Cory Schneider is taking nothing for granted.
A man with a bigger head and bigger ego could have rolled into Newark with his eyes set on a throne that is not yet his — that of Hall of Famer-to-be Martin Brodeur, the only goaltender the Devils have known in two decades.
Instead, Schneider has entered his new home on an even keel and not looking too far ahead, even in the wake of what was the franchise’s clear intent to secure a solid replacement for the 41-year-old Brodeur.
“I don’t know what’s going to unfold this season, or next year or the next few years,” Schneider said before stopping all 22 shots while playing the first two periods in Monday night’s 2-1 victory over the Rangers in both teams’ preseason opener at Prudential Center. “[Brodeur] is obviously the best goalie of our generation, if not all time; he’s still got a lot of game left. I’m not going to coming in here assuming something is going to happen. He’s going to get his starts, and hopefully I’m going to get some and we’ll go from there.”
On draft day in June, Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello traded the No. 9-overall pick to the Canucks for the goaltender, and Brodeur, with one more year left on his contract, was one of the first to send Schneider, 27, a congratulatory text. When Schneider got to camp, Brodeur encouraged him to ask questions often, and the new guy in town has taken the incumbent up on that offer.
What doesn’t have to be questioned is Schneider’s talent, apparent when he jumped from post to post to stop a Brad Richards doorstep chance in the first period.
“I got a good vision on it and sometimes your glove is just in the right spot,” Schneider said about the save, which prompted the first “Cor-y, Cor-y” chants from the Newark faithful. “It’s a good sign [for me] to be tracking the puck there.”
After spending the first part of his career consistently in the shadow of Roberto Luongo in Vancouver — and then in the midst of a tumultuous cycle of trade rumors — Schneider finally has some solid ground underfoot.
“It’s kind of fresh at the moment,” said Schneider, who is from Salem, Mass., and knows all about the rivalries up and down the East coast. “I think it’s still pretty early to tell what’s going to happen with my career.”
Coach Pete DeBoer’s team will play a league-high 22 back-to-back games this season, and if both goaltenders can stay healthy, that will ease his pain quite a bit.
“It gives us a great luxury as a coaching staff,” DeBoer said. “I think the teams that are able to roll two goalies — two elite goalies — have an advantage this year.”
So even though Schneider’s future might be as a stalwart between the Devils pipes, for now he is just going to stay humble and let things play out.
“There are worse things that can happen than to have two good goalies,” Schneider said, “and I think that’s what we’ll have here.”
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Veteran forwards Jaromir Jagr (lower-body soreness), Patrik Elias (maintenance), and Dainius Zubrus (rest) all sat out. … The Devils brought in forward Damien Brunner for a professional tryout.
Brunner, 27, played five years in the Swiss Elite League before joining the Red Wings last season, with whom he scored 12 goals and 26 points in 44 games, then scored five goals and nine points in 14 playoff games.
Brunner will skate with the team on Tuesday.