St. Louis Blues goaltender Ville Husso has been involved in trade rumours all season, and the Oilers were connected, and seemed to be interested as soon as his name hit the market. The 27 year old has posted a .922SV% with a 2.45GAA through 32 games with the Blues, and has an impressive 19-6-5 record between the pipes. Obviously Husso is still young, and the risk is definitely there, but the Oilers would be improving immensely in net with the addition of the young tendy who, hopefully can stay as consistent as he has.
The Finnish goaltender has spent time in the AHL and grinded his way to the NHL last season and got the opportunity to play 17 games with St. Louis, where he posted an .893SV% and a 3.21GAA, so he has shown insane improvement in just one season. Before coming to the NHL, Husso spent time in the LIIGA, playing for HIFK. In 3 seasons and 121 games, he posted a 921SV% and a 2.13GAA, and was one of the stronger goalies in Finland, earning his pro shot in North America.
The Oilers obviously have to move some money to make the signing work, and they’ll likely have to choose between re-signing Koskinen or trying to go all in on a different goalie, like Husso. Personally, I’d go all in on Husso, he’s more consistent, and has shown it. Running a tandem of Stuart Skinner and Ville Husso behind the already dangerous offensive skill the Oilers have, as well as the likely improved D core next season could make the Oilers a true contender.
Ideal Contract For The Oilers
The Oilers would likely want to lock Ville Husso up until he is 30, meaning he’ll likely be offered a 3-4 year deal. With that, I’d like to see the Oilers keep the money around $2.5-3M AAV. Not too expensive, and the contract is tradeable if the fit doesn’t work and/or his play declines.
Even with his impressive numbers, goalies are known to fluctuate throughout multiple seasons. Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin is a perfect example, as he has been the most dominant goaltender all season, but recently has seen a slight decline in performance. Husso could easily become one of those examples where a team puts too much money into him, and he was simply on a hot stretch, so there is definitely some serious risk behind signing him, but I truly believe it’s worth the risk.