Mathieu Schneider

Last updated
Mathieu Schneider
MathieuSchneider.jpg
Schneider with the Detroit Red Wings in 2006
Born (1969-06-12) June 12, 1969 (age 55)
New York City, U.S.
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 192 lb (87 kg; 13 st 10 lb)
Position Defense
Shot Left
Played for Montreal Canadiens
New York Islanders
Toronto Maple Leafs
New York Rangers
Los Angeles Kings
Detroit Red Wings
Anaheim Ducks
Atlanta Thrashers
Vancouver Canucks
Phoenix Coyotes
National teamFlag of the United States.svg  United States
NHL draft 44th overall, 1987
Montreal Canadiens
Playing career 19872010

Mathieu David Schneider (born June 12, 1969) is an American former professional ice hockey player. Considered an offensive defenseman, Schneider played 1,289 games in the National Hockey League with ten different teams, scoring 233 goals and totaling 743 points. He won the Stanley Cup in 1993 with the Montreal Canadiens.

Contents

Early years

Schneider, who is Jewish, [1] [2] was born in Manhattan, New York, the first of two sons born to Sam and Aline Schneider. His father is Jewish and his mother, a French-Canadian from Thetford Mines, Quebec, converted to Judaism before marrying his father. [3] He lived with his family in West New York, New Jersey until moving to Woonsocket, Rhode Island, for his high school years. In Woonsocket, Schneider attended high school at Mount Saint Charles Academy. Under the tutelage of coach Normand "Bill" Belisle, Schneider and his team won three of the school's 26 straight Rhode Island state hockey championships. He left Mount Saint Charles after his junior year and joined the Cornwall Royals of the Ontario Hockey League.

Playing career

Drafted in the third round of the 1987 NHL Entry Draft, 44th overall, by the Montreal Canadiens, Schneider was the Canadiens' fourth pick (after forwards Andrew Cassels and John LeClair, and fellow defenseman Éric Desjardins). He played his first NHL game a few months later when he suited up on 1987–88 opening night against the Philadelphia Flyers. However, after four games, he was sent back to his junior team (Cornwall Royals) for the rest of the season. He would spend the entirety of 1988–89 with Cornwall before splitting the next season between Montreal and their American Hockey League farm team, the Sherbrooke Canadiens. After being promoted to the Canadiens, he scored seven goals and 21 points in 44 games with Montreal. Schneider earned a full-time NHL roster spot in the 1990–91 season and, two years later, he won the 1993 Stanley Cup with the Canadiens, defeating Wayne Gretzky and the Los Angeles Kings in five games. Following his Stanley Cup victory, Schneider broke out with 52 points in 1993–94, topping all team defensemen. During the 1994–95 season, Schneider was traded to the New York Islanders finishing the season with 29 points in 43 games between the two clubs. In 1995–96, he recorded 47 points in 65 games with the Islanders and appeared in his first NHL All-Star Game (1996), before being traded in March 1996 to the Toronto Maple Leafs (along with Toronto fan-favorite Wendel Clark) in exchange for three players and a first-round selection in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft (eventually Roberto Luongo). [4] He finished the year with 54 points in 78 games between the two clubs.

Prior to the 1996–97 season, Schneider was a member of the 1996 World Cup champion Team USA squad. It was his high point for the season as he suffered a serious groin injury and was lost for the majority of the season, playing only 26 games. [4] He returned to the Leafs from his injury the following season and tallied 37 points in 76 games. He was a contract hold-out as a restricted free agent prior to the 1998–99 season, reportedly seeking a $3.3 million salary with the Maple Leafs. Consequently, a few games into the season, the Maple Leafs traded him to the New York Rangers where he then signed a one-year, $2.75 million contract. Born in Manhattan, Schneider stated his excitement to be playing for his hometown team. [5] In two seasons with the Rangers he accumulated 34, then 30 points.

Schneider was left unprotected in the 2000 NHL Expansion Draft and he was chosen by the Columbus Blue Jackets. [6] However, he was never signed by the Blue Jackets and, less than a month later, Schneider signed with the Los Angeles Kings. [7] In his first season with the Kings, Schneider tallied 51 points in 73 games, his highest total since his 52-point season with the Canadiens in 1993–94. As the Kings played into the second round of the 2001 playoffs, Schneider matched a career-high 9 points in 13 playoff games.

After appearing in his second All-Star Game in 2003, Schneider was dealt at the trade deadline to the Detroit Red Wings for two players and two draft picks. The Kings had shopped Schneider around as he was set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. With the development of offensive-minded defensemen Joe Corvo and Lubomir Visnovsky, Schneider was considered replaceable by the Kings. [8] Although the Red Wings had traded for Schneider as a rental player to bolster their Stanley Cup run, they were upset in the first round by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. Schneider finished the season with 16 goals and 50 points between the Kings and Red Wings.

Schneider during a game against Vancouver - October 6, 2006 Mathieu Schneider 2006.jpg
Schneider during a game against Vancouver – October 6, 2006

Schneider was re-signed by Detroit in the off-season to a two-year deal [9] and he eventually played another three seasons with the Red Wings that included a career-high 21 goals and 59 points in 2005–06. He played his 1,000th NHL game against the Anaheim Ducks on October 21 of that same season and scored his 200th NHL goal on March 6, 2007, against the Nashville Predators. [10]

