The NHL has announced that St. Louis Blues’ goaltender Jordan Binnington has been fined $5,000 after a high-sticking play during last night’s game. The fine is the maximum amount under the CBA. The money will be allocated to the Player’s Emergency Assistance Fund.
The incident occurred at the 19:14 mark of the third period and Binnington was assessed a minor penalty on the play. As Nashville Predators’ forward Luke Evangelista came out from being the St. Louis net, Binnington purposefully raised his stick directly in the path of the oncoming Predators’ forward. This is not the first time Binnington has done a similar play in the NHL.
There was just 43.7 seconds left on the clock in the game and there was absolutely no need for the Blues’ goalie to react in that way. The Predators ended up winning the game by a convincing 5-2 margin and at that point there was no hope for a Blues’ comeback. Binnington allowed four goals on 32 shots for a save percentage of .875%.
The Blues currently sit in the final wildcard spot in the Western Conference with a record of 29-23-2. They have a long way to go before clinching a playoff spot but they’re in a decent position right now. Binnington has been just alright this season. He has a record of 19-15-2 with a 2.93 GAA and .908 SV%. Those aren’t great numbers but they’re an improvement over the previous two seasons when he put up a .901% and .894%, respectively.
The 30-year-old netminder still has three years left on his contract after this season is over and will be paid $6 million annually for the duration of it. The Blues rank 20th in the NHL in goals for per game so they will be relying on Binnington a lot for the rest of the season to shut the door on opposing teams.
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