'It'll be fun, no?': Wild's Fleury challenges Blues' Binnington to a fight
NHL linesmen prevent St. Louis Blues goalie Jordan Binnington and Minnesota Wild goalie Marc-Andre Fleury from fighting at the Enterprise Center on March 15, 2023 in St. Louis, Mo. (Photo by Scott Rovak/NHLI via Getty Images)
Fans almost got to see a rare fight between goalies Wednesday night when the Minnesota Wild's Marc-Andre Fleury challenged the St. Louis Blues' Jordan Binnington.
It's fitting the almost-fight happened during St. Louis's "Wrestling Night," with WWE superstar Rick Flair in the building and part of the pre-game ceremonies to complete the evening's theme.
In the Blues' locker room, Flair jokingly asked "who's the badass on this team?" after praising the athletes' hard work and dedication to the sport and announcing the squad's starting lineup.
It appears Binnington took Flair's comment to heart, because after allowing a power play goal from Minnesota's Ryan Hartman in the second period, he took a swing at the forward, causing a scrum.
Fleury, it seemed, wanted to test Binnington's resolve. The 38-year-old Vezina Trophy winner skated down to the other end of the ice to challenge Binnington, dropping his gloves and taking off his helmet. The on-ice officials, however, quickly broke up the would-be brawl.
But while fans didn't get to see a goalie fight, luckily, the Wild's social media team had Fleury mic'd up and posted their own video of the encounter.
"It'll be fun, no?" Fleury said to an official as he was guided away from Binnington. "Get the crowd going a bit, yeah?"
After it was clear the officials wouldn't allow things to escalate, Fleury urged the linesman to let him pick up his equipment.
"I'll just get my stuff," he said. "I don't like having my hair like this."
Even though the fight didn't materialize, after the game Fleury told reporters he felt he needed to step in to protect his teammate.
"I don't know, I saw him jump in there and punch one of our guys, so I felt that was my guy I had to take care of," Fleury said.
