It's no secret that the Vegas Golden Knights need goaltending. When you rank as one of the league's worst teams here, you'd better make a change. Lo and behold, it appears that there's a face to the Golden Knights' rumors surrounding the goaltending situation.
Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman had his segment on the Fan Hockey Show, where he talked about the Golden Knights being in the market. The name that came up? Jordan Binnington of the St. Louis Blues.
"Vegas' goaltending has been a real problem this year; Jordan Binnington and Adin Hill's salaries are a near match, so if you wanted to do that, you could make it work."Friedman on the Fan Hockey Show
This season, Binnington hasn't been at his best. The Canadian Olympian has a GAA of 3.60 and a save percentage of .867. However, his career numbers tell a better story: the Blues goaltender has a career GAA of 2.85 and a career save percentage of .903.
There's also a caveat with his performance: he's playing on a middling St. Louis Blues team. Yes, they might have as many regulation wins as the Golden Knights. However, they only have 53 points entering Wednesday. The Golden Knights? They got 70.
Would Jordan Binnington be a stylistic fit for the Vegas Golden Knights?
Looking on X today, I came across a post from Jesse Granger from The Athletic. He talked about the style that Bruce Cassidy looks for from his goaltenders. The moral of the story? He loves guys who "play between the posts."
I've seen posts linking Binnington to Vegas. Here are my thoughts on the stylistic fit:
— Jesse Granger (@JesseGranger_) March 4, 2026
Listen to Bruce Cassidy talk about his goalies. Whenever one is on a heater, and we ask Bruce his thoughts on why, he almost always, without fail, uses the phrase "playing between his…
That has been the biggest thing about him. He tends to have a more acrobatic style than Hill, making him much more unpredictable in net. Is that something that's worth working with for this season (and beyond?)
One might say, "Well, Adin Hill hasn't stayed between his posts throughout the season!" Yes, that is true. However, you're essentially swapping out one goalie who does this for another. The only difference is that Binnington is older (Binnington is 32) and smaller than Hill, standing at 6'2".
The Golden Knights can approach their goaltending situation without adding Binnington
This season, Hill has a goals saved above expected of -15.6. That's 66th among qualified goaltenders (minimum of 10 games played, stats courtesy of MoneyPuck). Surprisingly, he's done much better in this regard than Binnington, who ranks 71st (-23.8).
On top of that, his expected saves percentage on unblocked shots is significantly worse than Hill's (Binnington's save percentage here is .948, while Hill's is .960). Is it worth getting someone that is actually worse statistically than your current netminder?
That's why getting Binnington isn't the end-all be-all solution that people think it is. It doesn't address the glaring issue that is a lack of defensive-minded players and endless giveaways. The goaltending might not be the most spectacular. However, there's only so much that you can do when dealing with an odd-man rush or a breakaway.
Believe it or not, getting Cole Smith is a nice start. Yes, he's not too flashy and won't put up points. But that's not the main objective. The top priority is getting more defensive-minded players in front of the goaltender.
That includes Hill, who can't do the heavy lifting himself. Vegas does not have Marc-Andre Fleury in net anymore. That's why they need backchecking players more than they need Binnington right now. After all, you gotta fend off your rivals.