There is a chance that this season will go down as one of the wildest and unpredictable in the 58-year history of the St. Louis Blues. There have been good moments, even more bad, and after all the dust settles, there is a big change happening right in front of our eyes.
With a 1-0 shutout against the Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday, there was a changing of the guard. That was all she wrote, this is Joel Hofer's team now.
Let's talk about it.
Hofer goes over on Binnington
The number one issue with the Blues this season, and the catalyst behind why it has been such an underwhelming showing, is due to the goaltending. Both Jordan Binnington and Hofer have not been great, and after 35 games, it is still up in the air.
As of late, it has been the Hofer show in net, and the Blues have benefited more often than not with No. 30 in net. His shutout win over the Jets was his third shutout on the season, in which he holds a record of 6-7-2. The highlight of his stat line is that he is now under a 3.00 goals against average at 2.96.
The significance of that GAA number is that Hofer started the season by allowing 17 goals in his first four starts.
Binnington has not been as sharp this season, and his days are numbered as the Blues starting goaltender. Although this most recent win basically secures Hofer as the go-to guy going forward, the franchise leader in wins has one more chance to prove himself against the New York Rangers.
If Binnington cannot have a solid start, the split should officially swap. Hofer has proven to be the hotter hand, and there is no more room for setbacks if the Blues want to continue to compete for a playoff spot.
Hofer had to have a statement win, and shutting out the Jets on 24 shots is quite the remark. If this was the passing of the torch moment, can Hofer live up to some really big shoes to fill in Binnington?