How much playing time will Jordan Binnington and Joel Hofer receive in 2024-25?

The St. Louis Blues have one major strength heading into 2024-25, and it’s at goaltending, but that doesn’t mean they will keep everything as is. Instead, the Blues will likely give netminder Joel Hofer more time between the pipes, while Jordan Binnington could be auditioning for other teams when he’s in the net. 

Why is this worth considering? The Blues need to keep up the current trajectory of getting younger, and the only way to do that is for Hofer to, eventually, become ‘the guy’ at some point this season. It’s one reason trading away Binnington should the Blues not find themselves in contention is a good idea. 

But even if Binnington would stick around if the Blues had a chance of making the playoffs at the trade deadline and they kept him, how many games would he find himself in this season compared to Hofer? This is the scenario I want you to picture so we can explore it in greater depth. 

Joel Hofer should get more reps than Jordan Binnington regardless

Don’t get me wrong, Jordan Binnington should still be one of the NHL’s better goaltenders, and if he had a better team last year, his numbers could have been Vezina-worthy. This isn’t saying he would have challenged Connor Hellebuyck and Thatcher Demko, who finished No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, but you get the gist; Binnington’s season would have been one we’d have looked back at fondly. 

It was something I also implied when I ranked each of the top goaltenders in the Blues system, but I was rather mum on how much time they would have gotten this season. When I released those rankings two months ago, the mindset was rather prudent, but with more younger players in the system now, that prudence has gone to the wayside. 

Therefore, if I were to make a prediction roughly one month before play started, I’m rolling with Binnington getting between 45 and 50 games should the Blues keep him all year. Meanwhile, Hofer gets the remainder, or between 32 and 37, but with the potential for more if he outplays Binnington or if the Blues drop off after the deadline. 

All of this said, if I were to make a bold prediction for 2025-26, Joel Hofer will be the No. 1 goaltender in the net while Binnington gets moved elsewhere. That’s unless the Blues somehow start winning often in 2024-25, and they start acquiring more veterans at the deadline and in the 2025 offseason, but logistically, the youth movement will continue.