NHL insider speculates Joel Hofer as offer sheet candidate

St. Louis Blues general manager Doug Armstrong brought offer sheets back into fashion last offseason. The Blues targeted the Edmonton Oilers with a pair of offer sheets, ultimately landing forward Dylan Holloway and defenseman Philip Broberg.

Those additions, along with a few others like Cam Fowler and a coaching change, helped the Blues to the playoffs for the first time since 2022. They ultimately lost in seven games to the Presidents' Trophy-winning Winnipeg Jets, but it set the foundation to build on.

A part of that foundation is a solid goalie tandem with Jordan Binnington and Joel Hofer. However, while Binnington is signed through the 2026-27 season, Hofer is a restricted free agent this summer after another stellar season.

Offer sheets are all the rage leading up to the official start of the offseason, and perhaps the Blues' usage last year could get the ball rolling on more players signing them. It could even result in some teams targeting a St. Louis RFA.

TSN's Chris Johnston speculated that Hofer could be targeted with an offer sheet this summer.

Hofer, who turns 25 in July, went 16-8-3 with a 2.64 goals-against average and .904 save percentage this past season. Those numbers were similar to the year prior, when Hofer went 15-12-1 with a 2.65 GAA and .913 SV%

The issue for Hofer is the lack of a path to the starting job. Unless the Blues trade Binnington, Hofer is going to play less than half of the team's games. That could be perfectly fine, though, especially in today's NHL when goalie tandems are more common.

If the Blues do think that Hofer will be targeted, perhaps that could lead to them using their first-round pick on a goalie. Binnington and Hofer have been solid, adding a guy like Joshua Ravensbergen could turn the Blues into a goalie factory.

We'll see if anything comes of it, but keep an eye on any Hofer rumors as the offseason chatter picks up.