Asking whether the St. Louis Blues should roll with Jordan Binnington long-term or if they should move him and go with Joel Hofer is a valid question. At one point in the season, I would’ve said there should be no question and that the Blues would be foolish to keep Binnington longer. That’s about how much faith I had in this team back in November.
Now that they’re entrenched in wild card contention and possibly more if one of their three biggest Central Division rivals slips up, the narrative’s changed. Binnington needs to stick around the Lou, at least as I write this heading into the fourth week of January.
He’s the more durable player than Joel Hofer; he’s more proven, and he’s still got a lot of hockey left in what’s been a successful career. Let’s discuss this more in-depth below.
Binnington has proven to be a durable goaltender
Jordan Binnington has given the Blues 55-plus starts in each of the last two seasons, and he seems to be well on pace for that again. This shows me that Binnington is a durable goaltender, and it’s something you don’t see to a large extent in the NHL.
While a retooling team like the Blues could go with Joel Hofer and get even younger, he’s still unproven. Hey, if they were at the bottom of the barrel or at least near it in the Central, I’d say, ‘By all means, move Binnington and go with Hofer.’
I may’ve even said that in the past. But here in late January, things are different. The Blues are right there in contention for a wild card and they need to go with their best players to try and make this season more memorable. That means you roll with Binnington.
He’s proven he can take over games
Some fans will point to and cry foul at Binnington’s pedestrian 0.898 save percentage, but that’s where the crying needs to end. His 2.86 GAA also isn’t the greatest, but I’ve seen far worse output from plenty of No. 1 and 1A goaltenders this season.
Plus, his three shutouts show me that, even without playing for one of the clear-cut best teams in the NHL, he’s still taking over games. It’s one thing if the Blues scored more, but with the team ranked just 20th in scoring heading into Thursday, Binnington’s ability to keep the puck out of the net often makes him the best asset between the pipes.
No, he hasn’t been the most consistent goaltender in hockey, but guess what? The Blues haven’t been the most consistent team, and it would be tough to see Joel Hofer faring any better if he were in Binnington’s position.
Binnington gives the St. Louis Blues one less issue
This point kind of plays off the first one in that Jordan Binnington remains a viable player who can be a No. 1 goaltender. That’s something the Blues have no idea about in Joel Hofer.
Yeah, Hofer can give you some awesome numbers and performances, and he’s shown it across one and a half seasons. But he’s never been anything more than a No. 2 netminder. And for all we know, it could be his ceiling.
If Binnington was older, I’d endorse moving him right now, but many of us forget he’s only in his age-31 season and could still have a lot of hockey left. If the Blues look like remote contenders, Binnington is the guy you want down the stretch while using Hofer as trade bait to acquire a need.
Moving Binnington and rolling with Hofer may give the Blues an issue to worry about should the latter struggle. So, with the Blues achieving better-than-expected results in 2024-25 and likely beyond, Binnington guarantees that the Blues can make acquisitions elsewhere without worrying about the netminder position.