When Ville Husso was signed to a three-year extension with Detroit, he was brought in to help stabilize the goaltending situation with the Red Wings. Husso replaced veteran Thomas Greiss who was not offered a contract by Detroit, and went on to replace Husso in St. Louis.
Husso has been teamed with incumbent Alex Nedeljkovic, and the duo has been spectacular more often than not. After Sunday’s victory at Madison Square Garden in New York, the Red Wings have a record of 7-3-2, good for 6th in the overall NHL standings.
Husso has been terrific in almost every game he has played. In seven games to start the season, he has a 5-1-1 record, with a 1.86 GAA, a .941 SV%, and two shutouts. He is only the 5th goaltender in franchise history to record two shutouts in his first seven games.
In the seven games to begin his career in Detroit, Husso has been named 1st star once, 2nd star twice, and 3rd star on one occasion. Not only has Husso been the early MVP of the Red Wings, but he is also helping make Nedeljkovic better as well. In five games, Nedeljkovic has a 2-2-0 record and has been 1st star once and 2nd star on one other occasion.
Husso’s Contract
On July 8, 2022, the St. Louis Blues traded Ville Husso to the Detroit Red Wings. The Red Wings acquired Husso from the Blues for a 2022 3rd-round draft pick. Husso was set to become a UFA, and Detroit promptly signed him to a three-year contract extension so that he could remain with the Red Wings. Husso has an annual cap hit of $4.75M, and his contract runs through the 2024-2025 season.
Before the trade, Husso had played 57 regular season games for St. Louis. Last season, Husso had a record of 25-7-6, with a 2.56 GAA, a .919 SV%, and two shutouts in 40 games. Last season, Husso struggled to a 2-5-0 record during the playoffs and was replaced prior to the Blues being eliminated from the playoffs.
Expectations
After acquiring Husso prior to the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, the Red Wings expected Husso and Nedeljkovic to share the goaltending duties for Detroit. So far, Husso has helped to solidify an area that the Red Wings desperately needed to improve. With the addition of several key free agents and with Husso and Nedeljkovic holding the fort behind the defense, the Red Wings have played beyond the expectations of Detroit management and the diehard Red Wings faithful.
It is hard to imagine the Red Wings continuing this rate of success for an entire season. Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman would not put a timeline for returning to the playoffs. There is no doubt that success is contagious, and the Red Wings feel good about how they have played five weeks into the new season.
