from Nicholas J. Cotsonkia of NHL.com,

Think this stage is too big for Binnington, who started the season in the minors, has a grand total of 52 games of NHL experience and is living in a hotel in St. Louis? Think he's intimidated by the Boston Bruins, who are scoring 3.35 goals per game in the playoffs, or their goalie Tuukka Rask, who played in the Final in 2013, won the Vezina Trophy in 2014 and leads the playoffs in goals-against average (1.84) and save percentage (.942)?

Well, nothing has been too big for him yet. He has seized opportunities with a calm confidence. This is another one.

"He's faced that type of adversity," said defenseman Alex Pietrangelo, the Blues captain. "You know the whole storyline of how he got here and never doubts himself, trusts his ability, trusts his work ethic. That's why he is where he is. That's why he's gotten where he is.

"It's obviously not a traditional route to get to this point, but it's not easy to get to where he is. I think the first three rounds only prepared him for this. And if you want to be successful, you want to kind of have that demeanor, you can't let things affect you. And nothing seems to bother him."

read on