Jon Cooper makes it official and names Team Canada's starting goalie
Photo credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
Team Canada has some difficult decisions to make at the Winter Olympics, with head coach Jon Cooper obsessing over who his starting goalie is going to be.
Going into the Winter Olympics, there has been a debate about who should be the starting goalie for Team Canada's men's hockey team.
Team Canada brought Jordan Binnington, Darcy Kuemper, and Logan Thompson. Binnington helped Canada win the 4 Nations Face-Off, and he has been considered the de facto starter.
However, Binnington is having the worst season of his career, and it feels like playing him would be a tournament-losing mistake.
Who is starting for Team Canada against Czechia?
On Thursday, Team Canada will play its very first game against Team Czechia. Canada should win this game with ease, but goaltending will be pivotal.
According to new reports, it is expected that Binnington will, in fact, be the starting goaltender on Thursday, which goes against what the fans want.
Head coach Jon Cooper put a lot of trust in Binnington at the 4 Nations Face-Off, so it is easy to see why he would give Binnington another chance.
Regardless, when you look at the statistics, it is clear that Binnington is not the best goaltender on the ice.
Jordan Binnington's stats are not good
With a goals-against average of 3.65 and a save percentage of .864, it is difficult to argue that Binnington should be the starter in the first game.
However, we imagine he is going to be on an extremely short leash. If he plays poorly against Czechia on Thursday, expect Logan Thompson and perhaps even Darcy Kuemper to get some ice time.
This is going to be a fascinating angle of the tournament, and we imagine Canada is very nervous about whether or not goaltending will lose them the tournament.
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