Devils GM Shero: Schneider 'could be in the MVP voting'

While many pegged the New Jersey Devils to sit near the bottom of the Eastern Conference before the season started, stellar play in goal from Cory Schneider - along with surprising contributions from the offense - has the Devils sitting in a playoff spot 30 games into their 2015-16 campaign.

With Schneider sitting in the league's top ten in wins and goals-against average while sporting a .924 save percentage, it's not lost on general manager Ray Shero how big of a contribution his netminder's play has been to the team's success.

"Yeah, I'd say so," Shero told NBC's Pro Hockey Talk when asked if Schneider was the team's most valuable player. "Cory could be in the MVP voting for the league."

The Devils acquired the 29-year-old from the Vancouver Canucks in a draft-day deal for then-prospect Bo Horvat as the successor to future Hall-of-Famer Martin Brodeur, who backstopped the franchise's three Stanley Cup wins.

Shero certainly doesn't seem to mind the idea of Schneider carrying the load for the current Devils like No. 30 did in the past.

"He's part of the team," Shero said. "If Corey makes 36 saves and we get out-shot, you know what? That's fantastic. Who's going to apologize for that?"