How good is Ville Husso?

St. Louis Blues backup goaltender Ville Husso will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.

I don’t dislike Husso at all. If he continues to play the way he has been playing, he may be the hottest UFA in the NHL’s free agent market. To be honest, I think he’ll end up signing with the Buffalo Sabres. The Sabres are a team that needs to acquire a high-quality goalie as they tend to have problems with their goalie depth. But that’s just my opinion, and I could be wrong.

Anywho, I don’t have anything against Husso. He’s a backup goalie for the Blues. He’s making a name for himself, making saves, and making the goal crease his, too. He’s proving what he can do on the ice.

But Husso is good, not great. He’s currently in the second year of a two-year, $1.5 million contract. His record is 19-13-0-2 in 19 starts in 20 games played, along with a .935% save percentage. His record is not too far ahead of goalie Jordan Binnington, whose record is 13-10-0-3 in 26 starts in 26 games played.

Binnington has been struggling to keep the puck out of the net. However, it’s important to keep in mind that he lost some of his favorite defensive helpers such as Alex Pietrangelo, Carl Gunnarsson, and Jay Bouwmeester since winning the Stanley Cup. He’s also dealt with COVID-19 to an extent, which could have been part of his struggles.

Husso can certainly dominate when he guards the net. But, at the same time, he’s not a lifesaver for the Blues. He’s still a work in progress. He just turned 27 on Feb. 6th. He wasn’t an immediate starting goalie after being drafted 94th overall by the Blues in the 2014 NHL Draft.

The goalie is arguably the most difficult position to play in hockey. If it was easy, then me, you, and all of us could be put in the net to deflect pucks.

The Blues have bigger problems to address than the Binnington-Husso saga. Like I stated the other day, Binnington-Husso reminds me of the Allen-Binnington. Husso appears to have a promising career ahead of him, but it’s too early to tell.