On Monday’s episode of Canucks Conversation — which was also episode 1000 — David Quadrelli and Harman Dayal were joined by former NHL goaltender Cory Schneider to reflect on his years in Vancouver, his relationship with Roberto Luongo, and what life has looked like since retiring from the NHL.

Schneider started by sharing how much he’s enjoyed the slower pace of retirement and more family time.

“It’s been good to be around my kids,” Schneider said. “When you’re playing the game, you’re gone a lot and miss a lot of stuff. It’s been fun being a dad, picking up kids and dropping them off. It might sound a little silly, but these years go by quick, so I’m happy to be around for that.”

“Other than that, some TV, NHL Network, some Islanders and Devils games on their regional networks, and helping out with the Bridgeport Islanders and coaching their goalies,” Schneider said. “Staying busy, running my own podcast with Brian Boyle, so between all that, I’m busy enough, but not too busy that I don’t get to enjoy retirement.”

Looking back on his playing days in Vancouver, Schneider revisited one of the most memorable moments of the 2011 playoff run — when he was unexpectedly named the starter in Game 6 against the Chicago Blackhawks after the Canucks had seen a 3-0 series lead slip away.

“It was a wild sequence,” Schneider said. “We were up 3-0. Chicago was not your traditional eighth seed, being the defending Stanley Cup champions, so they weren’t just going to be an easy sweep.”

As the series tightened, the pressure ramped up.

“We got beat up in Game 4, then they beat us up again in Game 5 at home, so I got into that game,” Schneider said. “It didn’t occur to me that they’d start me in Chicago because it was Roberto – he was the guy and had been the guy.”

The decision came as a surprise, even to him.

“You’re always prepared, but we got into Chicago and Alain Vigneault sat me and Roberto down and said I was starting,” Schneider said. “It wasn’t awkward. Roberto is a consummate pro and was a really good dude to me, so we just kind of looked at each other. I know he was upset because he wants to play. That’s the way he’s wired and what made him so good, but I think he was a bit surprised, like I was.”

That moment spoke to the dynamic between the two goaltenders, which Schneider described as respectful and supportive throughout their time together.

“He’s a bit older than me, he wasn’t the ‘let’s go out for the night’ type,” Schneider said. “He’s a family-oriented guy, loves his kids and wife, playing poker and fantasy football and that sort of thing. He stayed to himself otherwise because he was the most important guy on our team, and you want those guys to stay locked in.”

Despite the pressure and attention surrounding the Canucks’ crease at the time, the relationship between Schneider and Luongo has endured well beyond their playing days.

“I’m in fantasy leagues with him to this day,” Schneider said. “We have a good, friendly relationship, and when Florida won last year I got to interview him on the ice for NHL Network, so it was a good full-circle moment – he and I on the ice for a Cup celebration, unfortunately just not with the Canucks.”

For Schneider, those years in Vancouver remain especially meaningful.

“He was such a good teammate and mentor to me, and we’ve maintained that friendship,” Schneider said. “I only spent three years with him – people forget he had a 20-year career and I was only there for three of it in Vancouver – but it might’ve been some of the more memorable years of his career, and I was happy to be a part of it. He made me a better goalie, so I’ve always appreciated that about him.”

Eventually though, Schneider was dealt to the New Jersey Devils in a surprise trade on the floor of the 2013 NHL Draft. The Canucks flipped Schneider to the Devils for the ninth overall pick, which they used to draft future captain Bo Horvat.

That trade came as a surprise to practically everyone, including Schneider.

“At our exit interviews, which you do every year, Mike Gillis sort of told me, like, ‘hey, you’re our guy. We’re gonna try to find a way to trade Roberto. It’s what he wants. We’re gonna do it, and then you’re the guy. We’re excited to have you be that guy.’ And that’s how I left. That was the last time I spoke with the organization before I was traded.

“Then, yeah, we went home for the summer, and the draft was all messed up, I think, because of the lockout year, so it was on a stranger time. We were getting married that summer, my wife and I, and she’d had her bachelorette that night before. So, you know, I’m just out and about that day, and I’m flipping through the channels… And I get a text from James Duthie as the draft’s on saying, ‘hey, are you getting traded to New Jersey?’

“I go, ‘are you?’ I was like, ‘no, I don’t know, what are you talking about?’ He’s like, ‘you might want to turn the draft on.’ So I flip over to the draft. Literally in time to see Gary Bettman come to the podium and announce the trade. So I was stunned. Like, we were about to buy a place in Van, but the lockout, we were kind of like, let’s hold off, you know, wait for this to work itself out. I had no intention of leaving. And the very next text after the trade was announced was Roberto saying ‘WTF?!’ with a million exclamation points and question marks. So he was pretty surprised by it as well.

“Like I said, we had a year-end team event just to cap the season off. And Roberto kind of grabbed me, he’s like, ‘hey man, it’s, it’s your net. Like, it’s my time to leave, I’m gonna go somewhere else, but like, you earned it, it’s your net, so just take it and run with it, you earned it. So I was like, oh great. It was sort of like the passing of the torch, and he was great about it. And then that all happened. So I don’t know what happened internally after those conversations, and obviously, you learn it’s a business pretty quickly. At that time, I didn’t understand it as much. I thought I’d be a Canuck my whole career, but you quickly learn that you’re disabused of that notion. So, yeah, it was a complete surprise and just a whirlwind for us as well.”

You can watch the full replay of episode 1000 of Canucks Conversation featuring Cory Schneider and Max Lapierre below!