Jordan Binnington is playing for a team that needs to do away with the core that’s over 30, get younger, and start winning hockey games again for a long time. But, that doesn’t mean the St. Louis Blues need to or should move everyone over age 30; instead opting to hang onto a few players is the best way for this team to go about things.
That once again brings us to Jordan Binnington: Should the Blues keep him around following an epic 4 Nations Face-Off performance, or do they hope he keeps the momentum at a high and use that as means to trade him somewhere else?
Should Binnington maintain that value, the Blues might have an opportunity to complete the retool, or at least get close to it. Still, even if Binnington continued playing the way he had for most of the season between the pipes, despite his history as a successful netminder, teams might still wonder what he could do if he had more talent around him.
The St. Louis Blues should still be open to trading Jordan Binnington
Open to trading Jordan Binnington versus looking to trade him are two different concepts. On one hand, being open to trading Binnington means not actively shopping him, but instead only moving him if the right offer came along. If a team is looking to overbuy, then general manager Doug Armstrong must make the move.
But if Armstrong wasn’t getting the offers he would want to hear, and we all know he’s not trading anyone unless at least a first-round pick is involved, then he doesn’t need to actively shop Binnington. Instead, the best course of action would entail letting contenders inquire about Binnington, listen to the offers, and if a team is looking to overpay, pull off the trade.
Should Armstrong get the right offer and trade Binnington, Joel Hofer would then have quite an opportunity in Arch City to show he can be the goalie of both the present and future, and a No. 1 beginning in 2025-26. Hofer would also get a chance to show whether he’s good with starting between two and three games per week as at least a 1A for the remainder of the season.
Even if the Blues send a few veterans elsewhere trading Binnington must be an option
With the Blues sinking in the standings and rumors swirling around at least Brayden Schenn, if not Colton Parayko and Justin Faulk, you can bet that multiple contenders will call and inquire about all of the above, plus Binnington.
Again, Armstrong doesn’t need to trade all of these players, nor should he. But pulling off two trades here while keeping select veterans will give the Blues more youngsters ready to make an impact in the NHL for a younger hockey team. Not to mention the way St. Louis’ prospects pool would expand along with their draft capital.
And we know Armstrong would call the right names, setting the Blues up for prolonged success into the 2030s. So, while I would have no problem seeing Binnington stick around St. Louis, trading him off after his epic 4 Nations Face-Off performance and carrying that momentum through toward the trade deadline could work wonders for the Blues.