It may not involve goaltender Jordan Binnington, but news out of Montreal has fueled speculation about a trade between the Canadiens and the St. Louis Blues.
Spurred in part by his placement atop the first trade board of the 2025-26 season from Nick Kypreos of Sportsnet, Binnington has been a pretty hot name in the NHL rumor mill, with Kypreos tossing out Edmonton as a potential destination for the 32-year-old. A few days ago, TSN analyst Darren Dreger opined about Montreal possibly looking at a move for Binnington, and league insider David Pagnotta said on the “Inside Sport” podcast that the Canadiens are “gauging the market” for a goaltender, citing the Blues as a possible trade partner.
“They've had a lot of talks with St. Louis about a few player,” Pagnotta said. “We haven't heard too much about Jordan Binnington and Montreal, but I do wonder with the Habs kind of exploring things, if that's an avenue that they at least inquire about to see if that’s an option for then.”
Blues Scouts at Montreal Games Spurs Chatter Involving Jordan Binnington
Dreger would walk back his initial comment, telling the TSN 690 audience that his team sources quickly dismissed any talk about a pursuit of Binnington. However, a photo making the rounds on social media showed that a pair of Blues scouts, Tim Taylor and Peter Chiarelli, were at Montreal’s game on Wednesday, with reports indicating that Blues representatives have been regular attendants of recent Canadiens contests.
“I keep looking at Montreal (as a team likely to make a trade) because I do know that (Canadiens GM Kent) Hughes is one of those teams that most definitely is continually kicking tires on the potential of a fit with St. Louis and some of the assets that they have up front,” Dreger said on Tuesday’s episode of the “Sekeres & Price” podcast. “Guys with a bit of experience but still fit in the age dynamic that Montreal is looking to build on.”
On Monday, NHL insider Elliotte Friedman, a regular panelist on CBC's Hockey Night in Canada, said on his “32 Thoughts” podcast that the buzz continues to suggest Blues GM Doug Armstrong is eager to shakeup the team’s roster.
“People are telling me he is certainly trying, absolutely trying,” Friedman said. “So we'll see. We'll see what he comes up with.
“I think he's looking pretty hard. I do. I mean, I had a couple people on the weekend who were like, ‘Checking on St. Louis. Checking on St. Louis.’ So he's really working it out there.”
NHL Analyst Says Doug Armstrong 'Looking Pretty Hard' for Trade Partners
Friedman acknowledged the challenges of working with so many no-trade and no-movement clauses among the player contracts, but he suggested that there are probably just a handful of players that Armstrong would refuse to include in any deals.
“So, he has to navigate those [contractual speed bumps], but I don't think there's too many untouchables,” Friedman said. “No, I mean, there's some that are obvious, but I don't think there's many of them.”
While the St. Louis/Montreal connection has gotten most of the attention of late, scouts representing roughly half of the NHL teams were reportedly in attendance at the Blues’ 5-2 loss to Boston at TD Garden on Thursday. And with eyes on St. Louis from every corner of the league, the next move may come sooner than later.