NHL legend Don Cherry has suggested that the Boston Bruins should trade for St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington. He made this proposal on episode 296 of "The Don Cherry’s Grapevine Podcast" on Sunday, pointing out Binnington’s strong performance and past success at TD Garden.
Binnington helped Team Canada win the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament, playing all four games with a .907 save percentage and a goals-against average of 2.37. In the final against the U.S., he stopped six shots in 8:18 of overtime. Connor McDavid then scored the tournament-winner against Connor Hellebuyck. Canada’s goaltending was a concern, but Binnington delivered when it mattered most.
This success happened at TD Garden, where he had his biggest career moment. In 2019, he made 32 saves in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. The Blues won 4-1 over the Bruins, securing their first championship.
Don Cherry shared a story about that win, recalling that Binnington allowed six goals the game before but stayed confident. He then helped his team win the championship. Cherry now thinks the Bruins should trade for him.
"Yeah. Binnington was unreal in overtime," Cherry said. "Six goals the night before, and he says, oh, we'll win the game tonight. Where'd you meet him? I met him in the elevator. Anyhow, he played well in Boston. Maybe, maybe Bruins should trade for him."
Jordan Binnington has a six-year, $36,000,000 contract with a $6,000,000 cap hit per season.
Brayden Schenn praises Jordan Binnington’s clutch performance in 4 Nations Face-Off win
Team Canada won the 4 Nations championship with Jordan Binnington's strong performance against Team USA in the final. He made 31 saves in their 3-2 overtime victory. His biggest stop came in overtime against Auston Matthews, leading to Connor McDavid’s winning goal.
St. Louis Blues captain Brayden Schenn praised Jordan Binnington’s ability to perform under pressure. He pointed out key saves on Matthews and Brady Tkachuk. Schenn said Binnington looked calm and confident, which gave his teammates belief.
"Just knew he wasn't going to lose in that building in a one-gamer," Schenn said. "But 'Binner,' back in his element and looked calm, made the big saves, a couple big (ones) early and obviously stepped up in overtime and helped them win.
"He just gets in those in-the-zone moments. It feels like he's not going to be beat. Just that point-blank save on Matthews who's, whatever, I'll call him a top-three goal-scorer in the League with a slot chance, the save on Brady (Tkachuk)."
He also noted that when a goalie plays well, star players like McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon and Sidney Crosby need only one chance to score.
"It just felt like he was in a zone," Schenn said, "and when you make some saves like that, big boys on his team obviously feel like he's giving his team a chance to win and it just takes one chance and for [Connor] McDavid, [Nathan] MacKinnon, [Sidney] Crosby, guys like these, and they were able to put it in."
Jordan Binnington has struggled with consistency this season, but his teammates knew he was capable of a big game. Now, he will focus on helping the Blues stay in the playoff race.
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