The Jordan Binnington haters were ready to pounce.
After the St. Louis Blues and Canada goalie allowed two third-period goals against Sweden on Wednesday in the opener of the 4 Nations Face-Off that erased a two-goal Canada lead, doubters were eager and anxious to be heard.
Well once again, Binnington was happy enough to silence his critics. When the stage is bright and gets brighter and more pressure-packed, he proved again on this night he’s up to the task.
He made one huge left-to-right save on New York Rangers forward Mika Zibanejad at 1:55 of overtime to keep the game alive:
He then came up with another brilliant save, this time on Los Angeles Kings forward Adrian Kempe’s redirection right in his grill after Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar was without a stick:
If not for either of those two stops, Canada doesn’t get to see this overtime winner by Toronto Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner, set up by the great Sidney Crosby — his third assist of the game — of the Pittsburgh Penguins:
Binnington, who stopped 23 of 26 shots for the game, had little to no work in the first period, seeing only three shots while Canada took a 2-0 lead. But Sweden began to find its legs and quality chances, including this redirection by Penguins forward Rikard Rakell in the second period:
Sure, you can question the positioning perhaps of Binnington on Minnesota WIld defenseman Jonas Brodin’s goal that made it 2-1; if he’s upright more, that puck hits his upper body instead of glances off the shoulder and up into the net, but the Kempe shot early in the third period was a goal scorer’s goal and the Joel Eriksson Ek (Wild) goal on a tap-in at the side of the net was a beautiful play by the upset-minded Swedes.
The stakes were high and when it mattered most, Binnington rose to the occasion and helped his country win a game that it — and he — would have been ridiculed for if Canada lost.
Also, Blues defenseman Colton Parayko had three shots on goal and three blocked shots in 22:58 having to play extra minutes when Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Shea Theodore left early with an apparent injury to his right hand/wrist.
Parayko, who was partnered most of the game with WInnipeg Jets defenseman Josh Morrissey, started the outlet on Canada’s second goal that made it 2-0 scored by Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand:
