New Jersey Devils Trade Ninth Overall Pick to Vancouver for Cory Schneider

At ninth overall, the New Jersey Devils decided to move the pick to Vancouver Canucks. The return is a goaltender by the name of Cory Schneider. As of this writing, that's the deal as it stands. The Devils now only have three picks in this draft. But they do get a goaltender under the age of 40 who was essentially Vancouver's starting goaltender last season.

I'm admittedly still taking all this in. The fans here at the Rock were a bit stunned. I would have absolutely loved Valeri Nichushkin getting drafted. (Aside: Dallas took him at #10.) I will definitely say that this is much better than drafting a goaltender. And it's much better than the Canucks drafting Bo Horvat at ninth overall, who's a real reach as a top ten pick. And Schneider was very, very good last season. The Devils address their eventual goaltender need at the draft. Schneider will be in Devils red through 2014-15 as he has two years left on his deal at a $4 million cap hit per season according to CapGeek.

I wonder what this means for Johan Hedberg. Maybe Schneider takes the #1 spot but if the Devils are going to have to decide between keeping Marty and Moose, I don't think there's any chance Moose sticks around. Personally and preemptively, it's been fun, Mr. Hedberg.

In the meantime, I'd like to know your take on this deal. Would you have rather had New Jersey keep their first round pick? Do you think Cory Schneider is worth it? What do you think the Devils will do now at the draft? Please leave your thoughts about this deal. (Note: Here's the reaction over at Nucks Misconduct.)