The Habs have made a move to give themselves some more defensive depth for next season as on Friday, they announced the signing of Corey Schueneman to a one-year, two-way contract. The deal will pay him the league minimum of $750,000 in the NHL (the league minimum jumps by $50,000 next season) and $175,000 in the minors.
If the name sounds familiar, it’s because Schueneman has been with Laval this season after signing a minor-league deal in free agency last summer. While it was initially thought that he’d be just a depth player, he has played in every game this season and has predominantly played on the top pairing in recent weeks.
This season, the 25-year-old has three goals and four assists in 21 games for Laval which is actually a step back from his rookie AHL campaign where he had 21 points (3-18-21) in 44 contests with Stockton last year. Prior to that, he played a full four years at Western Michigan before turning pro so he’s a bit of a late-bloomer. At the very least, it’s a cool feel-good story for someone that was originally just supposed to be a depth player for the Rocket.
Schueneman’s Stats:
Speaking of Laval, the Rocket will have some reinforcements for their game tonight against Schueneman’s former team in Stockton as the Habs have loaned Laurent Dauphin and Xavier Ouellet down from the taxi squad. Both veterans are expected to be in uniform for the game.