
Chuckie Sideburns is back.
With the loss of Jordan Binnington for at least the rest of the first round – the Blues took a blow that could ding their ability to make it to the second round.
Craig Berube made the announcement today at his press conference, but added a caveat that Binnington could be back for the Conference Finals if the Blues make the cut:
If the Blues are making the next round, they’re going to have to rely on Ville Husso to get them there – which is completely reasonable if the team keeps their heads about them and focuses playing like they did to start yesterday’s game, not how they played to finish it. They’re getting some support from Springfield for Husso, and he’s no slouch either.
The Blues have recalled Thunderbirds starter Charlie Lindgren to backup Husso. Lindgren, you may remember, made a splash here at the start of the season when both Binnington and Husso were out. In St. Louis, he went 5-0-0 with a microscopic 1.22 GAA and a .958 save percentage.
The Stanley Cup playoffs are clearly a different beast than the start of the season, but Lindgren has continued to roll in the AHL. He’s gone 24-7-1 with a 2.21 GAA and a .925 save percentage for the T-Birds’ regular season. His postseason numbers are a bit higher – in two games played, he has a 3.50 GAA and .916SV%, but he’s still more than a viable backup to Husso for the time being.
What’s concerning on the AHL side is that the loss of Lindgren may (but hopefully will not) hamper them getting past the Charlotte Checkers in the division finals, which began today.