Jordan Binnington’s name is starting to surface in trade chatter, and that alone says plenty about where things stand in St. Louis.
Elliotte Friedman said on the 32 Thoughts podcast that Binnington is beginning to get some noise in the market. That kind of buzz usually points to a team that isn’t close to locking in a future with its veteran goalie, and Friedman added that there hasn’t really been negotiating with the Blues on Binnington’s next contract. He also noted that it’s tough to read the goalie market right now because of the Hellebuyck price and a few other team situations that are still unresolved.
Binnington is in the final season of a six-year deal and will have made $36MM by the end of this year. The 33-year-old has also slid out of the heavy starting workload he once carried in St.
Louis. Through five games in 2026-27, he has one win, an .851 save percentage and a 4.27 goals against average, while Joel Hofer has taken over as the clearer No. 1 option.
Hofer has six wins in 12 starts and has posted a .919 save percentage and 2.36 goals against average.
The decline has been a steady one for Binnington since the 2019 Stanley Cup Final run that helped cement his place in St. Louis.
From 2019 to 2021, he was winning 60% of his games and had reached 19.6 goals saved above expected. Since signing his extension, those numbers have fallen hard, dropping to a -36.0 GSAx and a 46% win rate.
Even so, he still carries the reputation of being one of the league’s top big-game goalies, which is part of why he has remained Team Canada’s starter at major international events, including the Four Nations Face-off and the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan.
That reputation is exactly why Binnington could still draw interest if the right team decides it needs help in goal. The question is who that team might be.
Friedman spent time on the Oilers and Rangers, and said Edmonton is not looking at this situation and isn’t in a hurry. He pointed to the team’s revival from Tristan Jarry, who is 4-1-0, while they wait to see how Frederik Andersen will do with Devon Levi, who is 7-1-0. Those are the goaltenders the Cup contenders appear to be evaluating for now.
The Rangers, though, look like a more natural fit. With Igor Shesterkin out, New York has already used five goaltenders this season.
The club terminated James Reimer’s contract and is currently leaning on Joonas Korpisalo and Dylan Garand, who is 6-6-1 in 13 games. If the Rangers want to take a swing on Binnington’s track record in big moments as they try to work their way back into the postseason, he could make sense as a short-term answer.
In Other News...
Blues Prospect Surge Is Giving This Pipeline Real Momentum
A busy week across the Blues prospect ranks offered a reminder that the organizations pipeline is starting to show some real life. From Nov. 2 through Nov. 8, St. Louis got encouraging signs in the AHL, KHL, OHL and QMJHL, with several young players turning in productive stretches that gave the front office and fans alike something to track beyond the NHL roster.
Maddox Dagenais, Carter Stevens, Lars Steiner and goalie Love Hrenstam were among the names driving the conversation, each contributing in different ways as their seasons moved along. The details varied by league and role, but the common thread was momentum, and for a franchise that has been working to deepen its prospect base, that kind of week matters even before the biggest breakthrough arrives. [Read more 🡒]
Blues Blue Line Shuffle Puts One Returnee In A Huge Spot
The Blues blue line got a quick reset heading into their matchup with the Detroit Red Wings, with Logan Mailloux coming off injured reserve and Calle Rosn back up from Springfield. St. Louis also sent prospect defensemen Adam Jiricek and Theo Lindstein back to the Thunderbirds, a move that trims the depth chart and gives the club a more experienced look for the night.
Maillouxs return is the part that changes the feel of the defense the most, because the Blues are planning to lean on him in a major role right away. Rosn gives them another option on the bench as the seventh defenseman, but the bigger question is how the new alignment holds up against a divisional opponent with the lineup in flux and a returnee suddenly asked to carry heavy minutes. [Read more 🡒]