Blackhawks: Signing Ville Husso

With our fifth instalment of this series, we look at our first goaltending target: Ville Husso. The 27 year old Finnish goalie has impressed everyone in St. Louis, playing 40 games with a .919sv% and a 2.56GAA in the regular season. His name was thrown around a ton around the trade deadline, so it was a surprise when he wasn't picked up by anybody. With that being said, if the Blues think his price tag is too high and he hits free agency. There is no doubt in my mind he would be worth every penny he is asking for.

He is young enough that he still has another gear to find, but old enough that he is ready to be an NHL starter. He only has 57 games of NHL experience, so preferably I'd like to see him be paired in a tandem with someone that makes up for the lack of games played in the major league level, but he would be a starter on a majority of teams in the NHL, specifically the Blackhawks. I can't see the Blues bringing him back, or him wanting to go back to the Blues with Binnington locked up for as long as he is, so the obvious choice is to walk to free agency and get the pay day he deserves.

Should the Blackhawks sign him?

Yes, he's likely going to look for a long term deal so it's going to be a risk to take. But, I stand by my word that I believe he is worth every penny. I can see the Blackhawks signing him to a 4-5 year deal worth $4-4.5 Million dollars a season. If the team is willing to spend that money on a goalie, the goalie of choice should be Husso and it should be a no brainer. He looks ready to be the guy that a team leans on, and with the playoff experience he'll be getting with St. Louis this season, he'll be ready to compete by the time the Hawks are contenders yet again.