Following the 2006–07 season, Schneider became an unrestricted free agent and he signed a two-year, $11.25 million deal with the Anaheim Ducks. The Ducks had pursued Schneider in lieu of Norris Trophy-winner and team captain Scott Niedermayer's expected retirement (although Niedermayer returned to the Ducks later in the season). [11] [12] By signing with the Ducks, he missed a chance for another Stanley Cup, arriving in Anaheim the same year that Detroit won the 2008 Stanley Cup championship and a year after the Ducks' 2007 Stanley Cup victory. Schneider did not debut with the Ducks until a couple months into the season, as he sustained a broken ankle in a pre-season game against the Los Angeles Kings. [13] In his only season with the Ducks, he tallied 39 points in 65 games, second among Ducks' defensemen. [14]

As the 2008–09 season approached, the Ducks looked to free up cap space in order to re-sign Teemu Selänne. With All-Star defensemen Chris Pronger and Scott Niedermayer ahead of him on the depth chart, Schneider was placed on waivers, but cleared. [15] The Ducks instead traded him to the Atlanta Thrashers on September 26, 2008, in exchange for three players. [16] However, Schneider did not remain with the Thrashers for the whole season. He was traded back to the Montreal Canadiens in February 2009 for two draft choices.

On August 28, 2009, the Vancouver Canucks signed Schneider to a one-year, $1.55 million contract. The deal included a $1 million signing bonus (making his base salary $550,000), dispersed throughout the season over four equal payments. [17] After having undergone off-season shoulder surgery, Schneider missed the first 10 games of the 2009–10 season and made his Canucks debut on October 25 in a 2–0 win against the Edmonton Oilers. [18] He was playing primarily as a depth defenseman and on December 20, he left the team due to a reported dispute about his playing time. Following his debut for the Canucks, he was a healthy scratch 11 times in 28 games. The Canucks explained his absence as a "personal matter", while general manager Mike Gillis reportedly tried to trade Schneider. [19]

On December 29, 2009, Schneider was waived by the Vancouver Canucks. [20] After clearing waivers, he reported to the Canucks' AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moose on January 2, 2010. [21] On March 3, 2010, Schneider was traded from the Vancouver Canucks to the Phoenix Coyotes for Sean Zimmerman and a sixth-round draft pick. At the end of 2010, Schneider officially ended his career as a player. [22]

Schneider appeared as a member of the Red Wings alumni team on December 31, 2013 at Comerica Park against members of the Toronto Maple Leafs alumni.

NHLPA career

Shortly after announcing his retirement, Schneider became involved with the National Hockey League Players' Association as a special assistant. [22] His first significant project with the NHLPA has been adjustments to the head-shot and boarding rules, alongside former Red Wings teammate Brendan Shanahan. [23] As of 2018, he was a special assistant to now-former NHLPA executive director Don Fehr. [24]

International play

Schneider first played for the United States in the 1988 World Junior Championships, tallying 2 assists as the U.S. finished in sixth place. He made his senior international debut at the 1996 World Cup, where the U.S. won the tournament in a three-game final over Canada. Schneider scored 2 goals in 7 games.

Two years later, in 1998, he was selected to join the U.S. team at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano. He failed to register a point as the U.S. finished a disappointing sixth. A serious groin/abdominal injury kept Schneider from consideration for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, and, although he was chosen to his second World Cup tournament in 2004, he pulled out of the games due to a lack of insurance (he was not signed to an NHL team that summer). [ citation needed ]

In December 2005, he was selected to represent the U.S. at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. Despite a two-point performance from Schneider in the quarterfinals, the U.S. was eliminated by Finland. [25]

Personal life

Schneider married his wife, Shannon, in 1999, and has 4 children, Mathieu Jr, Abigail, Micah, and Ella. Manhattan Beach, California. [26] Schneider was one of a handful of Jewish players in the NHL. [26]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season TeamLeagueGP G A Pts PIM GPGAPtsPIM
1985–86 Mount Saint Charles Academy HS-RI 1932730
1986–87 Cornwall Royals OHL 637293675500022
1987–88 Cornwall RoyalsOHL48214061831126814
1987–88 Sherbrooke Canadiens AHL 303312
1987–88 Montreal Canadiens NHL 40002
1988–89 Cornwall RoyalsOHL5916577396187202730
1989–90 Sherbrooke CanadiensAHL286131920
1989–90 Montreal CanadiensNHL447142125913431
1990–91 Montreal CanadiensNHL69102030631327918
1991–92 Montreal CanadiensNHL788243272101456
1992–93 Montreal CanadiensNHL60133144911112316
1993–94 Montreal CanadiensNHL752032526210000
1994–95 Montreal CanadiensNHL305152049
1994–95 New York Islanders NHL1336930
1995–96 New York IslandersNHL6511364793
1995–96 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL132571060448
1996–97 Toronto Maple LeafsNHL26571220
1997–98 Toronto Maple LeafsNHL7611263744
1998–99 New York Rangers NHL7510243471
1999–00 New York RangersNHL8010203078
2000–01 Los Angeles Kings NHL73163551561309910
2001–02 Los Angeles KingsNHL557233068701118
2002–03 Los Angeles KingsNHL6514294357
2002–03 Detroit Red Wings NHL132571640006
2003–04 Detroit Red WingsNHL7814324656121238
2005–06 Detroit Red WingsNHL722138598661786
2006–07 Detroit Red WingsNHL68114152661124616
2007–08 Anaheim Ducks NHL651227395061018
2008–09 Atlanta Thrashers NHL444111553
2008–09Montreal CanadiensNHL23512171420004
2009–10 Vancouver Canucks NHL1723512
2009–10 Manitoba Moose AHL83258
2009–10 Phoenix Coyotes NHL8044431010
NHL totals1,2892235217441,250116114354155

International

YearTeamEventResultGPGAPtsPIM
1988 United States WJC 6th702216
1996 United States WCH Gold medal icon.svg72028
1998 United States OG 6th40006
2006 United StatesOG8th612316
Junior totals702216
Senior totals1732530

Awards

Transactions

See also

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