St. Louis Blues Looking to Lock Up Binnington As Contract Expires

St. Louis Blues GM Doug Armstrong left little doubt in a recent interview with The Athletic about where the team would like negotiations with their number one goaltender to end up. 

"Our goal is to keep him here, obviously," he told Sarah Goldstein, a reporter for the news outlet. 

Jordan Binnington's two-year deal expires after this season. A native of Richmond Hill, Ontario, Binnington was drafted by the Blues in the third round, 88th overall in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. 

According to The Athletic, industry sources indicate that Binnington's next contract could be in the neighbourhood of $5.5 million - $6.5 million average annual value (AAV). According to Armstrong:

(Binnington) bet on himself, and he’s going to get paid like those guys expect to be paid and will get paid like the guys that have had success.

The Blues starter fits into the same category as some other goalies who signed last year and were listed by Goldstein in her piece for comparison. They include the Calgary Flames' Jacob Markstrom ($6 AAV), Las Vegas Knights' Robin Lehner ($5million AAV) and Ottawa Senators' Matt Murray ($6.25 million AAV). 

Binnington won a Stanley Cup with the Blues in 2019 becoming the first ever NHL rookie goaltender to garner 16 wins in a post season in the process. But, he was beat in the race for the Calder Trophy for the league's top rookie honours that year, losing to the Vancouver Canucks Elias Pettersson by only 578 votes.

Voting for the Calder Memorial Trophy as selected by members of the PHWA: pic.twitter.com/YbRGKOPnTe

— PHWA (@ThePHWA) June 20, 2019

 

Because of his past success, Binnington will likely be asking for more than what Lehner got and possibly even bargaining for more than what the Senators gave to Murray. Although a top paid goaltender is not your ticket to the Stanley Cup, Binnington has proven his worth before. 

Here's a look at some of the highest paid netminders currently:

- Carey Price: $10.5 million AAV

- Sergei Bobrovsky: $10 million AAV

- Marc-Andre Fleury: $7 million AAV

Binnington saw his first action in the National Hockey League in 2015 in a January game against the Carolina Hurricanes. He saw 13 minutes of action as a midseason call-up before returning to the Chicago Wolves. He played for Team Canada at the 2013 World Junior Hockey Championships, serving in a backup role to the Chicago Blackhawk's Malcolm Subban.

His dismal numbers in the tournament (6.82 goals against average, .871 save percentage) goes to show that performance at the World Juniors isn't a solid indicator for how a player will do at the NHL level.

Where do you think he fits in given the list of goalies above?

Photo by Kevin Abele/Icon Sportswire