When St. Louis Blues' general manager Doug Armstrong added goaltender Jordan Binnington's name to Team Canada's roster, he had some explaining to do. Armstrong has watched every game Binnington has played in up close, and the results this season have been disastrous.
Regarding his decision, Armstrong said, "Jordan Binnington's resume speaks for itself. What he did at the 4 Nations, what he's done in the NHL. His statistical numbers aren't to where he would like them to be this year and working for the St Louis Blues I would agree. But also, I don't think the St. Louis Blues put a product in front of him that we should be proud of. So he's a byproduct of how we play on some nights."
While the Blues have dramatically underperformed this season, stumbling to a 15-18-8 record and 38 points, you can argue that Armstrong is reaching for ways to justify his decision to add Binnington, who is coming off of an awful performance against the Colorado Avalanche.
The St. Louis Blues have been serviceable when Jordan Binnington is on the bench
Jordan Binnington has played in 24 games this season, notching an ugly 0.869 save percentage, a 3.56 GAA, zero shutouts, and a 0.318 quality starts percentage. In those 24 games, Binnington has allowed four or more goals in nine of them. This implies the Blues are a bad hockey team, but what about when Joel Hofer is playing?
Hofer has seen action in 22 games, posting a 0.901 save percentage, a 2.87 GAA, three shutouts, and a 0.526 quality starts percentage. He's been the more serviceable of the two so far this season, and that supposedly subpar product in front of the goaltender suddenly looks a lot better when he's in the crease.
Something's amiss here. If the St. Louis Blues were that bad a team, then why are they playing better hockey when Hofer is in the net than when Binnington is? That's something Armstrong didn't discuss, and it's a question that fans of Team Canada need to ask.
Team Canada and the St. Louis Blues will find out where Jordan Binnington stands
Armstrong acknowledged that Binnington's performance at the 4 Nations Face-Off played a role in him making Team Canada. "I think what everyone saw from him at the 4 Nations cemented his legacy for this tournament, and what I've seen over his career made it easy for me to go in that direction."
It's true that Binnington was the hero at the 4 Nations, and his play picked up when the NHL returned to action in late February. As a result, the Blues sneaked into the playoffs, giving fans a reason for hope in 2025-26. But Binnington's play didn't just decline this season. It face-planted.
At the Olympics, Binnington will have one of the best, if not the best, teams of skaters in front of him. It's his chance to prove that he can still play at an elite level, despite the poor numbers this season.
Should Binnington put up solid play at the Olympics, Armstrong will need to further elaborate on why he didn't bother to put a better product on the ice in St. Louis. If Binnington's play doesn't improve in Milan, then Armstrong will need to explain how he failed to look past his top goaltender's shortcomings when he had a front-row seat to every game Binnington played in.