Canucks stick with Schneider in net

SAN JOSE – Vancouver goaltender Cory Schneider, coming off back-to-back shutouts, will make his fifth straight start Saturday night against the San Jose Sharks, the team announced after an optional morning skate.

Goaltender Roberto Luongo, one of four Canucks on the ice Saturday morning at HP Pavilion, missed back-to-back games with an upper-body injury but suited up at Colorado on Wednesday and at Phoenix on Friday.

Schneider made 24 saves in a 3-0 victory against Colorado and 22 in a 5-0 victory over Phoenix. Before Schneider posted two straight shutouts – and three straight wins -- it seemed likely that Luongo would start against San Jose on the second of back-to-back games.

Canucks coach Alain Vigneault did not attend the optional skate, and his decision to start Schneider was announced by a team spokesman.

“Roberto’s a great goalie and so is Schneider,” Sharks captain Joe Thornton said earlier in the day before the decision was announced. “So it doesn’t matter who you go against.”

Schneider is 5-4-0 with a 2.02 goals against average and a .928 save percentage. He’s allowed one goal in his past three games. Luongo is 7-5-1 with a 2.97 goals against average and .896 save percentage.

Sharks goaltender Antti Niemi, coming off a 1-0 shutout of Chicago, will start his second straight game against Vancouver.

Here’s how the lineups could look for tonight’s game between the San Jose Sharks and Vancouver Canucks at HP Pavilion:

SHARKS

Joe Pavelski – Joe Thornton – Logan Couture
Ryane Clowe – Patrick Marleau – Torrey Mitchell
Jamie McGinn – Michal Handzus – Martin Havlat
Brad Winchester – Andrew Desjardins – Andrew Murray

Dan Boyle – Douglas Murray
Brent Burns – Marc-Edouard Vlasic
Jason Demers – Jim Vandermeer

Antti Niemi

CANUCKS

Daniel Sedin – Henrik Sedin – Alexandre Burrows
Chris Higgins – Ryan Kesler – David Booth
Manny Malhotra – Cody Hodgson – Jannik Hansen
Aaron Volpatti – Maxim Lapierre – Dale Weise

Dan Hamhuis – Kevin Bieksa
Alex Edler – Sami Salo
Andrew Alberts – Keith Ballard

Cory Schneider