The St. Louis Blues were able to rally themselves to another nice showing in the second half of a back-to-back, beating Montreal 2-0. It wasn't perfect, unlike what the scoreboard says, but it was one of the better performances of the season.
One performance in particular was crucial to this win, and it might have had a bigger impact than just this game. After terrifying the entire country of Canada with a 6-goal letdown against the Colorado Avalanche on New Year's Eve, goaltender Jordan Binnington just responded in the biggest and best possible way. He shut the door on Montreal for his first shutout of the season, thus reigniting the Olympic flame for Team Canada.
Let's analyze this big-time performance.
Binnington needed this win
This season has been lackluster for Binnington, and it still resulted in an Olympic nomination that puzzled many supporters of Team Canada. He was immediately placed under the microscope and pushed to the side. Then, the New Year's Eve massacre by the hands of the greatest show on ice, the Colorado Avalanche, knocked the entire country to its knees.
But this comeback performance against Montreal was a hard-fought win that showed exactly why you cannot rule out Binnington in any game. This might be the kind of performance that turns his season around, and that means so much for the Blues and for Team Canada as well.
Binnington shut the door on Montreal for 25 saves, earning him the first star of the game. This was his first shutout of the 2025-26 season, and the 19th of his career. He now moves just one shutout away from tying Jaroslav Halak for third-most in Blues history, and is still six behind Brian Elliot.
The Blues and Canada needed this win
The Blues and the entire country of Canada needed that performance and win from Binnington. For the Blues, they now move even closer in the hunt with a record of 17-18-8 for 42 points. They are now within one point of both Seattle and Los Angeles for the two wildcard spots in the Western Conference.
It has seemingly been all Joel Hofer lately in terms of successful goaltending, and Binnington has been in a serious slump. This win gives him a record of 2-5-1 record over his last eight games. Coincidentally, both of those wins came against the Habs.
For Team Canada and its large following, take a deep breath. Binnington still has something left in the tank, and we all know what kind of goalie he can be when the pressure is on. The expectation of him continuing his Four Nations Championship success in the best-on-best tournament in the Olympics should still be intact. There should be doubt, of course, but not as much as it was after the Colorado game.
Give Binnington some credit, and let him prove himself with each passing game until the games begin February.