"We drafted him, and he took the long road to get here, but since he's been here, we've had success, and obviously we're hoping to find a way to keep him here," Armstrong said in comments published Thursday.
The 27-year-old is in the final season of a two-year, $8.8 million contract ($4.4 million average annual value) he agreed to July 13, 2019. It came one month after he set a rookie record for Stanley Cup Playoff wins, going 16-10 with a 2.46 goals-against average, .914 save percentage and one shutout in 26 games to help the Blues win the Stanley Cup.
"[Binnington] bet on himself, and he's going to get paid like those guys, expect to be paid, and will get paid like the guys that have had success," Armstrong said. "I think around the League, he's looked at as a good No. 1, and that's the way we'll look at him as."
Notable goalie contracts signed this offseason included Jacob Markstrom with the Calgary Flames (six years, $36 million; $6 million AAV), Robin Lehner with the Vegas Golden Knights (five years, $25 million; $5 million AAV), Matt Murray with the Ottawa Senators (four years, $25 million; $6.25 AAV), and Braden Holtby with the Vancouver Canucks (two years, $8.6 million; $4.3 million AAV).
Binnington started the 2018-19 season fourth on the Blues depth chart but took over the starting job, was 24-5-1 with a 1.89 GAA, .927 save percentage and five shutouts in 32 regular-season games (30 starts) and finished second to Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Pettersson in voting for the Calder Trophy, awarded to the NHL rookie of the year. After that season, Binnington opted to sign a shorter contract rather than a long-term deal.
Last season, Binnington was 30-13-7 with a 2.56 GAA, .912 save percentage and three shutouts in 50 games, but in the playoffs was 0-5-0 with a 4.72 GAA and .851 save percentage in five games. He's 7-3-2 with a 2.37 GAA and .918 save percentage in 12 games this season.
Ville Husso, Binnington's backup, is in his first NHL season. He's 2-2-0 with a 3.74 GAA and .875 save percentage in five games (four starts).
"If you look at [Binnington's] age and you look at what he's accomplished, you know most teams have a No. 1 guy, and we have a No. 1 guy," Armstrong said. "Certainly, if he's not here, we're going to have to go find another partner for Husso. So our goal is to keep him here, obviously."
