The St. Louis Blues are about to have a serious change in their blueprint, with a goaltending change on the horizon. It is time to move on from the winningest netminder in franchise history in favor of the next big thing.
Jordan Binnington has been this team's rock for nine seasons, but this most recent campaign in 2025-26 showed how fragile he is. He never got into a rhythm, and thus, backup Joel Hofer was able to step in and shine a little bit brighter.
The 2026-27 season is set to have Hofer as the headman going forward. It has not been formally announced, but just about every indication is there that this is it for Binnington. With one more year left on his contract, No. 50 will be a sought-after option for a lot of teams in the playoff hunt at the trade deadline in March.
Hofer is going to have a bigger workload next season, but should that mean over 60 starts of a possible 84? The ideal split looks that way, but it could come with some challenges.
Is it a good idea to throw Hofer all the way in and have him compete with the likes of Igor Shesterkin of the New York Rangers or Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning? Let's talk about it.
Hofer can handle it
Last season, there was only one goaltender who reached more than 60 starts, and it was in the Central Division. Utah goaltender Karel Vejmelka had 64 starts on that exciting Mammoth team, and the expectation is that he will do that again.
Hofer had 43 starts last season, which means for him to get up to that workload of 60, he needs to have 17 more starts next season than he did in the last one. Not impossible, as it really boils down to him staying healthy enough. The 25-year-old goaltender has been a backup for his entire NHL career, and this is a big jump in playing time, but there is a good chance that he can handle it swimmingly.
For Hofer, there are giant shoes to fill, as Binnington is the best goaltender in this franchise's history. There is no one better than No. 50, and if Hofer cannot get out of the gate of his starter journey with some early success, the fanbase is going to be very upset. Not only that, the rest of this roster is filled with young pieces like Philip Broberg and Jimmy Snuggerud, who are both stepping up to be the top defenseman and top forward in their respective position groups.
Hofer has to step up and be this franchise's star goaltender. Giving him 60 starts to truly gauge his worthiness is the right move and has to be done in 2026-27.
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