The New Jersey Devils haven’t done a great job backing goaltender Cory Schneider this season. He won just four of his first 17 starts, but it’s hard to judge him too harshly for that when the Devils have only scored three or more goals in three of his contests this season.
Saturday’s game against the New York Islanders wasn’t shaping up to be any better. Schneider held a 1-0 lead for the better part of the contest before he finally conceded it midway through the third period.
Travis Zajac took some of the blame for the goal as it started with a turnover by him. As fate would have it though, he undid the damage with an unusual goal:
Zajac called it a “stinger,” but felt a bit better afterward. He was also happy about it because it meant Schneider got a win.
“He’s been battling hard and he deserved that one (Saturday night),” Zajac added, according to the Bergen Record.
Schneider is still just 5-8-5 this season, but he’s been better than that record suggests.