The Detroit Red Wings brought in Ville Husso from the St. Louis Blues today, and signed him to a 3-year, $14.25 million contract. Several media pundits weighed in on the deal, including The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun…
The Avalanche, meanwhile, have let it be known they’re willing to move Kuemper’s rights before he hits the market Wednesday. That’s exactly what the Blues did Friday morning netting a third-round pick for moving Husso’s rights to Detroit. I really like this move by Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman. First of all, the contract was sensible, three years and $4.75 million AAV. But secondly, Husso was the youngest of the notable UFA goalies which fits in nicely with the program in Detroit.
It’s believed the Wings also had interest in [Jack] Campbell but given the uncertainty and competition for him, this felt the safer route for Detroit.
Real sneaky play here by Yzerman.
Daily Faceoff’s Scott Burnside…
Ville Husso was one of the few emerging netminders set to hit the free agent market, and while there are still lots of questions about his upside and his ability to be a No. 1 NHL netminder, Detroit rolled the dice hoping he can at least compete with Alex Nedeljkovic for a chance to become the Red Wings’ starter of the future. Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman acquired Husso, 27, from St. Louis for a third-round pick in the Draft. The Red Wings then signed Husso to a three-year deal with an average annual cap hit of $4.75 million. Nedeljkovic, 26, has one more year left on his deal at $3 million, so Yzerman has ensured goaltending certainty beyond the coming season. Can the tandem help push the rebuilding Red Wings into the playoff discussion next spring? If Husso, who came on in relief of a shaky Jordan Binnington during the regular season and was stellar, going 25-7-6 with a .919 save percentage, can replicate that level of performance, the answer is yes. But Husso gave way to Binnington early in the playoffs and then when called on after Binnington was injured against Colorado, Husso struggled. So there is that to consider, too.
NHL.com’s Dan Rosen, who spoke with Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman about the trade…
The Red Wings felt the pull to get something done in the goalie market too, so they jumped the queue on a pending UFA, giving up the No. 73 pick in the 2022 draft to acquire the rights to Ville Husso from the St. Louis Blues before the second round began Friday.
Husso was signed to a three-year contract with the Red Wings before the draft ended.
It’ll be Husso and Alex Nedeljkovic in Detroit next season.
“We feel comfortable that this makes us a better team, and we had the cap space and the contract isn’t seven years or anything like that,” Yzerman said. “It’s a very reasonable term for us, and we think they’ll play well. There’s not a lot of goalies out there, and we felt like we better get one.”
And we conclude this lap around the NHL by returning to The Athletic, whose Dom Luszczyszyn is tepid on the Wings’ decision to bring in another unproven goaltender:
Red Wings get: Goalie Ville Husso
Blues get: A third-round pick, No. 73, in 2022.
A minor deal in the grand scheme of things — we don’t usually assess trades for negotiating rights — but this one is intriguing due to the free-agent goalie landscape. The options are dwindling quickly and the Red Wings were wise to cut the line and snag their guy before the market even opens.
Ville Husso was looking like one of the better options out there after a strong sophomore season and the eventual contract he earned is definitely sensible. In 40 games last year, Husso saved 13 goals above expected off the strength of a .919 save percentage. That ranked seventh in the entire league. In that sense, the Red Wings did really well here.
The concern comes from lessons learned last season with Alex Nedeljkovic, a move that carried a similar vibe. Excellent numbers … in a small sample. How trustworthy is that? It’s always tough to say with goalies, but the safe bet is not to expect Husso to be as good as he was in 2021-22. That’s especially true since he tailed off in the second half after a scorching first half. Expect a serviceable starter, with a lot of room for error.
It’s a decent bet, but it does carry some risk in terms of on-ice performance. The cost to get his negotiating rights wasn’t high though and that’s the key. There aren’t a lot of options left out there and Detroit did well getting ahead. As for the Blues — any time you can get anything for a player not coming back is a win.
Blues: B+
Red Wings: B
