Should you have mixed emotions about Ville Husso?

Here’s a head-scratcher: “Should you have mixed emotions about the St. Louis Blues backup goaltender Ville Husso?”

I don’t know about you, but I have mixed emotions about Husso. I had a feeling that he wasn’t going to excel in the playoffs.

Husso doesn’t have much postseason experience. He holds a 2-1 record from his first three starts on May 2nd, 4th, and 6th. After stopping all 37 shots in a tremendous Game 1, he allowed five goals and four goals in Games 2 and 3.

Husso isn’t horrible, but he’s not a hero either. He’s a regular season goaltender in my eyes.
The Blues were thin on defense during Husso’s starts. At least three of the Blues’ top six defensemen — Nick Leddy, Robert Bortuzzo, and Marco Scandella — were injured during the first two games.

So I can’t put all of the blame on Husso’s goaltending for the first-round defensive woes, but I can tell you that Husso’s ability to bounce back was likely a reason why he was a starter. He was one of the better goaltenders this regular season, finishing with a 25-7-0-6 record in 38 starts. And, when he started 21 home games, he had a .926 save percentage for fifth in the NHL.

Husso will become an unrestricted free agent this summer. The Blues have just $22,379 in final cap space. I believe that the Blues will let him go, and he’ll sign with the Buffalo Sabres. The Sabres need a better goaltender as their goaltending situation seems to be a mess.

But it’s not the offseason yet, so we’ll see if Husso or Binnington gets the nod for Game 6 on Thursday, May 12th at 8:30 pm Central. Odds are good it will be Binnington.