Watch: Fleury thought it would be fun to fight Binnington

Marc-Andre Fleury and Jordan Binnington Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports

Watch: Marc-Andre Fleury really wanted to fight Jordan Binnington, thought it would be fun

By Adam Gretz | Last updated 3/16/23

There has already been a goalie goal in the NHL this season and we very nearly had a goalie fight on Wednesday night, when Minnesota Wild goalie Marc-Andre Fleury skated the length of the ice to challenge St. Louis Blues goalie Jordan Binnington.

Fleury really wanted to fight him. A lot.

So much so that he tried to convince the linesman who interceded to let him go because it would, in Fleury's words, be "fun" and "get the crowd going a little bit."

Fleury was mic'ed up for the game and the exchange was caught on tape.

Enjoy x #mnwild pic.twitter.com/U2X2h4ouYK
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) March 16, 2023

That entire sequence was kicked off by Binnington hitting Minnesota forward Ryan Hartman in the face with his blocker following a goal, which promped Fleury to get involved.

Binnington was subsequently ejected from the game and given a two-game suspension from the league on Thursday for his actions.

Prior to that sequence Binnington had been seen yelling at the Wild bench after an earlier goal. Nothing new, there. The Blues netminder is consistently one of the most disliked players and goalies in the league because of his tendencies to stir the pot and get involved with other players.

Earlier this season Blues head coach Craig Berube called out his goalies' temper, saying he just needed to focus on playing goal and stopping the puck. The message never got through, clearly, because Binnington just took an ejection and a two-game suspension while very nearly receiving a knuckle sandwich from one of the game's most beloved players.

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