Of all the possible trades the Detroit Red Wings could make this offseason, this seems extremely unlikely.
NHL insider Elliotte Friedman believes that the Red Wings should target a goaltender. Not just any goaltender: St. Louis Blues starting netminder Jordan Binnington. While Binnington is a perfectly fine starter in his own right, the proposal makes no sense. The Red Wings already have John Gibson. They’ve got prospects Sebastian Cossa, Michal Postava and Trey Augustine in the pipeline.
Why in the world would they consider trading for a goaltender?
Friedman’s reasoning behind Binnington trade proposal
On last week’s episode of The 32 Thoughts Podcast, Friedman spoke a little about the Blues and Binnington’s future with the team.
“St. Louis and Detroit have done deals before,” Friedman said, “and I didn’t think Gibson orTalbot were the problem this year, but…if I was Detroit, I’d be looking at that.”
What?
Binnington is entering the last year of his contract where he’ll be making $6 million in 2026-27. The netminder ended last season with a brutal .873 save percentage and 3.33 goals against average. He’ll be 33 at the start of next season. Gibson, also 33 by the start of next season, ended this last year with a .901 save percentage and a 2.72 goals against average. At this point in their respective careers, Gibson is the better goalie by a decent margin.
So why in the world would Friedman think this trade would benefit the Red Wings?
Why this trade makes no sense
If the goal is to secure a solid backup goaltender, bringing Binnington into the fold makes no sense. From a financial standpoint, a $6 million backup makes no sense. Why would the Red Wings spend assets like draft picks and prospects on a $6 million backup? If injuries are a concern, Gibson played every game he started this season. If he goes down, sure, the Red Wings will be in trouble, but what NHL franchise wouldn’t be in trouble without their starting netminder?
It’s safe to assume one of Cossa or Postava will serve as Gibson’s backup next season, But, should the Red Wings decide to pursue another path, couldn’t they just get a backup on the free agency market at a much cheaper rate? Goaltenders like Laurent Brossoit and Stuart Skinner will be available for a much cheaper cost while producing at a similar or higher rate.
This doesn’t even begin to touch on Binnington’s modified no-trade clause. He’d either need to have Detroit outside his 14 team no-trade list, or he’d need to waive that clause to go to the Red Wings. Why would he do that if he’s just going to play backup? He’s still a suitable starter at the NHL level.
No matter how you look at it, this proposed trade doesn’t make any sense.
