likely be the third string netminder behind Semyon Varlamov and goaltending prodigy Ilya Sorokin.

Sorokin signed a one-year, $2 million contract extension for the 2020-21 season and is expected to split time with Varlamov.

The Islanders let Thomas Griess walk this offseason and he signed a two-year, $7.2 million deal with the Red Wings.

Schneider will likely find himself with the team’s minor-league affiliate, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, who currently have only have goalie Jakub Skarek on the roster after the Islanders didn’t extend a qualifying offer to RFA Linus Soderstrom and Chris Gibson signed as a UFA with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Adding Schneider is a low-risk deal for the Islanders, who could rely on the veteran should an injury at the NHL level arise.

Schneider would have to be re-signed for the 2021-22 season to fulfill the expansion draft exposure requirement.

Varlamov was the Islanders’ No. 1 goalie during this year’s playoff run, emerging as the clear starter after splitting the workload with Greiss for a majority of the regular season. Varlamov still has three years remaining on his four-year contract, carrying a cap hit of $5 million.